American Basketball Association comes to L.A., October 30, 1968

By Keith Thursby Times staff writer The American Basketball Assn., which gave the world three-pointers, slam dunk contests and Dr. J., came to Los Angeles for a brief stop. The team was called the L.A. Stars but its real star was on the bench. Bill Sharman had been a standout player with USC and the Boston Celtics. He even played baseball for a while in the Brooklyn Dodgers' minor league system. He came back to L.A. as the Stars' coach after two seasons coaching the San Francisco Warriors. "I made the move because I love Los Angeles," Sharman told The Times' Dan Hafner. "There is no other place I want to live and I've tried a number of different ones. I like the climate here and I like the people." The Stars played in the Sports Arena but never drew much attention. The team was young and mostly unknown and attendance was bleak. Perhaps things would have been different with an ABA star like Julius Erving or David Thompson matched with a coach of Sharman's drive and experience. But the Stars would last only two seasons in L.A., having moved to Los Angeles after a season in Anaheim as the Amigos. Hafner's story advancing the Stars' first home game included Sharman's view on what the league needed to survive: "Two things could make our league an instant success. One would be to land UCLA's Lew Alcindor. The other would be to get a national television contract. Our league needs exposure." Sharman spent three seasons in the ABA, winning a title with the Stars after they moved to Utah. The next season, Sharman would be back in L.A. as coach of the Lakers. Here's some ABA video found on YouTube that includes old game clips and interviews. See what L.A. for the most part missed.

Nazis stop expulsion of Polish Jews, October 30, 1938

What's wrong with the movies these days? Hedda Hopper knows! Too much boy meets girl with too much sugar and too many contrived obstacles standing between the young couple and happiness. Saying grace at the table used to be a novelty--now it's in every movie! Filmmakers have also disclosed too many secrets and audiences don't fall for special effects anymore! In sports, Loyola and Centenary play a brutal game in Shreveport, La., in which Loyola takes 150 yards in penalties. Recall that there was bad blood between the teams over African American player Walt McCowen of Loyola.    Westerns stay clear of censorship for foreign audiences.   UCLA defeats Stanford Indians.

Changeling stories -- Part IV

Los Angeles Times file photo Louisa Northcott, the mother of Gordon Northcott, isn't portrayed in "Changeling," but played a key role in the actual case. Above, she's booked in jail.

Los Angeles Times file photo Louisa Northcott with one of her attorneys (she was represented by Norbert Savay, A.H. De Tremaudan and J. McKinley Cameron). Los Angeles Times file photo Deputy P.H. Peterson and his wife escort Louisa Northcott to San Quentin for her role in the killings.

Los Angeles Times file photo Louisa Northcott, December 1928. She was paroled in 1940.

Frank Lloyd Wright home -- $2.7 million

Photograph by Scott Mayoral The Fawcett residence, built for Randall and Harriet Fawcett.

Frank Lloyd Wright's 1959-1961 Fawcett residence in Los Banos, Calif., has been offered for $2.7 million. A memoir about the home is here. The realty agents' website is here.

 

New pope elected, October 29, 1958

Pope John 23rd, 1958-1963

Angelo Cardinal Roncalli, patriarch of Venice, is named Pope John 23rd. At 77, he defied expectations that he would be an interim figure before a younger man took over, according to The Times' Robert Hartmann. On the jump, a brief history of those puffs of smoke associated with papal elections ... And we give the pope a picture page. The Times publishes a front page editorial for Proposition 18 on organized labor, calling it "the essential article in labor's bill of rights." In sports, police arrest athletes in an investigation of gambling at the University of Michigan.

Changeling stories -- Part III

Photograph by Tony Rivetti Jr. / Universal Pictures Above, Colm Feore as Police Chief James Davis, "Changeling," set in 1928.

Los Angeles Times file photo Above, Police Chief James Davis, 1926.

Northcott signs confession. I don't care much for the press passes in the reporters' hats (at top), in fact they make me cringe, but costume designer Deborah Hopper did a nice job on Chief Davis' uniform, taking a small liberty to show a bit more of his tie. At left, Gordon Northcott admits killing five boys, including Walter Collins. Northcott says he made Walter kneel at an improvised altar before killing him and kept his body around the house for several days. Northcott later told Christine Collins that he didn't kill her son. Below, Northcott's mother is given a life term in the killings. "I kept his body around the house for three days before I buried it." "The old fool is crazy! There aren't any bodies!" "My boy never had anything to do with the murders.... It was all my fault." "It is only because you are a woman that I do not sentence you to be hanged."

Vintage fashions on EBay -- Irene Lentz

I promised I wouldn't go off the deep end on vintage fashions, but I did post something about menswear and don't want to be biased. Here's an Irene Lentz number from the 1950s priced at $349.

 

Colts win over Rams, October 28, 1968

I wondered if somewhere during my tour of the Rams' 1958 and '68 seasons I'd find the same name pop up in a story, 10 years later. What were the odds, given that length of time and two very different eras in the NFL? Well, we have a winner: Earl Morrall. In 1958, he had a small part in the Detroit Lions' first game against the Rams. Ten years later, he was the star as the Baltimore Colts handed the '68 Rams their first loss of the season, 27-10. Player of the game: Morrall was playing for a sore-armed legend, Johnny Unitas. He threw for two touchdowns and scored another as the Colts built a 20-3 halftime lead. Quote of the game: "There were no tricks or any magic," Colts Coach Don Shula said in the game story by The Times' Mal Florence. "We just played a fine football game." --Keith Thursby

 

Mayor investigates honorary LAPD badges, October 28, 1938

Above, Police Chief James Davis turns over a list of more than 7,800 people who have received honorary badges from the Los Angeles Police Department. Recipients include Shirley Temple, Clark Gable, Louis B. Mayer, Joe E. Brown, King Vidor, Bela Lugosi and Leo Carrillo. So many old-style badges like one the at left and the one in the Daily Mirror sidebar were handed out that the department replaced them with the current design and these are tightly restricted. The old badges (usually with the rank of captain or chief) can sell for a fair amount of money, even though thousands of them were given away.

Changeling stories -- Part II

The "Enigma Boy" who fooled police into believing that he was Walter Collins is identified as Arthur Hutchins Jr. of Iowa. Read Part I of The Times reports on the story that formed the basis of "Changeling."

Enigma Boy identified. Enigma Boy lured by Hollywood. Christine Collins accuses Capt. J.J. Jones of forced hospitalization. "Tell your mother how you have almost made a wreck of the Police Department."