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Jack Benny gives a party for his daughter Joan and invites some little friends: Jack Haley Jr., Gary and Dennis Crosby, Dion Fay (son of Barbara Stanwyck and Frank Fay), Melinda Markey (daughter of Joan Bennett and Gene Markey), Al Jolson Jr. and Freddie Astaire Jr. Email me |
From The Times' editorial page, July 16, 1938. Note the Bible passage.
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e can add this to The Times' editorials against a federal anti-lynching law (not necessary) and offering refuge to people fleeing Nazi persecution (they would just go on welfare and take jobs away from Americans): What's all the fuss with a recall election? One thing that's evident about The Times' editorial pages in this era is that they were staunchly in favor of the status quo.
Meanwhile, we seem to be in favor of a ballot initiative on working women that I don't entirely understand. Looks like some digging is in order.
At left, petitions are filed seeking to recall Mayor Frank Shaw. He says his opponents are a "disgruntled, discredited, hypocritical handful of politicians, racketeers and misguided zealots...." Los Angeles? Why it's the "white spot" of the nation!
And we'd be willing to host the 1940 summer Olympics after Tokio was forced to withdraw because of the war between Japan and China.
Also ... Katharine Hepburn and Howard Hughes? Let me say that again: Katharine Hepburn and Howard Hughes?
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Note to Jaded: It's not such a bargain. Adjusted for inflation, $13.33 is $190.61 USD 2007.
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Prospect and Myra avenues ... No, I couldn't make this up. I really couldn't. |
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Yes, it is Rod Cameron and Adrian Booth in "Brimstone," correctly guessed by Michael Ryerson, Michael Goosman, John Jarnagin, Gary Hertzberg and Howard Decker.
More important, note the Colt Single Action Army Frontier he's carrying. At least that's my best guess.
Above, our mystery guest, identified by Don Danard as: Adrian Booth, Lorna Gray and Virginia Pound (I would have accepted any of these names).
But of course, the Daily
Mirror isn't done. Now the mystery guest is the fellow on the right.
And just because I'm in a good mood, here's another photo. Keith Thursby asked if this was taken at the Golden Horseshoe at Disneyland. Alas, no. (This is on the set of "The Black Hills," Sept. 10, 1950).
Photograph by the Los Angeles Times
Speaking of fur coats, who's the lady wearing this one? (She was photographed in March 1945 after being arrested on drug charges. She was later exonerated, see below).
P.S.: Dig that great metal plate around the doorknob.
Hint: This actress has more than 50 credits on imdb and to the best of my knowledge is still alive.
Big hint: Our mystery guest appeared in a film with two of the actresses listed below (Lorna Gray, Ida Lupino and Rita Hayworth appeared in "The Lone Wolf Spy Hunt.")
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 Another vintage shot of our mystery guest, sans fur coat. (This is cropped from a still photo of "The Return of Captain America").
Another photo of our mystery guest. ("The Man They Could Not Hang," 1939)
Here she is in another fur. (Photograph by Roman Freulich, Republic Studios, Oct. 20, 1954). |
- Virginia Hill? Sorry, no.
- Nora Eddington? Interesting guess, but no. This woman has more than 50 imdb credits and is still alive as far as I know.
- Jean Arthur? Interesting guess. But I'm afraid not. This lady is still alive as far as I know. Jean Arthur died in 1991.
- Lucille Ball? I'm sorry, this lady is still alive as far as I know. Ball died in 1989.
- Jane Randolph? A very good guess. Our lady has way more credits on imdb, though.
- Pamela Blake (with Alan Ladd or Elisha Cook Jr.)? Interesting guesses for sure. But no.
- Phyllis Coates? Interesting guess, but Coates has far more credits on imdb.
- Marsha Hunt? Another interesting guess, but Hunt has far more credits on imdb.
- Gene Tierney? (two people). Alas, this lady is still alive as far as I know. Tierney died in 1991.
- Joan Bennett? I'm afraid not. This lady is still alive and Bennett died in 1990.
- Ann Sheridan? Alas, no. This lady is still alive and Sheridan died in 1967.
- Ava Gardner? Alas no. This lady is still alive and Gardner died in 1990.
- Simone Simon? Alas no. This lady is still alive and Simon died in 2005.
- Ava Gardner? I'm afraid not. This lady is still alive and Gardner died in 1990.
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Photograph by the Los Angeles Times
Carole Landis, July 27, 1937
Form 3.11
(Revised 10-3-47)
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DEAD BODY REPORT
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Type SUICIDE
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DR No. 486 592
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Victim SCHMIDLAPP, Carole Landis (Mrs.) Residence Address 1465 Capri Dr., Pac Pal. Business Address Eagle Lyon Stud.
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Date and time of death 7/4-5/48 9PM-3PM
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Place and Address 1465 Capri Dr. Pac Pal Radio Dist 84
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Date and Time Death Reported 7/5/48 4:15 PM
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Div. Reporting West LA Clerk jlb
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Location of Original Illness or Injury 1465 Capri Dr. Pac Palisades
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Date and time 7/4-5/48
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Div. of Original Occurrence West L.A.
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Type of Original Report This report
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Cause of Death (Poison, Heart Failure, Drowned, Traffic, Gunshot, etc.) App. sleeping tablets.
Motive or Reason (Revenge, Rape, Ill Health, etc.) App ill health
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Time discovered 7/5/48 3PM
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Removed to Wilshire Funeral Parlor
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Discovered by Mr. Rex Harrison
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Address 1928 Mandeville Canyon
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Phone AR 98549
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Reported by Mr. Rex Harrison
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Address 1928 Mandeville Canyon
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Phone AR 98549 |
Identified by Mr. Rex Harrison
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Address 1928 Mandeville Canyon
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Phone AR 98549
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Sex Fe Race Cauc Age 27-28 Height 5-6 1/2 Weight 120
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Build Small Hair Auburn Eyes Unk. Complexion Dark
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Identifying marks None
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| Clothing White blouse, black & white plaid skirt, moccasin type sandals gold and wht in color. Occupation Actress Descent American |
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Relative's name Dorothy Ross
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Address 1506 E. 64th St., Long Beach Phone LB 27131
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Relationship Sister
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To be notified by Brittingham, West LA Det.
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Witness Mrs. Wasson
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Address 856 S. Bundy Dr. WLA
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Phone AR 72630
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Witness Dr. N.K. Forster, M.D.
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Address 1339 N. Capri Dr. Pac Pal
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Phone SM 57747
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Witness Fannie Mae Bolden
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Address 155 E. 51st St., LA
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Phone CE 21747
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Witness Rex Harrison
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Address 1928 Mandeville Cyn
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Phone AR 98549
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Witness
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Witness
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Further details
Coroner's Office noticied (cq) Deputy Gooch. Homicide notified.
A note written and left by the deceased; to wit:
"Dearest Mommie,
I'm really, really sorry to put you through this but there is no way to avoid it.
I love you, darling, you have been the most wonderful mom ever.
And that applies to all our family. I love each and every one of them dearly.
Everything goes to you. Look in the files and there is a will which decrees everything.
Goodbye, my angel, pray for me.
SGD/Your baby."
Mr. Rex Harrison visited the deceased on 7/4/48 and left her residence at approx. 9PM. The following day, 7/5/48, Mr. Harrison telephoned twice and the second time the maid informed him she was unable to arouse the deceased. Mr. Harrison went to the house and arrived at approx. 3:00 PM. Accompanied by the maid, went to the deceased's bedroom and found her lying in the bathroom on the floor. The maid went next door and called the police and notified Mrs. Wasson as to what they had found. At that time, Dr. N.K. Forster was called. At the time of our arrival at 3:55 PM, Mrs. Wasson and Mr. Harrison and the maid, Fannie Mae Bolden, were present. Dr. Forster came in shortly after our arrival. He immediately pronounced victim dead. Deceased was
CONTINUED ON CONTINUATION FORM 15.9
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Signature H.W. Brittingham Serial No. 2724
Signature M.J. Layman Serial No. 2606
Approved by (illegible).
If Additional Space Is Required Use Continuation Report Form No. 15.9
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The Daily Mirror would like to thank a reader for sharing a photo of the first page of original LAPD report, which was too murky to reproduce.
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Above, 6th and Hill streets via Google maps' street view feature. "Prison Farm" ... now there's a title that leaves nothing to the imagination. According to imdb, Horace McCoy was an uncredited writer on the picture. Not on Netflix! |
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 olling Fork, Miss., reports the most unusual story of African Americans joining a lynch mob. The violence inflicted on the victim was especially gruesome. Local Sheriff M.C. Ewing denied knowing anything whatsoever about the matter.
John N. Crane, 43, an oil well driller, kills his wife, Edith, and tries to commit suicide after leaving the offices of an attorney where they discussed a divorce ... And an American company announces a deal to buy oil from Mexico, which nationalized U.S. and British oil production March 18, 1938.
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| I discovered something interesting in trying to enhance this photo. |
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I was fiddling around with the contrast and brightness when the labels suddenly became readable -- at least the larger type. Imagine my surprise. (No, I didn't salvage this out of the photo above; someone sent me a scan.) The labels appear to say something like "Western Drug" or "Westwood Drug." Aha! Western Drug. Co., 5500 Hollywood Blvd., GLadstone-8192.
Update: According to an informal inquiry held in lieu of an inquest, the envelope shown with the pill bottles said (apparently in Landis' handwriting):
"red--quick--2 hours
yellow about 5--can take 2"
Note that only one of these four bottles looks like the three found on the bureau, at left. That's a total of six pill bottles at least. Maybe seven.
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 | Above, the photo of Carole Landis published in The Times. |
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 omeone was kind enough to send me a scan of this photo. Here are the items on the bathroom counter: a book of matches, a comb and several bottles. It's a bit difficult to tell, but I think a pill bottle is visible behind the large bottle in the center of the photo. If so, we have found four pill bottles so far. |
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And we get a closeup of her left hand. I noticed right away there's no wedding ring. She had filed for divorce, so that's not terribly surprising -- but worth noting. Also notice that the bathroom appears to be carpeted.
Update: Now this is interesting. According to news reports, Landis was holding a satin ribbon bearing the Lord's Prayer in her left hand. But I don't see any ribbon, just a shadow from the leg of the bathroom sink. Unfortunately, her right hand is obscured. |
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Of course, we're snooping, so we're going to look into this locking cabinet. What's in here? On the top shelf, we find a small box and what appears to be a small pouch or portfolio-type cover with a snap. |
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This is the item that interests me the most. On the bottom shelf of this locking cabinet, closest to her head, we find some sort of typed or printed document. Unfortunately, I can't get any more detail by enhancing the photo. But it's clearly a document. Presumably this is not a will as there was confusion after her death about where it was located.
What seems evident, though, is that she was using the locking cabinet to store valuables.
In fact, someone sent me another photo of the scene in which the cabinet door isn't blocked by Detective Jones. At left, there's the lock.
Someone who has more time than I do might find it productive to get a copy of her probate records from Los Angeles County. Because there was a legal dispute over her estate, it's fairly likely there's a large file that should include a detailed inventory of everything she owned when she died.
Observations? Thoughts?
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| Above, the Carole Landis crime scene photo as it was published in The Times, July 6, 1948. |
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 nce again, here are our two detectives, John Laymen and Emmett Jones, looking at poor old Carole Landis on the bathroom floor. I have to admit I'm a little disappointed that nobody mentioned what I find to be the most interesting detail in this photo.
 elow, let's get a closer look. Sure enough, there's a set of keys hanging from the door of the cabinet where she's lying. I can't claim to be an expert on fancy Los Angeles homes of the 1940s (a shout-out to Nathan Marsak), but I have never encountered a bathroom that had a cabinet that locked with a key (perhaps I have led a sheltered life). I suppose there are several reasons for having one.
One possibility is that it was an early attempt at baby-proofing; Lord knows the old newspapers are full of stories about children poisoning themselves with ant paste or their parents' medicine.
 hatever the reason, I'm beginning to suspect that Landis was using this locking cabinet as some sort of home safe. The inventory of her estate listed quite a bit of jewelry and the fact that she was found resting her head on a jewelry box makes much more sense if she kept her valuables in this cabinet.
Wouldn't it be fun to look in the cabinet? Maybe we can.
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Photograph by the Los Angeles Times
Here's the overall shot again. So far nobody has mentioned the item almost in the center of the photograph.
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A piano bench and an old movie script. Voila!
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At first I thought it was some sort of ledger. But on closer examination I decided it might be a script.
Below, here's what a 1940s movie script looked like in its original binder. (This is the script for the MGM production "The Arnelo Affair," dated Nov. 5, 1946, purchased by me at the Salvation Army store in Pasadena for $4. The binders, by the way, came from The Loose Leaf House, 1240 S. Main St.)
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Above, the photo that turns up in so many crime books and on the Internet--usually not credited to The Times (ahem). Unfortunately, I cannot locate this print in The Times archives, so a clip from ProQuest will have to do. It would be interesting to examine exactly what's on the counter.
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This is what we see in the mirror above the bureau. Of course, everything is reversed, so let's flop it.
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Notice that it's daytime and one of the windows is open. There are heavy drapes and we can see out into the yard.
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And here's the fur coat that everyone has mentioned. Nathan is correct in saying that Los Angeles gets cool at night, even in July, and for a stylish movie star like Carole Landis, a fur coat in the summertime doesn't strike me as being out of place. According to a story about the auction of her estate, Landis owned 11 fur coats, as well as stoles, capes, jackets, hats and muffs.
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Isn't this a wonderful hair dryer? Art Deco meets the Space Age. I'm sure there is someone, somewhere who collects antique hair dryers and can identify this for us.
And there's a doorstop on the molding at the bottom of the picture. Presumably it's for the door that's behind heavy drapes to the right.
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Notice that the label is visible. I flipped the image to make it right side up.
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One reader commented on the door knob and the lock. Here's a more detailed image. |
Thoughts? Observations? Email me
Photograph by the Los Angeles Times
Detectives John M. Laymen, top, and Emmett Jones examine the body of actress Carole Landis in a bathroom (one of four) at her home at 1465 Capri Drive, July 5, 1948. Below, the approximate location via Google maps' street view feature.
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 he 60th anniversary of Carole Landis' suicide is coming up, so I thought it would be interesting to post a Times photo of the crime scene. I noticed several unusual things right away, but just to make this a bit more interesting, take a look at this photo and tell me what you see. There is at least one detail that I find extremely odd. At left, Landis in a 1940 studio photo
(Note: Some Neanderthal at The Times cut this print into a bizarre shape, so I filled in the black background to make it a rectangle.) OK, mystery lovers... what do you see in the crime scene photo?
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Someone apparently doesn't like Dorothy Adamson's fox terrier, which is missing after her apartment at 1034 Hilldale was bombed. An unidentified caller had complained about the dog's barking, The Times says. Alas, the paper never followed up on this story.
And wedding bells ring for Jack Webb and former Miss USA Jackie Loughery, who met when Webb was casting "Pete Kelly's Blues." The couple are going to live on the Republic Studios lot, The Times says. They divorced in 1964.
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 t left, a nine-room home in an all-white neighborhood is heavily vandalized after being sold to an African American doctor and his family.
The Times says vandals caused $15,000 ($109,315.53 USD 2007) damage to the newly redecorated home at 4240 Cerritos Ave., Long Beach, by putting a garden hose up on the second story letting the water run all night; splashing bleach on the new carpeting; and cutting a huge hole in the carpet.
Dr. Charles T. Terry said he still intended to move into the home, noting that he believed the vandalism did not reflect the feelings of his neighbors.
The next day, 150 neighbors joined a nonprofit organization that would decide whether people were eligible to buy homes in the area. The group condemned the vandalism to the Terrys' home but said they needed to protect their property values by deciding who could buy a house in the area.
The City Council, meanwhile, passed a resolution saying that "people of all colors and creeds are welcome in Long Beach."
Also note the killing of Police Officer Thomas Scebbi after he and his partner, Ramon Espinoza, pulled over about 2 a.m. on June 20 in front of 332 S. Kingsley Drive to question a man wearing white gloves about a series of liquor store holdups. Espinoza (The Times also called him Espinosa) was badly wounded and expected to die of his injuries, but he recovered to testify against James Eugene Hooten. Hooten was executed in the gas chamber for the killing, May 13, 1960.
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uestro Pueblo is a new discovery for me, and a very happy one. The Times began the feature by writer Joe Seewerker and artist Charles Owens in June 1938, publishing installments Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The series ended in October 1939 after Seewerker and his young son, Joe Jr., were badly injured in a car accident. The last installment bids farewell with a jaunty "hasta la vista." The series was published as a book with an introduction by The Times' Lee Shippey.
And never mind the fallout from the Harry Raymond bombing, here's really important news: The two leads of "Gone With the Wind" have finally been cast, The Times says. The movie will star Clark Gable as Rhett Butler and Norma Shearer as Scarlett O'Hara.
The Times says three supporting roles have been cast: Walter Connolly as Scarlett's father, Gerald; Maurice Murphy as Charles Hamilton, Scarlett's first husband; and Margaret Tallichet as Scarlett's sister Carreen.
Of course, we know GWTW didn't quite turn out this way.
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 aybe you remember him as Al Sleet, the "Hippy, Dippy Weatherman with the hippy, dippy weather ... man" or as Rufus in "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure" or the author of an incredible number of jokes that are eternally circulating on the Internet. Or perhaps you have heard of his bit on the "Seven Dirty Words." Here's a transcript of the skit that got him in trouble.
Below, an interview with Carlin last year.
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Oct. 4, 2007
By Mike Flaherty
Special to The Times
 he acerbic stand-up comedian and social commentator is celebrating 50 years in show biz -- and last week's release of "George Carlin: All My Stuff," a 14-DVD collection of his HBO specials spanning 1977 to 2005. Although he shows no sign of slowing down, he did take some time to chat about his career, his healthy pessimism and our commander in chief.
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So, 50 years in show biz, huh? Does that number date from a specific gig?
It dates from the day I took the air at a radio station in Shreveport, La., in 1956. You know what? It's really 51 years; we're fudging it a year just for convenience's sake.
I was 18, and they had me do newscasts first, then I became a DJ two or three months later.
Do you have a favorite among the 12 HBO specials on "All My Stuff"?
Yeah, "Jammin' in New York," 1992. Prior to that period, I'd refer to myself in interviews as a comedian who wrote his own material. But that was the point where I probably became more of a writer who performed his own material. The material became more like essays, they became more socially conscious, and it was just a major jump from being what I think of as only an entertainer to being an artist-entertainer.
I'm looking at the titles of your last few -- "You Are All Diseased," "Complaints and Grievances," "Life Is Worth Losing." If I didn't know better, I'd think you were a pessimist.
 ell, I am a pessimist as far as the world is concerned. I have absolutely low prospects for the human race; I have very low prospects for this country. For myself, though, very high prospects. I'm a personal optimist.
How does one keep pessimism from making them miserable, souring their outlook, preventing them from embracing life?
You can't care. You see, I don't care about the outcome in this country [or] on this planet because I know this is all temporal b.s. It's not a religious point of view, it's just realism. I like living somewhere detached from all of this emotionally. I don't really have a stake in the outcome anymore.
 bout 30 years ago, I became a person who said, "You know something? People aren't worth worrying about and caring about." One by one, yes; any time I'm with one person, I'm fine. There's all sorts of compassion and empathy in my heart. But when you consider them as a group, from a distance, I don't give a . . . about them.
How about George Bush?
Just a product of the American system. People always blame the politicians, and I say, "Well, where do you think they come from?" They are products of American culture, American society, schools, churches, communities, businesses, families, homes. So what are you complaining about? This is you, the government of the people, by the people and for the people. So, I don't let them off the hook by attacking the people they put out front. But clearly George Bush is an electrifyingly incurious man.
I'm guessing the notion of retirement doesn't appeal to you.
No, no. I get a great deal of joy out of this. An artist is never really satisfied; you just keep scratching underneath the surface trying for more.
When is the next HBO special, and what's it called?
The next one is March 1, called "It's Bad for Ya."
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