Larry Harnisch
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lmharnisch.bsky.social
Larry Harnisch
@lmharnisch.bsky.social
L.A. history, movies; out of journalism after 34 years, 27 at the L.A. Times. Fleeing Angry Bitcoin Toddler. WIP: The Black Dahlia. Link to my blog, the L.A. Daily Mirror.
https://ladailymirror.com/
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Hello, new folks, and welcome! I'm a retired journo happily out of the news business, which I criticize frequently. Proud D since being attacked in 4th grade for my JFK campaign button. L.A. research/Hollywood mythbusting is my forte. WIP 'Heaven Is HERE!' on the Black Dahlia.
Reposted by Larry Harnisch
The first storm of the much-anticipated pattern shift brought widespread rain to CA, with some modest mountain snowfall in Sierra Nevada and points east. After a couple of quieter days, a sequence of much colder storms will follow (with much larger mountain snowfalls).
February 13, 2026 at 8:46 PM
Reposted by Larry Harnisch
This is a great letter from Gallup Nordic, which lays out what’s at stake when trust in statistics and the science of polling is intentionally undermined.

“Educate the public: Be the loudest voice in the room when media outlets present unscientific polls as legitimate population estimates.”
Defending Scientific Integrity: An Open Letter to WAPOR & AAPOR
Is polling science dying? Read the open letter to WAPOR and AAPOR regarding the erosion of scientific integrity, Gallup's decline, and the defense of probability sampling.
gallupnordic.com
February 13, 2026 at 4:44 PM
February 12, 1909: The Times celebrates Lincoln's birthday by honoring Lincoln and featuring the city's Black community.
February 12, 1909: Los Angeles Celebrates Lincoln’s Birth
February 12, 1909: The Times celebrates Lincoln's birthday by honoring Lincoln and featuring the city's Black community.
ladailymirror.com
February 12, 2026 at 2:23 PM
February 11, 1958: New patterns of segregation may be forming in L.A., the head of the National Council of Negro Women says.
February 11, 1958: As L.A. Grows, Segregation Takes New Forms, Black Official Says
February 11, 1958: New patterns of segregation may be forming in L.A., the head of the National Council of Negro Women says.
ladailymirror.com
February 11, 2026 at 9:28 PM
February 11, 1944: Sherman Billingsley, the Stork Club owner, has mike fright. Last year, frixample, he agreed to appear on "Duffy's Tavern," but at the last moment ran out, scared stiff. Ed Gardner went dizzy seeking a substitute, and was very irked with Mr. B, Walter Winchell says.
1944 in Print — ‘Walter Winchell on Broadway,’ February 11, 1944
February 11, 1944: Sherman Billingsley, the Stork Club owner, has mike fright. Last year, frixample, he agreed to appear on "Duffy's Tavern," but at the last moment ran out, scared stiff. Ed Gardner went dizzy seeking a substitute, and was very irked with Mr. B, who said he'd rather pay plenty than appear on the radio, Walter Winchell says.
ladailymirror.com
February 11, 2026 at 6:20 PM
NVM.
February 11, 2026 at 2:53 PM
Reposted by Larry Harnisch
Gary Cooper goes Full Hayseed in a color publicity portrait for his Oscar-winning title role in SERGEANT YORK (1941).

Not a favorite film of mine, but one I should revisit to see how it plays now. Anything from Howard Hawks is worth revisiting.
February 11, 2026 at 2:45 PM
February 11, 1908: The latest in men's shoes. Question: Should the local Japanese American community be allowed to welcome the Great White Fleet when it visits Los Angeles?
February 11, 1908: The Latest in Men’s Shoes
February 11, 1908: The latest in men's shoes. Question: Should the local Japanese American community be allowed to welcome the Great White Fleet when it visits Los Angeles?
ladailymirror.com
February 11, 2026 at 1:18 PM
February 11, 1907: Mrs. A.C. Newton of Central Avenue is near death after fracturing her skull by leaping from a streetcar that passed her stop. News reports show someone was injured almost every week by jumping from a streetcar that failed to stop. Image shows a new Baptist church on 2nd Street.
February 11, 1907: Woman Fractures Skull Leaping From Streetcar That Passed Her Stop
February 11, 1907: Mrs. A.C. Newton of Central Avenue is near death after fracturing her skull by leaping from a streetcar that passed her stop. News reports show someone was injured almost every week by jumping from a streetcar that failed to stop. Image shows a new Baptist church at 2nd Street and St. Louis.
ladailymirror.com
February 11, 2026 at 12:02 PM
For Monday, we have a mysterious fellow.
Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated +)
For Monday, we have a mysterious fellow.
ladailymirror.com
February 11, 2026 at 1:03 AM
Reposted by Larry Harnisch
New Weather West update is out now! Some relief, at last, from recent record warmth and astonishing lack of Mountain West snow in the coming days as cooler/wetter pattern returns. But just how much relief should we expect? Read more:
After a long, dry, and very warm January, a cooler & wetter pattern will return to the U.S. West, with partial relief amid record-low mountain snowpack - Weather West
Record warm winter-to-date continues across most of the American West; already abysmal mountain snowpack dips to record low levels in many areas (except...higher elevations in southern Sierra!) Well, it sure has been a winter to remember thus far across the Western U.S. Astonishing, record-breaking warmth has pervaded nearly entire region (with few exceptions, though one
weatherwest.com
February 8, 2026 at 11:49 PM
Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Mabel Fairbanks, Wonder Girl of the Ice

Mary Mallory takes a look at the career of Black skating star Mabel Fairbanks, Wonder Girl of the Ice
Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Mabel Fairbanks, Wonder Girl of the Ice
Mary Mallory takes a look at the career of Black skating star Mabel Fairbanks, Wonder Girl of the Ice
ladailymirror.com
February 9, 2026 at 2:14 PM
For Monday, we have a mysterious fellow.
Movieland Mystery Photo
For Monday, we have a mysterious fellow.
ladailymirror.com
February 9, 2026 at 11:21 AM
February 1 and continuing: Police arrest 20 men in women's clothing during a party at the home of former Mayor Arthur Harper.
February 8, 1920: Police Arrest Men in Girls’ Garb
February 1 and continuing: Police arrest 20 men in women's clothing during a party at the home of former Mayor Arthur Harper.
ladailymirror.com
February 8, 2026 at 7:01 PM
February 8, 1907: The death of family matriarch Mrs. James Stewart ends a feud between the Donnatins and the Stewarts over something that Charles Donnatin said to a young woman across the street.
February 8, 1907: Peace Returns to Buena Vista Street
February 8, 1907: The death of family matriarch Mrs. James Stewart ends a feud between the Donnatins and the Stewarts over something that Charles Donnatin said to a young woman across the street.
ladailymirror.com
February 8, 2026 at 3:17 PM
Reposted by Larry Harnisch
For many Black families, tracing their roots means navigating missing names and incomplete family stories. The third annual Black Family History Symposium in Charlottesville centered on what it means to reclaim those stories, and why that history still matters.❤️‍🔥
www.whsv.com/2026/02/08/b...
Black Family History Symposium explores legacy, gaps, and generational memory
The third annual Charlottesville event centered on what it means to reclaim those stories, and why that history still matters.
www.whsv.com
February 8, 2026 at 12:53 PM
Reposted by Larry Harnisch
I cannot stress this enough: you want to write a book? Write it. Do it now. Don’t wait. There is never a perfect time and you don’t need anyone’s permission. There are always dragons ahead. Not to be dark, but the cliff awaits. Write it in scraps, in voice notes, in a crappy notebook...
February 7, 2026 at 2:31 PM
February 7, 1944: On the radio dial, Hop Harrigan and Lux Radio Theater presents Deanna Durbin and Pat O'Brien in "His Butler's Sister.
1944 on the Radio — ‘His Butler’s Sister,’ February 7, 1944
February 7, 1944: On the radio dial, Hop Harrigan and Lux Radio Theater presents Deanna Durbin and Pat O'Brien in "His Butler's Sister.
ladailymirror.com
February 7, 2026 at 7:19 PM
February 7, 1907: Charles Babbitt is sentenced to 30 days in jail on charges of domestic violence after the testimony of his 6-year-old son. “Papa hit me with a whip and it cut my head,” the boy said. “Then he hit mama.” “The man blinked his eyes and said that he did it because he was drunk.”
February 7, 1907: Cop Killer’s Widow Arrested in Liquor Raid
February 7, 1907: Charles Babbitt is sentenced to 30 days in jail on charges of domestic violence after the testimony of his 6-year-old son. “Papa hit me with a whip and it cut my head,” the boy said. “Then he hit mama.” “The man blinked his eyes and said that he did it because he was drunk” The Times says.
ladailymirror.com
February 7, 2026 at 4:11 PM
February 7, 1863: A smallpox epidemic of 278 cases sweeps Los Angeles, with 170 unvaccinated and 146 vaccinated.
February 7, 1863: Smallpox Epidemic – Los Angeles
February 7, 1863: A smallpox epidemic of 278 cases sweeps Los Angeles, with 170 unvaccinated and 146 vaccinated.
ladailymirror.com
February 7, 2026 at 1:07 PM
Reposted by Larry Harnisch
One-Time Passcodes
February 5, 2026 at 5:33 PM
February 5, 2009: Burbank opens its 1959 time capsule to discover black and white photos of the city as it was then, plus local newspapers.
February 5, 2009: Burbank Time Capsule Revisited
February 5, 2009: Burbank opens its 1959 time capsule to discover black and white photos of the city as it was then, plus local newspapers.
ladailymirror.com
February 5, 2026 at 8:49 PM
February 5, 2009: Burbank workers find the time capsule implanted in the Magnolia Boulevard bridge in 1959.
February 5, 1959: Burbank Finds 1959 Time Capsule
February 5, 2009: Burbank workers find the time capsule implanted in the Magnolia Boulevard bridge in 1959.
ladailymirror.com
February 5, 2026 at 6:06 PM
February 5, 2009: One of my favorite stories from 2009 was discovering that Burbank forgot about a time capsule placed in the Magnolia Boulevard bridge in 1959, to be opened February 5, 2009.
February 5, 2009: Burbank to Open Time Capsule!
February 5, 2009: One of my favorite stories from 2009 was discovering that Burbank forgot about a time capsule placed in the Magnolia Boulevard bridge in 1959, to be opened February 5, 2009.
ladailymirror.com
February 5, 2026 at 1:56 PM
February 4, 1907: Architectural rambling with "artistic bungalows."
February 4, 1907: Architectural Ramblings — South Pasadena
February 4, 1907: Architectural rambling with "artistic bungalows."
ladailymirror.com
February 4, 2026 at 12:19 PM