noirish Los Angeles

[westcork]

Originally Posted by CityBoyDoug

TWS
LA newspapers in yesteryear had a whole crew of artists who handpainted these b/w lines on photos. They kind of give the reader a visual of the event. Some are just a straight fall and others hit a ledge. Sometimes we can even see a loop-de-loop.

Did somebody say loop-de-loop?

Photograph caption dated March 1, 1927 reads, "Authorities today were investigating the death of John Lee O'Brien, 19-year-old Los Angeles youth pictured at left, when he fell from an Ocean Park roller coaster into the sea. The photo-diagram shows the point at which O'Brien fell from the coaster car and the dotted line indicates the path of his plunge of 50 feet into the ocean to his death."


LAPL

[FredH]

From yesterday's L.A. Times:


L.A. Times

Silent film star Barbara La Marr’s funeral attracts large crowd

"Feb. 5, 1926: Thousands of fans gather outside the funeral services for actress Barbara La Marr.

Following several years of fast-paced Hollywood night life, popular silent film star Barbara La Marr passed away at age 29 on Jan. 30, 1926.

An article in the Feb. 6, 1926, Los Angeles Times reported:

Several thousand persons fought desperately with police reserves yesterday afternoon in front of the Walter C. Blue Undertaking Chapel, 717 West Washington street, for a view of the casket of Barbara La Marr as it was carried from the chapel for the trip to its last resting place in Hollywood Cemetery.

Five women fainted during the melee and were rescued from being trampled upon only through the strenuous efforts of police officers.

As Miss La Marr’s remains were placed in the hearse, the crowd broke all restraint and rushed about the funeral cortege.

Traffic along West Washington street was tied up for more than fifteen minutes while police attempted to restore order.

Many hundreds rushed into the funeral parlor, although all objects of attraction to the morbid had been removed, even to the last floral wreath…"


L.A. Times

Bragging that she only slept two hours a night, silent movie star, Barbara La Marr's life was also short (29 years) and pretty wild.

At the age of 14, she was arrested for underage dancing in a Los Angeles burlesque. Three years later she married rancher, Jack Lytell, who promptly died of pneumonia. She quickly moved on to lawyer, Lawrence Converse, who unfortunately was arrested the next day for bigamy. He was so love struck, he knocked himself out banging his head on the cell bars and died of a blood clot. She then married dancer Phil Ainsworth, who was soon sent off to San Quentin for passing bad checks. After a divorce from Phil, she went on to marry Ben Deely (a heavy drinker) and actor Jack Dougherty. Somewhere in all this, she also had time to give birth to an illegitimate baby son, whom she sent to actress ZaSu Pitts to raise.

Along with five marriages, she also managed numerous affairs with men allegedly ranging from Ernest Hemmingway to Mussolini (yes that one).

Booze, cocaine, heroin, and morphine finally wore her down and she died of nephritis and tuberculosis.

Supposedly actress Hedy Lamarr was named after her.

[AlvaroLegido]

Originally Posted by FredH

I circled the location of the house in red:


Earl Witscher, Modernage Photo Service

Tetsu : Wow, that's one of the best aerials I've seen in terms of really showing each block on Bunker Hill and its relation to the next.
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It's better than that, Tetsu. I guess it's the best !
For the first time after 909 pages, I got the whole idea of Bunker Hill.
For examples, we had never seen on the thread :
. the whole little section of 3rd Street between Bunker Hill and Grand Avenues (the slope). Interesting to notice it was the steepest section in B.H. and stopped at B.H.A. ;

. The curbed little street, just north of 4th Street that drops on Olive (I asked for it - page 831 #16617 - without answer) ;

. a view (we have to look sharp) of the Angels Flight entrance with the whole 3rd street and Olive ;

. a very good view on Olive. It is the B. H. street that lacks the most of photos ;

. how much there was a half block between Hope and Bunker Hill Avenue and B.H.A. and Grand.

. I could go on.

[FredH]

I'm sure I posted this a long time ago. This is the same photo shoot. A little different angle.


Earl Witscher, Modernage Photo Service

[FredH]

I couldn't find this photo anywhere on the search function. Sorry if it has already been posted. Neat car.


L.A. Times

More info on it here:

http://www.hemmings.com/hmn/stories/...feature28.html

[JScott]

A link to the Earl Witscher photos would be appreciated.

[GaylordWilshire]

Originally Posted by FredH

L.A. Times

Bragging that she only slept two hours a night, silent movie star, Barbara La Marr's life was also short (29 years) and pretty wild.

At the age of 14, she was arrested for underage dancing in a Los Angeles burlesque. Three years later she married rancher, Jack Lytell, who promptly died of pneumonia. She quickly moved on to lawyer, Lawrence Converse, who unfortunately was arrested the next day for bigamy. He was so love struck, he knocked himself out banging his head on the cell bars and died of a blood clot. She then married dancer Phil Ainsworth, who was soon sent off to San Quentin for passing bad checks. After a divorce from Phil, she went on to marry Ben Deely (a heavy drinker) and actor Jack Dougherty. Somewhere in all this, she also had time to give birth to an illegitimate baby son, who she sent to actress ZaSu Pitts to raise.

Along with five marriages, she also managed numerous affairs with men allegedly ranging from Ernest Hemmingway to Mussolini (yes that one).

Booze, cocaine, heroin, and morphine finally wore her down and she died of nephritis and tuberculosis.

Supposedly actress Hedy Lamarr was named after her.

What a mess. Not even pretty.

They say she started the gazing-ball craze--her house, still at 6672 Whitley Terrace:

Hollywoodland


GSV


GSV


Barbara's living room--characteristic of the period, the chandelier has regular lightbulbs. (I wonder when the flame-shaped bulbs came in?)

Hollywoodland

[JoeW]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Has anyone heard of Pierpoint Landing?

Long Beach
ebay



http://www.flickr.com/photos/edge_an...ar/8155464771/



aerial/1964

http://portoflongbeach.blogspot.com/...ttraction.html

During our family vacation in the 1970s we visited a place in Long Beach called Ports O' Call Village. Could this be it's predecessor?

I remember going to the location in the photo in the late 60's and early 70's. My Dad used to like going here to take pictures of the ships. I recall being able to see the Queen Mary being restored across the channel from Pier Point. Thanks for posting this it brought back good memories.

[ethereal_reality]

We've seen many photographs taken from the top of City Hall, but I don't remember this massive parking lot too well.

ebay/oct2013

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[HossC]

The parking lot looks consistent with this 1952 aerial. City Hall is near the top left of the picture.


Historic Aerials

[CityBoyDoug]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Maybe that's why the dog is standing up....he smells smoke!!
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I don't recall seeing this impressive sanitarium before.

ebay

I am still working on finding the location (I found one reference to the Palms Station area).
__

Here is the Palms ~ Culver City station. I guess the sanitarium might pick you up at the station. I hope they didn't include the popular Radium Water treatment. For me, I'll stick with the Milk Diet.


Pacific Electric photo

[FredH]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

We've seen many photographs taken from the top of City Hall, but I don't remember this massive parking lot too well.

ebay/oct2013

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ER - What you are looking at is the parking structure of Parker Center. Here is a photo which I took from a printed (bunch of dots) sheet with
my cheap camera and lack of photography skills. Sorry for the quality. (And the size)


Earl Witscher, Modernage Photo Service

I think the photo is from the mid 1950's

[FredH]

Originally Posted by JScott

A link to the Earl Witscher photos would be appreciated.

JScott - All of the Earl Witscher photos I have posted are from my collection at home. I worked for Mr. Witscher for years at Modernage Photo on East Third Street. He was a photographer in World War II and started in business about 1946. He did some aerial photography in his younger days and was hired by the Los Angeles Dodgers to take a series of construction photos during the building of Dodger Stadium. Unfortunately, he passed away a few years back. However, he did contribute a large number of his photos to the Los Angeles City Library. You might have some luck there, but then again they may be stored away in a warehouse like the Ark of the Covenant in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Please feel free to download any of the photos you like.

[HossC]

Originally Posted by rbpjr

Around 1943 my family lived in Coast Guard housing in Wilmington...wondering if anyone had info/pictures of the area.

I'm not sure where the coast guard housing was, but here's the California Yacht Club in Wilmington in 1923. According to this article, the building was taken over by the US Coast Guard in 1942 to be used as its headquarters.


Detail from picture in USC Digital Library

I've included this picture because the grape truck lost its load at the intersection of Figueroa Street and B Street, i.e. right next to the site that would become Shipwreck Joey's. If only they'd turned the camera around! The photo dates from 1951.


USC Digital Library

[GatoVerde]

Originally Posted by FredH

JScott - All of the Earl Witscher photos I have posted are from my collection at home. I worked for Mr. Witscher for years at Modernage Photo on East Third Street. He was a photographer in World War II and started in business about 1946. He did some aerial photography in his younger days and was hired by the Los Angeles Dodgers to take a series of construction photos during the building of Dodger Stadium. Unfortunately, he passed away a few years back. However, he did contribute a large number of his photos to the Los Angeles City Library. You might have some luck there, but then again they may be stored away in a warehouse like the Ark of the Covenant in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Please feel free to download any of the photos you like.

FredH,
Where on E. Third was Modernage Photo and when did it close? Was it a camera/photo store?

[GatoVerde]

Originally Posted by gsjansen

well here's something you don't see everyday.......(well at least i certainly dont),

color photographs of the lugo house just prioir to demolition in 1951


Source: LAPL database El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument collection http://dbase1.lapl.org/images/el_pue...112-L-0015.jpg

An old post, but I am especially taken by this structure. I need not lament here on how there was no real need to remove this -- the onramp could have been built around it -- but there is a Kennedyesque fate apportioned to Lugo family houses, as with Bunker Hill and other historic districts. I went searching for the remains of the two other Lugo Housesa few years ago, one near the City of Commerce and close to Downey Mansion, and the other on Lugo Street near the river and the corners of Washington and Soto. The one near City of Commerce is now some kind of public housing project, but at there is a cheap plastic sign somewhere near the corner marking the site's historical significance. I believe the house was burned down by drunk teens -- isn't that what happened to the Salt Box too? The adobe on Lugo Street is long gone and is now a conglomerate of various waste and recycling facilities and smells foul. There is no plaque there but at least the street name remains, for now.

[Those Who Squirm!]

I can give you the exact location:

34°01′40″N 118°24′57″W, where it now serves as the main classroom and admin building on the Overland campus of Lycee Francais. If memory serves, this particular campus teaches the middle grades.

(Bing Maps Bird's-eye view)

Given the raging hormones and emotional turmoil for which early adolescence is known, I would imagine that any leftover hospital equipment can be put to very good use by shell-shocked teachers.

But let us not surrender to wild speculation.

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Maybe that's why the dog is standing up....he smells smoke!!
__



I don't recall seeing this impressive sanitarium before.

ebay

I am still working on finding the location (I found one reference to the Palms Station area).
__

[FredH]

Originally Posted by GatoVerde

FredH,
Where on E. Third was Modernage Photo and when did it close? Was it a camera/photo store?

GatoVerde-The main office of Modernage Photo Service was located at the corner of E. Third Street and Crocker Street in Little Tokyo.
We also had a photo studio on E. 15th Street.



The company was a full service commercial printer and photographer. Our clients were local manufacturers, mainly in furniture, lighting, bedding, fashion, and lingerie. We would photograph, design, layout, and print catalogs and sheets for our customers. In the mid-1990's we were up to 55 employees. The competition from China did in most of the local manufacturers and the transformation to the digital age finished us off. By 2003, we had sold off the building and moved to a photo studio at the corner of E. Sixth St. and Mateo (right by the Sixth Street bridge). After five more years, that was closed up too. I was there for 23 years.

[Those Who Squirm!]

Originally Posted by CityBoyDoug

Here is the Palms ~ Culver City station. I guess the sanitarium might pick you up at the station. I hope they didn't include the popular Radium Water treatment. For me, I'll stick with the Milk Diet.
Pacific Electric photo

With regard to the station photo, the photo above definitely isn't the old Palms Station, which was always distinct from Culver/Ivy, and located the better part of a mile to the west.

The following map with my annotation shows the location of several past, present, and future rail stations.


(Bing Maps snip, annotations are mine.)



Regarding Ivy Substation which seems to have been next door to Ivy/Culver City, at this location IRL I've always felt like the Air Line ROW is many yards away, much than you'd expect them to be from the station building. Is it possible that Doug's picture was taking with a telephoto lens, which might make the two buildings seem much closer than they are?

ETA: The Porter Sanitarium doesn't go back nearly as far as I'm sure we all would like. IIRC it was founded around 1924, and if they met anyone at Palms Station they didn't do it for long; PE had already drastically cut service west of Culver Junction by the time the sanitarium was opened. As for what took place in the facility, it wasn't terribly noirish. It seems there was a sort of vogue for places like this, where you'd go to stay for a few weeks, eating simple healthful meals and getting plenty of outdoor exercise between meals.

[ProphetM]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

We've seen many photographs taken from the top of City Hall, but I don't remember this massive parking lot too well.

ebay/oct2013

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I took a couple pics in close to the same direction in 2012:


me

Nearly the same view but zoomed closer to look at some survivors:


also me