Tag Archives: homicide

‘Mysterious Objects’ in Skies Over L.A.

Posted on August 1, 2013 by lmharnisch

Comics characters of the 1950s got to drive MGs! Edward Irving Foote was born June 29, 1861, in Michigan. Someone by that name attended the University of Michigan at Lansing, class of 1877-78, and was described as a “farmer, miner, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1953, Art & Artists, Comics, Downtown, Homicide, LAPD, Obituaries, Suicide | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on ‘Mysterious Objects’ in Skies Over L.A.

Teen Convicted in Bloody Killing of Girl, 12

Posted on June 27, 2013 by lmharnisch

June 27, 1943: The “Greatest Generation” isn’t getting enough “bulk.” Let’s rename Bunker Hill as Angels’ Terrace. Or not. The Courtemanche family lived in the old Sepulveda place at 751 N. Palos Verdes St., on a hill above the Wilmington-San … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Wikipedia: Murder and Myth — Part 2

Posted on April 24, 2013 by lmharnisch

In case you just tuned in, I’m using the alleged beating of Ted Healy by Wallace Beery et al to examine Wikipedia’s accuracy. So far, it hasn’t been good. Yesterday, I looked at the eight different accounts in Wikipedia and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1937, Film, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Wikipedia: Murder and Myth – Part 1

Posted on April 23, 2013 by lmharnisch

As longtime readers know, the L.A. Daily Mirror is usually a Wikipedia-free zone. I consider it a sinkhole of myth, mistakes, rumors and folklore that is created and maintained by “citizen scholars,” crackpots, coding tweakers, factoid zealots and folks in … Continue reading →

Posted in 1937, Film, History, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , , , , , | 26 Comments

Smallpox Epidemic – Los Angeles, Feb. 7, 1863

Posted on February 5, 2013 by lmharnisch

Read the entire Feb. 7, 1863, edition of the Los Angeles Star from the Huntington Library, scanned by USC. Feb. 7 1863: The coroner holds an inquest in the killing of Christian Hutt. George Wright, the father of accused killer … Continue reading →

Posted in 1863, Animals, Crime and Courts, Homicide, Medicine | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

LAPD Losing Staff to War Effort

Posted on August 1, 2012 by lmharnisch

Aug. 1, 1942: Chief C.B. Horrall announces that the LAPD has lost 22 men and two women to the armed services. By the end of the war, many more officers and staff will have gone into the military, leaving the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, Art & Artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on LAPD Losing Staff to War Effort

Woman, boy strangled

Posted on July 24, 2008 by lmharnisch
Posted in Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Woman disappears

Posted on July 23, 2008 by lmharnisch

3714 W. Pico, via Google maps.   July 23, 1958 uth lived in a room at the Shari Hotel, 3714 W. Pico, that she shared with a little dog and a couple of parakeets. The landlord realized she hadn’t been … Continue reading →

Posted in Homicide | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

June 2, 1908

Posted on June 2, 2008 by lmharnisch

  Above, a dramatic story from Central Avenue … Mayor Harper reacts to a Times expose on illegal gambling in the city … Robert T. Hale of the Anti-Fakers Society of Los Angeles County tells county supervisors that granting exemptions … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

May 29, 1938

Posted on May 29, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, what Los Angeles was reading in 1938–and a shoutout to the Zombie Reading Program over at This Book Is for You…. "When there’s no more room in closed stacks, the out-of-print will rise up and walk the earth." At … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, books, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on May 29, 1938

May 24, 1938

Posted on May 24, 2008 by lmharnisch

His name was Dwight Tyler Simpson, a 32-year-old business student from Laconia, N.H. Not an enemy in the world, apparently, except for somebody who broke a milk bottle on his skull and strangled him. Dwight had been living at 747 … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, @news, City Hall, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD, Politics | Tagged , , | Comments Off on May 24, 1938

May 23, 1938

Posted on May 23, 2008 by lmharnisch

It’s another slow day in the trial of Police Capt. Earle Kynette in the Harry Raymond bombing … In the meantime, let’s take a look at former police investigator Fletcher E. Felts, whose father was one of the longest-serving officers … Continue reading →

Posted in @news, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on May 23, 1938

May 22, 1938

Posted on May 22, 2008 by lmharnisch

  Above, a plan for the Santa Anita Motor Inn at 101 W. Huntington. Apparently, the final design of the tower was a little more Art Deco (see the postcard here). At left, a miner leads detectives to the body … Continue reading →

Posted in @news, Architecture, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on May 22, 1938

May 19, 1958

Posted on May 19, 2008 by lmharnisch

Alas, The Times never followed up on this story, so we don’t know what became of Elroy E. Pena. But telling a man with a gun "Why don’t you get the hell out of here?" as you’re sitting in a … Continue reading →

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Mob murders in L.A.

Posted on April 27, 2008 by lmharnisch

View Larger Map I spent a little time tracking down the addresses of what the LAPD said were Mafia killings from 1906 to 1951. Even a superficial look reveals problems with the Police Department’s list. As noted elsewhere, the 1934 … Continue reading →

Posted in Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

April 10, 1958

Posted on April 10, 2008 by lmharnisch

Half a century does nothing to erase the pain of this picture. The young man is David Greenstein and he’s being comforted by his mother, Gladys, after a coroner’s jury ruled that his slaying of his father, Rubin, was justifiable … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Homicide, LAPD, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , | Comments Off on April 10, 1958

Girl strangled

Posted on April 9, 2008 by lmharnisch

April 4-June 12, 1958 Los Angeles "I think I just killed a girl."Cary had killed her, all right. Strangled her with her sweater. Afterward, he drove around the Valley with her slumped under the dash until the left front wheel … Continue reading →

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Paul Coates

Posted on April 7, 2008 by lmharnisch

April 7, 1958 I’ll post more on this story soon. Stay tuned….

Posted in Homicide, LAPD, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

April 7, 1958

Posted on April 7, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, the quarrel between Lana Turner and Johnny Stompanato that led to his death may have begun over whether he was going to accompany her to the Academy Awards! Below, some of the type is missing from the jump of … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on April 7, 1958

Death in La Puente

Posted on March 29, 2008 by lmharnisch

March 29, 1958 Two cars cruised La Puente on a Friday night. One car carried Fred Avila, 20, and three unidentified young women. The other carried four young men from La Puente: Manuel Garcia, 19; Refugio Luna Jr., 20; John … Continue reading →

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