Tag Archives: Music

Black L.A. 1947: The Kappa Alpha Psis, Clora Bryant and a Certain Attorney

Posted on August 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Technical difficulties delayed posting until now. Aug. 28, 1947: Earl Griffin has little good to say about the recent Kappa convention. But he mentions Clora Bryant (a footnote in the Black Dahlia case) though as Clara Bryant. And there’s a … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Nellie Lutcher Leads Weekly Juke Box Hits

Posted on August 23, 2018 by lmharnisch

Aug. 21, 1947: Nellie Lutcher’s “He’s a Real Gone Guy” again leads the weekly juke box hits, followed by “I Want to Be Loved” in versions by Savannah Churchill and Lionel Hampton.  No. 3 is “Sure Had a Wonderful Time” … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Nellie Lutcher’s ‘He’s a Real Gone Guy’ Leads This Week’s Juke Box Hits

Posted on August 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

Aug. 14, 1947: Nellie Lutcher’s “He’s a Real Gone Guy” is this week’s No. 1 juke box hit, according to Murray’s Record Shop, 1055 E. Vernon. “True Blues” by Roy Milton is No. 2. On the jump, Ask Evangeline helps … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Hitting the Nightspots With ‘The Owl’

Posted on July 31, 2018 by lmharnisch

Eight black athletes are trying out for the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference. July 31, 1947: “The Owl,” the Sentinel’s nightlife columnist, visited the clubs, noting that the high prices of food and rent were taking a … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: The Story of Jimmie Lunceford’s Death

Posted on July 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

Mike’s Waikiki Inn, 3741 S. Western Ave. 3741 S. Western Ave., via Google Street View. July 24, 1947: The Sentinel publishes an account of the death of bandleader Jimmie Lunceford. According to the article by Wendell Green, at dinner before … Continue reading →

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July 21, 1947: Julie London Marries Jack Webb

Posted on July 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. In the courthouse corridor, just after she received one of the biggest divorce settlements in Los Angeles history, someone asked her: “If you had your choice … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Bandleader Jimmie Lunceford Collapses in Record Store, Dies at 45

Posted on July 17, 2018 by lmharnisch

Suzette Johnson appears in “The Foxes of Harrow.” July 17, 1947: The Los Angeles Sentinel has a news story on the death of bandleader Jimmie Lunceford, who collapsed in a record store in Seaside, Ore., and a mention in Earl … Continue reading →

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July 17, 1947: Arnold Schoenberg Gets Commission for ‘Survivor From Warsaw’

Posted on July 17, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. By mid-July, Arnold Schoenberg was hard at work on a composition he had conceived several months earlier, when choreographer Corinne Chochem sent him details on a … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Sugar Chile Robinson and a Review of ‘Crossfire’

Posted on July 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Sugar Chile Robinson performs at the Lincoln. I should do an entire post on him, but so many stories and only one Larry Harnisch. July 3, 1947: One of the regular complaints in my Twitter feed is about the lack … Continue reading →

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June 30, 1947: Albert Goldberg Becomes L.A. Times Music Critic

Posted on June 30, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Thus began a career that endured past his retirement in 1965—making way for Martin Bernheimer—until shortly before his death in 1990 at the age of 91. … Continue reading →

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June 19, 1907: Soothing Music Helps Cures Insanity, Doctor Says

Posted on June 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 19, 1907 Los Angeles What shall we do with the insane? Don’t give them drugs… give them music! (Well, some music). Dr. E.C. Dent of the hospital for women on Ward’s … Continue reading →

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May 28, 1947: Billie Holiday Sentenced to Prison on Drug Charge

Posted on May 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. On June 17, while Holiday was in prison, the film “New Orleans” opened in Los Angeles at the four Music Hall theaters: 8th and Broadway downtown; … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Thomas R. LeBlanc, Influential Figure in Los Angeles Music

Posted on May 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

LeBlanc’s Creole Band in an undated photo, via the Sentinel. May 8, 1947: I went down the research rabbit hole on the story of Thomas R. LeBlanc, who was featured in the Sentinel. This is a story that deserves more … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Bert McDonald Dies; First Black Deputy City Atty.

Posted on March 13, 2018 by lmharnisch

The latest records by Jimmy Rushing, Duke Henderson and King Perry are at 1065 N. Fairfax Ave. 1065 N. Fairfax Ave., where you got the latest hip 78s in 1947, via Google Street View. March 13, 1947: The Sentinel publishes … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: ‘Moving Picture Hero of My Heart’ Promotes Movies

Posted on February 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

  From its beginnings, the motion picture industry developed adept advertising and promotional concepts to spread the word of its film products and stars. Quick to develop cross-promotions and partnerships with magazines and newspapers, the film industry grew new fans … Continue reading →

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Jan. 6, 1947: Artist Dies While Hanging From Ceiling to Ease Spinal Pain

Posted on January 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006 for the 1947project. Jan. 6, 1947: Charles Clyde Atchison, 66, a sculptor and stone mason, had back problems—at least that’s what he told his sister Leona of 1110 W. 30th St. … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Organist C. Sharp Minor, Major Talent

Posted on October 30, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Music was an integral part of silent films, giving emotional texture or humorous voice to the films’ precious images. Different types of music and musicians accompanied them: orchestras, bands, photoplayers, pianists and … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Nigel De Brulier — Soothsayer From the East?

Posted on June 5, 2017 by lmharnisch

Nigel de Brulier, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Note: This is an encore post from 2014 For decades, Hollywood typed actors for their looks, personality, temperament, a shorthand telling audiences what they could expect whenever the actor appeared. Some personalities like … Continue reading →

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Eve Golden’s Radio Theater: Rich Conaty’s ‘Big Broadcast’

Posted on January 3, 2017 by lmharnisch

Photos of Rich Conaty courtesy of WFUV.     I am hijacking the usual YouTube Theater for a tribute to Rich Conaty, who hosted The Big Broadcast radio show—playing hits of the 1920s and ’30s—since 1973. He died of cancer … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: ‘Take Your Girlie to the Movies’ Promotes Film and Romance

Posted on March 7, 2016 by lmharnisch

   “Take Your Girlie to the Movies,” as recorded by Billy Murray, 1919. Popular songs often speak to issues of the period in which they are written, providing commentary on political, social, and cultural issues. Most of the songs in … Continue reading →

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