The Mystery of Felt Lake

2008-05-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

Oct. 3, 1907Stanford UniversityChester Silent was among the most promising young men of Delta Tau Delta at Stanford. The son of Judge Charles Silent and prominent in Los Angeles social circles, Silent, 22, had excelled in his studies and upon graduating with a law degree in the Class of 1907 had begun graduate work at Stanford and was expected to head to Harvard.His fraternity brothers described

Boy Genius

2008-04-26T08:06:00.000-07:00

Nov. 8, 1907Los AngelesMars F. Baumgardt is an interesting young man with an even more interesting project: a radio-controlled boat. Although many students’ projects are on display at the 30th Street School, including those of Mars’ brother Howard, it is the boat controlled by wireless telegraphy that interests The Times.“As nearly as a layman in the rudiments of electricity can understand the

New blog: The Daily Mirror

2007-05-04T07:55:00.000-07:00

Check out The Daily Mirror.It's right here

In-Cred-I-Ble

2007-02-13T05:12:00.000-08:00

A large (20x30) reproduction of Elizabeth Short’s mug shot has appeared on EBay at a starting price of $250, or $400 under “buy it now” in an auction by mermaidfx. The word “rare” is ridiculously common on EBay, surpassed only by “MIB” and “L@@K.” This is not a rare image, but is widely copied. And folks, the asking price is absurd.

Blogging the Wolfe Book, Our Story So Far

2007-02-08T07:46:00.000-08:00

Larry Harnisch (described by James Ellroy as a Dahlia scholar/Dahlia freak, take your pick) is blogging in real time as he reads Donald H. Wolfe's "The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob, the Mogul and the Murder That Transfixed Los Angeles."Part 1, Blogging the Wolfe BookPart 2, The MonsterPart 3, Extra! Extra!Part 4, Sniff TestPart 5, Weather ReportPart 6, The Boy on the BicyclePart 7, A "C" From the

Architectural Ramblings

2007-01-20T06:38:00.000-08:00

Los AngelesJan. 20, 2007 What we do know about H.J. Brainerd is that he built a fair number of “portable homes.” What we don’t know, except in one case, is exactly where he put them. Brainerd was active from 1906 to 1911, building homes throughout Southern California. His ads appealed to people like sportsmen, ranchers, oil

Also on EBay

2007-01-16T06:28:00.000-08:00

Jan. 16, 2007 Sfxarchive is selling a 4- by 5-inch negative ostensibly from the Black Dahlia case. I don’t recognize any of these individuals, nor have I ever seen the image. It doesn’t show any of the main suspects, nor does it show the main detectives, Harry Hansen and Finis Brown. I would say its importance is limited. Note that the seller’s

In Cred I Ble

2007-01-13T16:17:00.000-08:00

The sale of 1940s mug shots, including one of Elizabeth Short, sold Jan. 12, 2007, for $1,802.77 (more than $78 per picture) to phenomaly. Although EBay now conceals bidders’ identities, we can see that the next highest bid was $1,777.77. Obviously, people are willing to spend serious money for these mug shots.Please understand, the Elizabeth Short mug shots were printed up in bulk during the

The Biltmore, Jan. 9, 2007

2007-01-09T23:18:00.000-08:00

For Sale on EBay

2007-01-03T07:09:00.000-08:00

“escalante_sandy” is offering an original mug shot of Elizabeth Short, with bidding starting at $50. The seller says this mug shot, among a lot of 23 photos, belonged to a retired detective and is not a reproduction, a claim that appears true.The most interesting thing about this copy of the mug shot (which was printed up in bulk and handed out freely during the investigation) is what’s written

A Walk in L.A., 1951

2006-12-18T22:50:00.000-08:00

Adios Judy!

2006-12-16T06:41:00.000-08:00

Judith Regan, the publisher of Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files,” has found a way to make Page 1 of The Times: Get fired by HarperCollins. (The New York Times story is here.)I’m trying not to gloat. But it’s a challenge. As we used to say at my little old paper, The Arizona Daily Star, in a riff on the standard line in fire stories: “Champagne corks flew hundreds of feet into the air and

Wachet Auf!

2006-12-11T11:39:00.000-08:00

Part 1 Part 3Part 4Part 6Part 7

How to Drive on Streetcar Tracks

2006-11-26T13:50:00.000-08:00

Location Sleuth II

2006-11-04T18:20:00.000-08:00

Nathan Marsak says: That's Sixth and Olive, looking Northeast. The old 1906 Philharmonic Auditorium in the bg, left (after its 1938 Streamline remodel by Stiles Clements, now a parking lot) and next to it to the right is the Parkinson 1931 Title Guarantee Building. That's why it's so dark at the right side of the image -- that's Pershing Square.So right! And on that corner is the Pacific

Location Sleuth

2006-11-03T06:22:00.000-08:00

Here’s a frame grab from the opening shots of “Double Indemnity.” According to the script, the car driven by Walter Neff speeds through an intersection, narrowly avoiding a delivery truck bearing the sign: “READ THE LOS ANGELES TIMES.”But tinkering with the photo (the original is very dark, after all we are talking about film noir) shows that the truck apparently reads “Los Angeles Examiner.”

Historians' Clearinghouse

2006-10-28T07:13:00.000-07:00

Fast forward to the future for a moment and plan to attend what sounds like a wonderful event for researchers: A bazaar in which many local archivists will be available at the Huntington to discuss their collections and set up appointments on the spot.As anyone who has researched local history can tell you, material on the city’s past is scattered all over the Los Angeles Basin—would you believe

A Man Ray Jigsaw Puzzle

2006-10-16T14:12:00.000-07:00

The Detroit News has published an article on book dealer John K. King, who is offering “Man Ray: Photographs 1920-1934 Paris” inscribed by Man Ray to Dr. George Hodel. The book sold Sept. 14, 2006, for $4,600 in an auction by PBA Galleries.King is offering it for $8,500. Not a bad profit. Of course it would be worth even more if Man Ray had said something incriminating like, “In fond memory of

Test Posting

2006-10-15T18:22:00.000-07:00

Here's a little game. Let's see if it works.Here's another one.

Bob Belden, Black Dahlia, "Genesis"

2006-10-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

Bob Belden, Black Dahlia

2006-10-01T19:51:00.000-07:00

Dial Tone

2006-09-26T08:11:00.000-07:00

So you’re wondering if James Ellroy called, as he said he would when we taped a segment of “America’s Most Wanted.”Not yet....

Brian De Palma's 'The Black Dahlia'

2006-09-14T08:07:00.000-07:00

“The Black Dahlia,” directed by Brian De Palma, screenplay by Josh Friedman based on the novel by James Ellroy. Starring Josh Hartnett (Dwight “Bucky” Bleichert), Aaron Eckhart (Leeland “Lee” Blanchard), Scarlett Johansson (Kay Lake), Hillary Swank (Madeleine Linscott) and Mia Kirshner (Elizabeth Short). Universal Pictures.(Contains spoilers. You have been warned)While not quite the “Heaven’s

EBay Avenger

2006-09-10T09:20:00.000-07:00

OK, I’ve had my fun with Ellroy’s copies of the “Avenger” books. The hardback stands at $38 and the paperback at $29. Despite my minimum bids, there is always the risk that I might end up with these turkeys! Good luck, folks, I will be watching on the sidelines, listening to John Coltrane’s “Love Supreme.”ps. Just for fun, I ran the production notes for Brian De Palma's "The Black Dahlia"

Interring the Short-Handled Log Implement

2006-09-07T06:39:00.000-07:00

An incredibly curious thing happened yesterday. I’ve been taping segments for an “America’s Most Wanted” episode on the Black Dahlia and the producer called to see if they could get some shots of me in the Biltmore bar talking to Detective Brian Carr, who is assigned to the case. The Biltmore usually charges astronomical fees for filming and sometimes even buckets of money won

lmharnisch