Black Dahlia: When New York Times Reporters Rely on Faulty Memories

Posted on January 7, 2022 by lmharnisch

New York Times, Jill Abramson, Carl Bernstein, Jan. 7, 2022
Do reporters check the clips when writing for publication? Or do they rely on a faulty memory?

In the case of Jill Abramson, reviewing Carl Bernstein’s Chasing History for the New York Times, faulty memory wins out, along with a lack of fact-checking.

In a mere two lines of her review, Abramson packs in several errors that ought to be corrected.

–Will Fowler was a reporter for the Los Angeles Examiner. He never worked for the Los Angeles Times.

–Will Fowler claimed he was the first reporter at the Black Dahlia crime scene. He never said he found the body of Elizabeth Short.

–Will Fowler was also lying when he said he was the first reporter at the crime scene. He was one of the last to arrive. Will told many tall tales about his involvement in the Black Dahlia story; this was just one of them.

Reporters: Check the clips (or Google) rather than relying on your memory, which is apt to be faulty.

Posted in 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Homicide | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Black Dahlia: My Annual Donation in Memory of Elizabeth Short

Posted on January 4, 2022 by lmharnisch

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Note: This is an encore post from 2021.

As longtime readers know, I always begin a new year with an annual donation in memory of Elizabeth Short to Heading Home, which works with the homeless in the Boston area. Partly because of my research on Elizabeth Short, I try to make the issue of homelessness a continuing theme of the Daily Mirror.

I donate to an agency in the Boston area because of Elizabeth Short’s connections there, but Los Angeles also has a severe, chronic problem with homelessness and there are many local agencies that welcome donations. I recently visited Hollywood and saw camps of homeless people along the exit ramp from the northbound 101 onto Hollywood Boulevard and along the Walk of Fame. Men pushing shopping carts. Women cowering in doorways of buildings that are boarded up or closed with roll-down shutters that are tagged.

I believe people will find helping the homeless more meaningful in the long term than, for example, leaving a bottle of liquor and some cigarettes at her grave, especially since Elizabeth Short didn’t smoke and rarely drank.

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 3, 2022 by lmharnisch

2022_0108_Main_Title
This week’s mystery movie was the 1972 MGM film The Carey Treatment, with James Coburn, Jennifer O’Neill, Pat Hingle, Skye Aubrey, Elizabeth Allen, John Fink, and Dan O’Herlihy as J.D. Randall, James Hong, Alex Dreier, Michael Blodgett, Regis Toomey, Steve Carlson, Rosemary Edelman, Jennifer Edwards, John Hillerman, Robert Mandan, Warren Parker, Robie Porter, Morgan Sterne and Melissa Torme-March.  Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 34 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Betty White, America’s Sweetheart

Posted on January 3, 2022 by lmharnisch

Betty White in a red dress with a St. Bernard
On December 31, beloved television actress Betty White passed away at the age of 99. For more than 80 years, she charmed audiences with her quick wit, sly smile, genuine warmth, and wicked sense of humor. White’s expert comic timing and understated reactions often stole the show, whether in a situation comedy, game show, or television commercial.

What is often forgotten, however, is that White helped birth American television as one of the first women producers, devising a show playing to her strengths and capturing the realities of American life. Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide — Pisco Punch

Posted on December 31, 2021 by lmharnisch

New York Sun, April 23, 1934

Note: This is an encore post from 2013.

Just in time for New Year’s, we’ll take a look at a “lost drink,” making a brief inquiry into San Francisco’s Pisco Punch, made famous by Bank Exchange saloon owner Duncan Nicol (often spelled Nichol or Nicoll), who  died in 1926 without revealing the recipe.

Continue reading →

Posted in 1915, 1934, 1939, Food and Drink, San Francisco | Tagged , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide — Pisco Punch

Mary Astor’s Lost Film ‘New Year’s Eve’

Posted on December 31, 2021 by lmharnisch

mary_astor_charles_morton_new_years_eve
Note: This is an encore from January 2020.

Since TCM is featuring Mary Astor, here’s a brief post on her lost movie “New Year’s Eve.” (A tip of the hat to Lou Lumenick, who tweeted about the movie on — New Year’s Eve.) I also uploaded a version of this post to IMDB, in case you see it there.

Fox originally announced the film under the title “Strong Arm,” based on the story “$100” by Richard Connell, published in the August 1928 issue of Cosmopolitan Magazine. The film was supposed to star Lois Moran and George O’Brien in the leads, under the direction of J.G. Blystone. Fox initially planned the movie as a talkie, but released it as “New Year’s Eve,” a silent directed by Henry Lehrman with sound effects and music, designated “sound on film.”

Continue reading →

Posted in 1929, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Found on EBay: ‘What Actors Eat (When They Eat!)’

Posted on December 30, 2021 by lmharnisch

Cover, deep red, gold type What Actors Eat When They Eat

A copy of What Actors Eat (When They Eat!), a collection of celebrities’ recipes by Kenneth Harlan and Rex Lease, has been listed on EBay for $14.99. Copies are fairly rare an in good condition can sell for hundreds of dollars.

As always, an item and vendor should be evaluated thoroughly before submitting a bid.

Posted in books, Food and Drink, Found on EBay, Hollywood | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide – The Queens Cocktail

Posted on December 30, 2021 by lmharnisch

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Note: This is an encore post from 2017.

Joe Vogel asks if there was a Queens Cocktail. The answer is yes.

According to the Jamaica Long Island Daily Press, Jan. 24, 1935, the Queens Cocktail debuted at the Hotel Commodore in a toast to President Roosevelt. Via Fultonhistory.com.

(No word yet on the Staten Island Cocktail — and boy that sounds like a straight line).

Continue reading →

Posted in 1935, 1937, Food and Drink | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide — The Bronx Cocktail

Posted on December 29, 2021 by lmharnisch

Dec. 20, 1934, Holiday Cocktails

Dec. 20 1934, Holiday Drinks

Note: This is an encore post from 2013.

Dec. 20, 1934: In case you doubted me (but you wouldn’t, would you?), here’s a recipe for the Bronx Cocktail, from the Amsterdam Evening Recorder, courtesy of FultonHistory.com.

In case you plan to mix one up, a Bronx Cocktail is one part Italian vermouth, three parts brandy and a dash of orange bitters. Shake well!

Notice that there are also three variations of the Manhattan.

Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide — The Brooklyn Cocktail

Posted on December 28, 2021 by lmharnisch

March 5, 1937, Brooklyn Cocktail

March 7, 1937, Brooklyn Cocktail

Note: This is an encore post from 2013.

Yes, the Manhattan cocktail once had competition from drinks named for the other boroughs. Here’s a recipe for the Brooklyn Cocktail, from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 7, 1937. The Brooklyn Cocktail as made by Brad Dewey consisted of

Two parts Jamaica rum
One part lime juice
Dash of grenadine

We won’t be toasting the new year with the Brooklyn Cocktail (we’re working) but if someone is brave enough to try one, let us know how it is.

And in case you are wondering, research shows that there was also a Bronx Cocktail. Evidently it, too, has fallen out of favor.

Posted in 1937, Food and Drink | Tagged , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide — The Brooklyn Cocktail

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide: The Harvey Wallbanger

Posted on December 27, 2021 by lmharnisch

Harvey Wallbagner

A vintage 1972 iron-on transfer of Harvey Wallbanger himself, on EBay for $12.

Note: This is a repost from 2013.

We have been looking at some historic drinks for this holiday season. To the millennials in the audience: This is what mom and dad used to drink (along with the Tequila Sunrise) when they went out in the 1970s.

Return with us now to the thrilling days of yesteryear:

1 ounce of vodka
4 ounces of orange juice
half an ounce of Galliano.

Poured over ice in a highball glass.

Cue Grand Funk Railroad’s “Gimme Shelter” or Carole King’s “It’s Too Late.”

Posted in 1971, Food and Drink, Music | Tagged , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide: The Harvey Wallbanger

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on December 27, 2021 by lmharnisch

2022_0101_main_title
This week’s mystery movie was the 1944 Twentieth Century-Fox film Home in Indiana, with Walter Brennan, Charlotte Greenwood, Ward Bond, Charles Dingle.

Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 37 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Pickford Headlines 1933 Rose Parade

Posted on December 27, 2021 by lmharnisch

Mary Pickford, Rose Parade
Photo: Mary Pickford in the 1933 Rose Parade. Courtesy of Mary Mallory

Note: This is a 2012 post with a slight update. The 131st Rose Parade is on Wednesday.

Tomorrow sees the 124th annual Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena,  welcoming the new year with magnificent garlands of fresh flowers. It also acts as the 80th anniversary of Mary Pickford serving as the first female grand marshal of the parade.

Begun by the Valley Hunt Club in 1890, the Rose Parade saluted the area’s wonderful weather and flowering paradise.Soon, the Tournament of Roses Assn. took over what they now call “America’s New Year Celebration, greeting the world on the first day of the year….”

Continue reading →

Posted in 1933, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Pasadena | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Pickford Headlines 1933 Rose Parade

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide: A Brief History of the Tom and Jerry

Posted on December 26, 2021 by lmharnisch

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A recipe for the Tom and Jerry from the San Francisco Call, June 30, 1912.

Note: This is an encore post from 2013.

Over on Facebook, Christopher McPherson asked whether the Tom and Jerry was named for the MGM cartoon characters. I said I suspected the opposite was true, rather like Disney’s Chip ‘n’ Dale being named for Chippendale furniture.

All the old newspaper stories give credit for the drink to bartender Jerry Thomas, who according to one account was born in New Haven, Conn., in 1825 (or Watertown, N.Y., in 1830).

Continue reading →

Posted in 1862, Books and Authors, Food and Drink | Tagged , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide: A Brief History of the Tom and Jerry

Los Angeles Celebrates Christmas, 1913

Posted on December 25, 2021 by lmharnisch

Dec. 25, 1913, Christmas in Los Angeles

Dec. 25, 1913, Christmas

Note: This is an encore post from 2013.

Dec. 25, 1913: The Times carries a biblical passage across the nameplate (notice the artwork of the new and old Times buildings) and a Page 1 cartoon by Edmund Waller “Ted” Gale. “Cartoonist Gale” frequently drew a character known as Miss Los Angeles, but I don’t recall seeing “Mr. Wad” before. Gale was an institution at The Times for many years, but finally quit in a dispute and went to the Los Angeles Examiner. Continue reading →

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Dec. 24, 1907: Merry Christmas, Gen. Otis as Times Celebrates Record Year

Posted on December 25, 2021 by lmharnisch


Note: This is an encore post from 2006.

Dec. 24, 1907
Los Angeles

Last-minute shopping, crowded post offices, trees decorated in hotel lobbies and toys given by Santa to the neediest children of the city; it was a Christmas season very much like today. And at Levy’s, 310 Times employees gathered to celebrate the most prosperous year in the newspaper’s history.

Of course, as The Times noted, not everyone could attend because “the news must needs be collected and the wheels kept going.”

Between courses of the Christmas dinner, speakers made humorous comments, following the motto: “Spare not the gaff, but live to laugh.”

Harry Chandler received a set of doll triplets and Gen. Otis was presented with a tin sword. The employees also put together a comic eight-page paper, “The Timeslet,” full of jokes, satirical ads and cartoons. Among the most notable speakers was George W. Burton, “known around the office as ‘The Bishop,’ who gave “a jolly and entertaining talk, full of humorous thrusts at the managing editor and others.”

Continue reading →

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Dec. 25, 1947: The Times Christmas Poem

Posted on December 25, 2021 by lmharnisch

L.A. Times, 1947

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project.

The Times’ front-page Christmas and Easter poems are as forgotten today as their author, James M. Warnack. I’ll leave it to my theological betters to parse the significance of a Christmas poem that’s mostly about the crucifixion, but Warnack was just as contradictory as his work.

He called himself the Foothill Philosopher and was nicknamed around the office as “the Bishop” because of his angular features and long, white hair. An actor in his early life, he appeared in D.W. Griffith’s silent movies, portrayed a priest in the “Mission Play” and Judas in the first “Pilgrimage Play.”

Continue reading →

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Dec. 14, 1907: L.A. Schools Ban Mention of Christ at Christmas (Uh-Oh)

Posted on December 25, 2021 by lmharnisch


Note: This is an encore post from 2006.

Dec. 14, 1907
Los Angeles

The madman who calls himself the superintendent of the Los Angeles schools has touched off an absolute firestorm of anger by ordering teachers not to mention Christ during Christmas pageants or other festivities.

“The town was agog with it yesterday,” The Times said. “It was the talk among both ministers and laymen of the 200 and more churches in Los Angeles.”

Continue reading →

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Dec. 23, 1947: Baby Girl Abandoned at Downtown Restaurant With Christmas Card Pinned to Blanket

Posted on December 25, 2021 by lmharnisch

L.A. Times, 1947

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project.

The young mother asked the waitress at the cafe in the Subway Terminal Building to hold her baby for just a moment—and then she was gone.

Four-month-old Nancy Joyce Morris, with light blue eyes and blond hair, was wrapped in a purple quilt and a pink blanket to which her young mother had pinned a Christmas card: To Mr. and Mrs. Robert Lane, 1711 N. Alexandria, with a return address of C.H. Wagoner, 4256 Troost Ave., in North Hollywood. It was signed Bonnie.

Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Steve Hodel’s Many Lies About His Father, Dr. George Hodel

Posted on December 24, 2021 by lmharnisch

Your Theory Is Junk in cutout lettersSomeone asked me to write a one-paragraph rebuttal to Steve Hodel’s claims about his father, Dr. George Hodel. My reply:

Steve Hodel has been lying about his father and the Black Dahlia for nearly 20 years, so it’s impossible to put a rebuttal into one paragraph, but here goes.

Six Reasons George Hodel Didn’t Kill Elizabeth Short.
Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, books, Cold Cases, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments