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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide: ‘Making Black Los Angeles’

Note: This is an encore post from 2018. I only recommend books that I have read, which is why I haven’t listed Susan Orlean’s “The Library Book” or Stephen Gee’s “Los Angeles City Hall: An American Icon.” I look forward to reading both of them, but I’m not there yet. Marne L. Campbell also appears in a video on Archive.org. “Making Black Los Angeles,” by Marne L. Campbell, 2016. University of…

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Altadena’s Lovely Christmas Tree Lane

Mary Mallory visits Altadena's Christmas Tree Lane in this encore post from 2012.

Christmas Tree Lane in a vintage postcard, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Note: This is an encore post from 2012. Nothing says Christmas like the sight of beautiful outdoor twinkling lights lending a bit of romanticism and happiness to the holiday season. Homes and businesses spiffily decorate themselves. Cities light up parks and outdoor trees. The granddaddy celebration of them all is Altadena’s …

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Movieland Mystery Photo

For Monday, we have a mysterious lad.

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‘Ask Me Anything’ on George Hodel – December 17

Reminder: Boxie and I will be doing a live “Ask Me Anything” on George Hodel and Steve Hodel on Tuesday, December 17, at 10 a.m. Pacific time on YouTube and Instagram. Can’t make the live session? Email me your questions and I’ll answer them! The video will be posted once the session ends so you can watch it later.

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Note: This is an encore post from 2014. In February, I ran a series of posts by James Curtis about producer David Lewis. This isn’t a new book but I found it remarkably insightful. “The Creative Producer” can be found via Bookfinder.com, with copies starting as low as $19.99 (Update 2024: Starting at $85? This has really gone up since 2014) in somewhat bedraggled condition. James Curtis: L.A.…

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Note: This is an encore post from 2014. “The Los Angeles Book,” with text by Lee Shippey and photos by Max Yavno is one of my favorite books on Los Angeles – but only for Yavno’s photographs. The text is forgettable and, in fact, Yavno said he paid no attention to it when he took his pictures. There are many famous images here, including Muscle Beach, the opening of “The Heiress” at the Carthay…

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywood and Poinsettias

A postcard c. 1908 of poinsettias, “California’s Christmas flower,” listed on EBay. Note: This is an encore post from 2020. Euphorba Pulcherrima, better known as the poinsettia plant, has been popular in Los Angeles since the late 1800s. Some call it flor de fuego (fire flower) or flor de la noche buena (flower of the holy night) because of its bright red leaves or bracts. First used as…

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Movieland Mystery Photo

For Monday, we have a mystery woman.

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

The Retro Holiday Shopping Guide: Melba Levick's "The Big Picture: Murals of Los Angeles." Wonderful paintings, most of them lost. One of my favorite's is Kent Twitchell's "Old Woman of the Freeway" featuring actress Lillian Bronson.

Note: This is an encore post from 2011. I picked up “The Big Picture,” Melba Levick and Stanley Young’s 1988 book about Los Angeles murals, not realizing what a terribly sad book it would be. As Young notes: “Most artists are aware that, exposed as it is to the elements, both human and natural, there is a limited life-expectancy for any mural.” I wanted it for one picture, specifically. “The Big…

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A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Note: This is a repost from 2011. In 1962, I was a seventh-grader at Washington Junior High School in Naperville, Ill. On Dec. 7, Mr. Humbert, our social studies teacher, put aside the regular curriculum to give his young pupils a firsthand account of Pearl Harbor. Many years later, I contacted Mr. Humbert. He didn’t remember me (I was not a stellar student) but he was thrilled to get a phone…

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Raymond Chandler Auction Update

Raymond Chandler Auction Update. Chandler's typewriter sells for $9,600

One of three John Engstead portraits of Raymond Chandler, a lot that sold for $512. The results are in for Doyle’s auction of Raymond Chandler items from the the Jean Vounder-Davis Collection. Continue reading Raymond Chandler Auction Update

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Today's L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide: "Nuestro Pueblo," drawings by Charles Owens and text by Joseph Seewerker, one of my favorite books on Los Angeles.

Note: This is a repost from 2013. Whenever I’m asked about my favorite books on Los Angeles, my first recommendation is “Nuestro Pueblo,” a selection of features by Times artist Charles Owens and writer Joseph Seewerker that appeared in The Times. I went through all of them when the blog was at latimes.com,* so I won’t repeat them now, but if you’re a fan of Rediscovering Los Angeles, which was…

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Note: This is a repost from 2013. You might have to hunt a bit for Don Normark’s 1999 book “Chavez Ravine, 1949,” but your search will be rewarded. The photos are terrific and the residents’ recollections make the book even better. Copies can be found via bookfinder.com. ps. I should note that a recent story by longtime Los Angeles Times writer Louis Sahagun erred in stating: Continue reading…

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Photo by John Engstead / Courtesy of Doyle Auctions. Speaking of Raymond Chandler, Doyle Auctions is offering material from the the Jean Vounder-Davis Collection of Raymond Chandler to be sold Friday (Dec. 6). Continue reading L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Retro holiday shopping guide: Library of America's Raymond Chandler box set.

Note: This is an encore post from 2020. Many years ago, the editor of the Los Angeles Times book review section (yes, the really, really odd one) insisted that publishers send him advance review copies and unbound galleys rather than the final printed book. The ARCs and galleys often ended up in the trash, including the loose pages for the Library of America’s boxed set of Raymond Chandler—which,…

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Another Retro L.A. shopping suggestion: Los Angeles in Maps, but Glen Creason, forward by D.J. Waldie

Note: This is a repost from 2013. Glen Creason’s book on maps of Los Angeles shows the many ways people have viewed the city over the years. I interviewed him for The Times in 2012 and fortunately for all concerned, the column was seen by a real estate agent who was getting ready to sell off a rather curious home in Mt. Washington that had been owned by a man who had a mania for maps. The result…

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: ‘White Christmas’ Soothes the Home Front in 1942

Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Marjorie Reynolds and Virginia Dale in “Holiday Inn.” Note: This is an encore post from 2015. Recognized today as one of the top selling singles and pieces of sheet music of all time, Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” was just one of eleven songs in the 1942 holiday classic, “Holiday Inn.” First put to paper by Berlin in 1940, the tune evolved over time before becoming…