Tag Archives: 1947

Black L.A. 1947: Meet the Honor Students of Jefferson High

Posted on January 8, 2018 by lmharnisch

Jan. 9, 1947: The Sentinel publishes the photos of four Jefferson High students on the front page: Florence Smith, Ivan Baldwin, Gen Lew and Walter Richard Lumpkin. Here we meet four young people — and a significant research challenge: What … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Education, Stage | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Jan. 7, 1947: Man Uses Same Coffee Cup for 27 Years

Posted on January 7, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006 for the 1947project. Same Coffee Cup Used 27 Years WHITTIER, Jan. 6—Truman B. Carl, a city employee, today rounded out 27 consecutive years of coffee drinking from the same oversized china … Continue reading →

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Jan. 5, 1947: Two Black 15-Year-Olds Set for Electric Chair After Losing Plea

Posted on January 5, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006 for the 1947project. Jan. 5, 1947: “The majority of Americans belong to one minority group or another,” said Dr. Will Durant, author and lecturer, yesterday in outlining the scope of the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Crime and Courts | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: Mary Lou Williams ‘Waltz Boogie’

Posted on January 5, 2018 by lmharnisch

“Leon Wheaton of 1011 E. 43rd Place, Los Angeles, one of the latest local victims of police brutality,” in a photo published Jan. 2, 1947, in the Los Angeles Sentinel.  Unfortunately, there is no further information in the Sentinel about … Continue reading →

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Jan. 4, 1947: Angry Sailor Sets Fire to Skid Row Hotel After Being Rolled

Posted on January 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006 for the 1947Project. Jan. 4, 1947: Suppose, for a moment, that you are a 19-year-old mess cook second class stationed in San Pedro. Suppose further that while you are on leave … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Black Dahlia, Crime and Courts, Fires, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A. 1947: 10 Black Doctors Admitted to Leading Surgical Society, Raising Number to 14

Posted on January 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Leon H. Washington Jr., left, publisher of the Sentinel, marches in a picket line with a sign that says “Don’t Buy Where You Can’t Work” in a photo published Jan. 2, 1947. Jan. 2, 1947: At its convention in Cleveland, … Continue reading →

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Jan. 3, 1947: Actress Helen Walker Hurt in Crash That Kills Soldier, Injures 2 Others

Posted on January 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Yes, this is the Jan. 2, 1947, comics page, which pops up for Jan. 3, 1947. Note: This is a post that I wrote in 2006 for the 1947project. This is one of those days where there’s too much to … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Crime and Courts, Hollywood, Music, Transportation, Vietnam | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: First African American Named to L.A. Police Commission

Posted on January 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Jan. 2, 1947: The Los Angeles Sentinel publishes the photo of Charles H. Matthews on Page 1 as part of its roundup of major stories from 1946. Matthews, a former deputy district attorney and an NAACP executive at the time, … Continue reading →

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Jan. 2, 1947: Second Child Dies as Tragedy Strikes Family Again

Posted on January 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006 for the 1947project. Jan. 2, 1947: In the fall of 1939, The Times carried a series of heart-wrenching stories about Dicky Trust, a toddler who was diagnosed with leukemia, which … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Comics, Medicine | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A. 1947: Racist Street Sign Removed; Advertisers, Officials Repudiate ‘The Equalizer’

Posted on January 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

Jan. 2, 1947: The Los Angeles Sentinel publishes a photo of a street sign reading “Dixiana Circle” at 23rd Street and Long Beach Avenue. The Sentinel reported June 6, 1946, that the street had been renamed Staunton.  Not too surprisingly, … Continue reading →

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Jan. 1, 1947: New Year’s Resolutions

Posted on January 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006 for the 1947project. Also notice that because newsprint was scarce, the Los Angeles Times didn’t publish the classified ads so it could provide adequate space for stories – I cannot imagine … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Art & Artists, Comics, World War II | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: Buddy Young — First African American to Score a Touchdown in the Rose Bowl

Posted on January 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

A 1947 Rose Bowl program, listed on EBay, with bids starting at $10.50.   Jan. 1, 1947: On the program’s cover, the players are white… … but the Sentinel’s sports section highlights five African Americans playing in the Rose Bowl: … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A. 1947: Cross Burnings and Jim Crow Trains in Los Angeles – The Biggest Stories of 1946

Posted on December 29, 2017 by lmharnisch

In its Jan. 2, 1947, issue, the Los Angeles Sentinel looked back at the major stories of 1946, a good introduction to the year ahead: Job discrimination, Jim Crow laws, segregated housing, police beatings and racial violence. We will be … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: A Two-Year Update and a Look Ahead

Posted on December 26, 2017 by lmharnisch

The second anniversary of my retirement from the Los Angeles Times coincided with lots of questions prompted by a Fox News piece on Piu Eatwell’s “Black Dahlia, Red Rose.” Even though I had blogged about the book repeatedly, people still … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1947, African Americans, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, History | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Black Dahlia: 5 Reasons Leslie Dillon Didn’t Kill Elizabeth Short

Posted on December 22, 2017 by lmharnisch

Leslie Dillon in an undated photo, probably taken in the late 1940s.   My inbox is exploding with alerts about Piu Eatwell “solving” the Black Dahlia case by attributing it to Leslie Duane Dillon. Here are five simple reasons that … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 2017, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Black Dahlia: The Formosa Cafe and Another Good Story Ruined

Posted on December 20, 2017 by lmharnisch

My inbox exploded this morning with alerts about the Black Dahlia and links leading to an essay in the Los Angeles Times by David Ulin, writing about the Formosa Cafe (which he calls “the Formosa” – a gaffe nobody bothered … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Food and Drink, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Black Dahlia: The Formosa Cafe and Another Good Story Ruined

Black Dahlia: The Biltmore Hotel, Ghost Hunting and Another Good Story Ruined

Posted on October 31, 2017 by lmharnisch

I think we have found one presumably young and aspiring reporter who apparently believes in doing absolutely no research whatsoever.

Posted in 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Black Dahlia: ‘Horror at the Cecil Hotel’

Posted on October 17, 2017 by lmharnisch

Just a quick reminder, since Investigation Discovery aired the first episode of “Horror at the Cecil Hotel” last night. There is nothing to show that Elizabeth Short (“the Black Dahlia”) ever set foot in the Cecil Hotel. She was last … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Downtown, LAPD, Main Street, Television | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Black Dahlia: Piu Eatwell’s ‘Black Dahlia, Red Rose’ – A Name to Remember

Posted on October 10, 2017 by lmharnisch

Donald Freed in Piu Eatwell’s “Black Dahlia, Red Rose.” There are many names and many claims in Piu Eatwell’s new book, “Black Dahlia, Red Rose,” but the most important for our purposes is that of Donald Freed, a very pleasant … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Black Dahlia: Piu Eatwell’s ‘Black Dahlia, Red Rose’ – A Bad Beginning

Posted on October 4, 2017 by lmharnisch

Given the brevity of human life, I don’t plan to do a line-by-line debunking of Piu Eatwell’s upcoming book “Black Dahlia, Red Rose.” Longtime readers may recall my labors over Donald Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files,” which lasted for months. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 11 Comments