Tag Archives: Van Nuys

Celebrity Politicians: Hollywood’s Honorary Mayors, Part I

Photo: Hugh Herbert, honorary mayor of Studio City, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Note: This is an encore post from 2012. Tomorrow is election day. Elections and politics are important to everyone, be they Joe Citizen or Joseph Kennedy. Over the … Continue reading

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Politics, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Lou Costello’s Son Drowns in Swimming Pool

Nov. 5, 1943: Lou Costello Jr. drowns in the swimming pool of the family home at 4124 Longridge Ave., Van Nuys. Here’s a post I wrote about the tragedy in 2007.

Posted in 1943, Film, Hollywood, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , , | 16 Comments

Celebrity Politicians: Hollywood’s Honorary Mayors, Part I

Photo: Hugh Herbert, honorary mayor of Studio City, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Tomorrow is election day. Elections and politics are important to everyone, be they Joe Citizen or Joseph Kennedy. Over the years, celebrities have entered the political arena, some … Continue reading

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Politics, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Gang Blamed in Riot at Glendale Carnival

Oct. 19, 1942: Members of the Van Nuys “Chain Gang” are blamed for a riot that broke out at a carnival in Glendale, leaving one man near death from stab wounds and five others injured. About 30 members of the … Continue reading

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Van Nuys Boulevard

Dec. 29, 1957Los Angeles Isn’t this building cool, in its weird 1950s Space Age way? This is a wonderful detail from a Times ad for the opening of a Van Nuys Savings and Loan office at 8201 Van Nuys Blvd. … Continue reading

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Valley blaze

    June 25, 1957 Los Angeles A 50-foot tower of flames fed by 7,000 gallons of pressurized liquid propane being transferred from a truck to a storage tank was snuffed by a 28-year-old man who said it was no … Continue reading

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Kill crazy

    June 14, 1957 Los Angeles Charles Hilbert Dodd was eager to kill someone. If he couldn’t find his estranged wife, Dolores, then he’d shoot whomever he could get. Armed with a 16-gauge shotgun, Dodd, 47, of 6415 Balcom … Continue reading

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1957 Chevy

In February 1957, after adding 300,000 square feet, the General Motors' Van Nuys plant (note: it's really in Panorama City) began making station wagons and convertibles.  A spokesman says the plant is producing 150 cars a day in five different … Continue reading

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Jealousy slaying

May 2, 1957 Los Angeles Meet Henry C. “Clay” Hamby, 42, who lived with his wife, Mildred, and three children in a 944-square-foot home at 14519 Paddock St., in Sylmar. Clay is a drophammer operator at Reylon Precision Products, a … Continue reading

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