Jimmie Fidler, May 26, 1941

May 26, 1941: PITTSBURGH, May 25 (AP) -- A man's leg was found along the Ohio River at suburban Moon Township tonight and detectives seeking the remainder of the body said it was probably "another murder" by the long-sought "Mad Butcher" of Cleveland, O." We turn out a masterpiece titled "Grapes of Wrath" and convince our Latin neighbors that rural North America has gone to hell in high gear. We produce "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" to prove our political corruption, "Citizen Kane" to demonstrate the vices in our capitalistic system, "The Devil and Miss Jones" to make it plain that we're a bunch of downtrodden wage slaves and "Tobacco Road" to put across our cultural standards,  Jimmie Fidler says.

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 25, 1941

LONDON, MAY 24 (AP) -- The 42,100-ton battle cruiser Hood, largest warship in the world, was blown to bits in the waters between Greenland and Iceland today by the new German battleship Bismarck during a battle of grave import between the behemoths of the British and German navies. How refreshing to see a young actress as refreshingly plump (not fat) as Joan Leslie, Jimmie Fidler says.

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 24, 1941

May 24, 1941: HOLLYWOOD AFTER DARK: The Mocambo orchestra hailing Jimmy Stewart home on leave with "Till Reveille" ... Maureen O'Hara at the Beverly Tropics, giving the waiter an involved order in French -- and escort Bill Lundigan amazed when it turns out to be a hamburger ... Orson Welles, on a boulevard corner, eyeing an overhead blimp trailing a "Citizen Kane" ad -- blimp ogles blimp ... An aviation officer at Florentine Gardens getting aitch from his girlfriend when he too obviously enjoys being kissed by the entire chorus.

Vice President Predicts 'Long, Costly' Struggle in Southeast Asia

May 24, 1961: Radio and TV comedy star Joan Davis dies of a heart attack and gets a Page 1 obituary with a jump. Raymond Chandler got an six-paragraph obituary on Page 4.  Davis was 48 when she died.

Jim Murray, May 24, 1961

May 24, 1961: Donald George Bragg is depressed. In the first place, some young upstart had just broken his listed world record in the pole vault. In the second place, the upstart had done it using a fiberglass pole and it is the considered opinion of Donald George that this is like winning a craps game with dice you can't throw a seven with, or a card game with five natural aces.

Bullet of Mystery – Part 5

In case you just tuned in, I’m posting a small case study of research I did with Caroline Comport on her grandfather Lionel Comport for her master’s thesis. Researching Los Angeles is a treasure hunt, and every time I dig into the resources I find something new. Bullet of Mystery – Part 1 Bullet of Mystery – Part 2 Bullet of Mystery – Part 3 Bullet of Mystery – Part 4   In Part 1, I summarized the case of Lionel Comport, a milkman who was shot in the back while making his rounds in 1901. In Part 2, we looked at some of the resources for online newspapers, and in Part 3, we examined sites that have property records on the corner where the shooting occurred. In Part 4, we delved into the Sanborn maps of the neighborhood. In my final post in the series, I’ll talk about one of the happy discoveries of research. There are, of course, many more places to look. This is a merely a sample.

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 23, 1941

May 23, 1941: Why is Luise Rainer, a brilliant artist, permitted to twiddle her thumbs at the Beverly Hills Hotel? (She came here to get her final divorce decree.) Why are incompetents given fine dramatic roles to ruin, when an actress of Miss Rainer's PROVED ability could make those parts great?

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Los Angeles Times file photo

[Update 2: This is Ivan Jandl in "The Search." Jandl received a special Academy Award and a miniature statuette for outstanding juvenile performance, The Times said. According to IMDB, Jandl died in 1987. The Times apparently never published an obituary.] [Update: Please congratulate Mary Mallory, Dewey Webb, Jenny M, Bob Levinson, Gerald McCann, Mike Hawks, Michael Ryerson, CandyC, La Peregrina and Rick Scott for identifying him!] Here’s our weekend mystery lad! There’s a new photo on the jump!

Jimmie Fidler, May 21, 1941

May 21, 1941: Nazi Chute Swarm? And I thought “Nazi Sky Fleet” was silly. Tom Treanor, on a press junket to Venezuela, says: Walter Kerr and myself have a nine-room house with an icebox full of cold things, and also a maid. "Bueno," I said to the maid in my best Spanish when she opened the icebox. "Don't speak Spanish to me," she said. "I only understand English." That Martha Raye-Neil Lang romance hung in the balance the other night, when she stormed out of a nightclub because he was too attentive to another girl, Jimmie Fidler says.

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Los Angeles Times file photo

[Update 2: This is Brenda Benet and it was particularly sad to be scanning photos of her on Mother’s Day, considering her story. At right, the March 4,  1981, account of her son’s death while undergoing emergency surgery. Benet committed suicide a month after the first anniversary of her son’s death. [Above, Brenda Benet is a guest on "Wendy and Me" episode, in a photo published Dec. 7, 1964. ] [Update: Please congratulate Zabadu, Jenny M, Rogét-L.A., Carmen and Barbara for identifying our mystery guest!  ] Here’s our mystery gal!   There’s a new photo on the jump!

Bullet of Mystery -- Part 3

In case you just tuned in, I’m posting a small case study of research I did with Caroline Comport on her grandfather Lionel Comport for her master’s thesis. Researching Los Angeles is a treasure hunt, and every time I dig into the resources I find something new. Bullet of Mystery – Part 1 Bullet of Mystery – Part 2   In Part 2, we looked at some of the resources for online newspapers. Caroline was also interested in the background details of the story. What was the neighborhood like?

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 20, 1941

May 20, 1941: International playboy Baldwin M. Baldwin (d. 1970), the son of Anita Baldwin and the grandson of E.J. “Lucky” Baldwin (the despot of Arcadia, according to The Times) gets married for the fifth time. The Germans in Venezuela have gotten the bounce, Tom Treanor says. "The parting of the ways was accomplished with great finesse on both sides. Contracts were settled up equitably, severance was paid, transportation back to Germany was given in many instances and, to hear it told, you would think that the era of good feeling and universal peace had arrived." Desi Arnaz's mother, after waiting in Mexico weeks to enter the United States on a quota number, must now due to a legal technicality return to Cuba and enter from there, Jimmie Fidler says.