Jim Murray, June 4, 1961

June 4, 1961: Jim Murray puts in a call to Casey Stengel and says: "I realized I was listening to the Voice of Baseball again. And what it is doing in a bank vault in Glendale instead of a locker room in baseball is something for Dan Topping or Del Webb to answer, not me."   Notice the LAPD badge says “Policeman” instead of the current “Police Officer.”

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, June 2, 1941

June 2, 1941: The pajama-clad body of Hungarian-born danseuse Jenny Dolly, who with her sister Rosie was the toast of two continents two decades ago, was found dangling from a wrought-iron curtain rod in her luxurious Hollywood apartment, 1735 N. Wilcox Ave., The Times says.  TWENTIETH CENTURY-FOX AT A GLANCE: Granite-eyed gatemen relaxing into big grins as Jane Withers drives past, Jimmie Fidler says.

Jim Murray, June 2, 1961

June 2, 1961: Parry O'Brien at the age of 29 will be a chief drawing card at the Compton Invitational tonight. He is one of the most durable and remarkable athletes of our time. In the record books of track and field -- which mean more on the veldts of Africa and the steppes of Russian than Spalding's Baseball Guide ever could -- he rates a page all to himself.

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, June 1, 1941

June 1, 1941: LONDON, May 31. (AP)-- German airmen who went belatedly to Iraq to bolster the Axis-inspired war against Britain were reported fleeing the country tonight as Iraqi resistance collapsed. British imperial advance forces entered the disorderly capital of Bagdad. Lee Shippey says the  argument in the Seymour house always begins in May: Should we turn off the furnace?  Probably you've seen some of the new jukebox "soundies" and formed your own opinion of them. I've just previewed 24 at one sitting, all produced by composer Sam Coslow, and I'm convinced that big movie moguls, instead of regarding them with contempt, should give them special attention, Jimmie Fidler says.

Audie Murphy Dies in Plane Crash, June 1, 1971

June 1, 1971: World War II hero Audie Murphy, whose record as the Army's most decorated soldier launched a movie career, dies in a plane crash with five other people. Murphy was awarded the Medal of Honor, two Silver Stars, a Bronze Star, three Purple Hearts, the Distinguished Service Cross and the Legion of Merit, The Times said.  Bonus fact: He was married for former Movieland Mystery Photo guest Wanda Hendrix! DEAR ABBY: What do you do with a nagging husband? We've been married for 15 years and have five children ranging from 6 to 13. This man nags me from the minute he gets home from work until I go to bed at night.

Jim Murray, June 1, 1961

June 1, 1961: Among those celebrating the convictions of Blinky Palermo and Frankie Carbo is a Boyle Heights prizefight manager named Harry Shall. Harry gave the government a chance to throw the book at Blinky Palermo a long time ago, nearly 10 years, when he haled him into Federal Court for stealing a fighter from him but Harry made the mistake of lumping CBS, Pabst beer, the IBC and others in his suit and Harry was lucky to escape in his underwear when their battery of lawyers got through with him. Notice the ad for a program on skydiving. Fibber, this is for you!

Jim Murray, 'Gentlemen, Start Your Coffins!'

June 29, 1966: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the  50th annual Memorial Day Safety Contest, the world's fastest traffic jam. This year, in order to more nearly approximate road conditions on our nation's highways and test performance under authentic hazards, we have brought about several changes in the field."   By special request! This one’s for you, Art!

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 31, 1941

May 31, 1941 – Arthur Hohmann, the LAPD’s reform police chief, will step down in June, citing the deaths of his son and his mother. He was replaced by Clemence C.B. “Jack” Horrall, who served as chief during World War II and retired in 1949 during the Brenda Allen scandal. Lee Shippey says: It is strange how masterminds disagree as to whether the president's speech last Tuesday means war. So I think I should clear up the matter for my readers. The speech does not necessarily mean war. All it means is that we must fight or the Nazis must surrender. I'm not joking. I do not think it impossible that the Nazis will surrender. Also on the jump:  The Times opposes gasoline conservation, Daylight Saving Time and other measures as the country moves toward  wartime stringency measures. Typically, The Times says that the real way to prepare for war is to forbid strikes by unions! And yes, The Times’ editorial page featured a Bible quote every day for many years. HOLLYWOOD AFTER DARK: Carole Lombard grinning apologetically at the Hollywood and Vine traffic cop as her car rolls too far into the intersection, Jimmie Fidler says. Also From The Times’ Editorial Page: Don’t Recall Mayor Frank Shaw, 1938 Don’t Change Immigration Quotas for Jewish Refugees Fleeing Hitler, 1938 We Don’t Need a Federal Anti-Lynching Law, 1938 U.S. Shouldn’t Recognize Red China, 1959 Times Endorses Nixon, 1960

Jim Murray, May 31, 1961

May 31, 1961: Emile Griffith is a slashing boxer from the Virgin Islands whose waist is so narrow and shoulders so wide that he would have to go to a tailor for his suits even if it weren't the only way he could get a belt in the back that buttons in the middle -- and colors to match the silver and gold buckles on his shoes.

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 28, 1941

May 28, 1941: LONDON, May 27 (AP) -- The 35,000-ton German battleship Bismarck, one of the newest and most powerful in the world, was smashed and sunk today by British warships and aerial bombers on the fifth morning of as coldly implacable a chase as sea warfare has ever known. Jimmie Fidler says: Tucked away in a corner of the Los Angeles Times the other day was an item that left me cold with rage.... The item to which I refer digested down to this: "The Hollywood Guild may have to close its doors and cease aiding unfortunate members of the film industry because the drain of foreign charities has cut so deeply into the guild's income as to threaten its existence.” FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE! How can American-born actors and executives of the movie industry be so blind? How can they continue to pour thousands of dollars into foreign relief funds, meanwhile ignoring the pitiful cry of indigents right here at home? Also on the jump: A map of the Bismarck’s demise by Times artist Charles Owens.

Jim Murray, May 28, 1961

May 28, 1961: On the battlefields of baseball this year it has become quite evident that the Los Angeles Angels are the Serbs of the American League. They do not have the firepower to win the war or even any major battles.

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 27, 1941

LONDON, May 27 (Tuesday.) (AP) -- British warships apparently were engaged in a mighty duel with a German battle squadron, including the 35,000-ton Bismarck, in the North Atlantic early today after a British naval plane rammed an aerial torpedo into the Bismarck. Lee Shippey has an item on Homer Lea (d. 1912), the author of the 1909 book "The Valor of Ignorance." (The book is also listed on world.cat.) Despite considerable physical handicaps, Lea became a military advisor to Sun Yat-sen and his observations on Japan were widely studied during World War II. (I wrote a long post about Lea for the 1947project. Stay tuned for another one on the Daily Mirror.) The home for destitute actors, to be built near Hollywood with Motion Picture Relief Fund money, will be named "Roosevelt Home," Jimmie Fidler says.