Tag Archives: Architecture

December 15, 1907: Architectural Rambling to South Pasadena

Posted on December 15, 2025 by lmharnisch

December 15, 1907: The Times real estate section visits South Pasadena and remarks on a new brick building (still standing in 2025), a bank and the Carnegie library. Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Architecture, Pasadena | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

December 12, 1907: Recreation Center to Be Built in Heart of Industrial District

Posted on December 12, 2025 by lmharnisch

December 12, 1907: In the gritty, industrial heart of the 8th Ward at Holly Street and St. John, officials are planning a large recreation facility “as an oasis in the wilderness,” The Times says. The building, designed by the firm of Hunt, Eager and Burns, will offer an alternative to “those who have no pleasure grounds but the streets and the saloons,” The Times says, noting: “Happy people are nearly always good people.” Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1910, Architecture, Downtown | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

November 30, 2006: Architectural Rambling

Posted on November 30, 2025 by lmharnisch

Some “architectural rambling” photos I took in 2006 for a blog post on historic structures. Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Architecture, Freeways, Hollywood, Pasadena, Photography, Streetcars | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on November 30, 2006: Architectural Rambling

November 10, 1907: Story of L.A. Real Estate Is Dislocation, Dislocation, Dislocation

Posted on November 10, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 10, 1907: What sort of monument do we leave for real estate developers? For John B. Althouse, who built hundreds of homes in the Wilshire district, as well as the West Adams district and the San Gabriel Valley, the answer might be nondescript offices and vacant lots. Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1914, Architecture, Real Estate | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on November 10, 1907: Story of L.A. Real Estate Is Dislocation, Dislocation, Dislocation

November 3, 1907: A House With Curb Appeal

Posted on November 3, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 3, 1907: Mrs. E.N. Eskey is building this 10-room house in Pico Heights, on Van Ness just south of Pico. Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Architecture | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on November 3, 1907: A House With Curb Appeal

Col. John Bryson, 1819 – 1907 | Ex-Mayor Was Millionaire L.A. Developer

Posted on October 11, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 11, 1907: John Bryson, self-made millionaire and developer of the Bryson Block, dies. He had separated from his wife and was almost constantly in the company of his longtime nurse, Gladys Lamberton. He was hurriedly buried in a secret ceremony at Rosedale Cemetery. Continue reading →

Posted in 1819, 1907, City Hall, Obituaries | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Col. John Bryson, 1819 – 1907 | Ex-Mayor Was Millionaire L.A. Developer

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Olvera Street, Salute to Los Angeles’ Spanish Past

Posted on September 16, 2025 by lmharnisch

Mary Mallory looks at the history of the Avila Adobe and Olvera Street in an encore post from 2019. Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Olvera Street, Salute to Los Angeles’ Spanish Past

Schaber’s Cafeteria and Einar Petersen

Posted on September 1, 2025 by lmharnisch

Mary Mallory profiles Schaber’s Cafeteria in downtown Los Angeles, which featured murals by Einar Petersen. An encore post from 2012. Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, Architecture, Art & Artists, Downtown, Food and Drink, Found on EBay | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Schaber’s Cafeteria and Einar Petersen

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Longest-Running Movie Studio in Los Angeles

Posted on July 7, 2025 by lmharnisch

Mary Mallory looks at the history of Occidental Studios, longest-running movie studio in Los Angeles Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Architectural Rambling: Julian Eltinge Home – 1921

Posted on June 5, 2025 by lmharnisch

A visit to the home of Julian Eltinge, in an encore post from 2011. Continue reading →

Posted in 1921, Architecture, Found on EBay, Interior Design, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Stage | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Architectural Rambling: Julian Eltinge Home – 1921

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 8, 2024 by lmharnisch

The Retro Holiday Shopping Guide: Melba Levick’s “The Big Picture: Murals of Los Angeles.” Wonderful paintings, most of them lost. One of my favorite’s is Kent Twitchell’s “Old Woman of the Freeway” featuring actress Lillian Bronson. Continue reading →

Posted in 1988, Architecture, Art & Artists, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Downtown, From the Stacks, Hollywood, Latinos, Photography, Preservation, San Fernando Valley, Sports, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hotel Brevoort, Bohemians’ Outpost on Lexington

Posted on August 27, 2024 by lmharnisch

Long an entertaining trope for many a movie and stage play, the boarding house for theatrical performers offered an opportunity to gather together a colorful band of characters while at the same time providing them a supportive haven and family … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Black Dahlia, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Preservation | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hotel Brevoort, Bohemians’ Outpost on Lexington

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Frank S. Hoover, Portrait Photographer and Apartment Developer

Posted on June 3, 2024 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2012. Early Hollywood portrait photography developed from the need of stars for portraits to send out looking for roles, and from studios realizing the value of selling their product through stars. Los Angeles … Continue reading →

Posted in 1935, African Americans, Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Photography | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Clara Bow’s 1920s Home for Sale, a Cozy Cottage for Star of Silent Films

Posted on April 23, 2024 by lmharnisch

Clara Bow’s former rental at 7576 Hollywood Blvd. is on the market for $1.3 million. Hollywood homes can show a star’s character just as much as any candid portrait. Ostentatious or understated, hip or homey, residences serve as a snapshot … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Clara Bow’s 1920s Home for Sale, a Cozy Cottage for Star of Silent Films

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Highbourne Gardens, Bungalows to Apartments

Posted on January 22, 2024 by lmharnisch

Architect’s rendering of Highbourne Gardens from Architect and Engineer. Real estate development is all about money, expanding and “improving” on property to obtain high financial rewards. HIghbourne Gardens shows the evolution of what is called multi-famlly housing in Los Angeles, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 2178 High Tower Drive, L.A.’s First Community Elevator

Posted on January 8, 2024 by lmharnisch

The Tower appeared in the March 24, 1939, installment of Nuestro Pueblo by Joseph Seewerker and Charles Owens of the Los Angeles Times. Note: This is an encore post from 2020. Both marketing gimmick and necessity, the elevator shaft that … Continue reading →

Posted in 1922, Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 2178 High Tower Drive, L.A.’s First Community Elevator

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywood Sign Built and Illuminated November-December 1923

Posted on December 8, 2023 by lmharnisch

The Hollywoodland Sign, in a photo published in the Los Angeles Evening Herald, Dec. 8, 1923. Note: This is an encore post from 2017. Originally constructed as a publicity gimmick and branding symbol to help generate sales for a real … Continue reading →

Posted in 1923, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywood Sign Built and Illuminated November-December 1923

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Spooky, Ooky Witch’s House Haunts Beverly Hills

Posted on October 16, 2023 by lmharnisch

A sketch of the “The Witch’s House” by Charles Owens from “Nuestro Pueblo,” courtesy of Mary Mallory Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Once upon a time, home design and architecture saluted fantasy and make-believe, and not just … Continue reading →

Posted in 1921, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Nuestro Pueblo | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Spooky, Ooky Witch’s House Haunts Beverly Hills

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Landmark Vista Theatre Turns 100

Posted on October 9, 2023 by lmharnisch

The Vista Theatre in 1951, via Water and Power Associates. The Vista Theatre opened October 9, 1923. Built as an upscale house for smaller studio releases, it remains viable even today, as director Quentin Tarantino restores it. One of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Landmark Vista Theatre Turns 100

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Casa La Golondrina Cafe, L.A.’s Oldest Brick Building

Posted on October 2, 2023 by lmharnisch

La Golondrina in Screenland magazine, 1930. News came this week that current owners of historic La Golondrina Cafe could soon be foreclosed on by the city of Los Angeles. La Golondrina is the oldest brick building in Los Angeles, possibly … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment