Mrs. Minnie Muchmore's Monkey House @ 2402 Highland
 

The 1921 LACD has Mrs. Muchmore at 2402 Highland, a wider view of which is here. The entrance from mdiederi's photo
is just about in the middle.

http://i1165.photobucket.com/albums/...k.jpg~original
July 1921 The Building Review @ HathiTrust


This appears to be a closer view of the same two sides of the house, but the area to the right of the five windows does not
seem to match the previous photo.

http://i1165.photobucket.com/albums/...s.jpg~original
HathiTrust


Here's a closer look at the entrance. Has NLA seen a house with a checkerboard chimney before?

http://i1165.photobucket.com/albums/...3.jpg~original
HathiTrust


In this photo, the Monkey House is on the left, and the Sycamore House is on the right.

http://i1165.photobucket.com/albums/...b.jpg~original
HathiTrust


The article in The Building Age also has some interior photos of Mrs. Muchmore's house.

I'

:previous:

Sorry this isn't more noirish - there are far too many lights :).

Today's Julius Shulman photoset is "Job 2927: Lightolier Showroom, 1960". This is the only exterior picture.

http://i809.photobucket.com/albums/z...1.jpg~original

There's also a black & white version of the first interior photo.

http://i809.photobucket.com/albums/z...2.jpg~original

I think this showroom looks quite contemporary - it certainly doesn't look 66 years old to me.

http://i809.photobucket.com/albums/z...3.jpg~original

The set has a total of five color images, but I decided to only post the three I liked best.

http://i809.photobucket.com/albums/z...4.jpg~original

All from Getty Research Institute

The photoset came with no additional information, so I took a gamble on it being in Los Angeles. A quick look through the CDs gave me an address of 2515 S Broadway. There's a 1983 building permit for wall signs for the Southern California Trophy Company - possibly the ones seen here. The company now seems to have moved to Glendale.

http://i809.photobucket.com/albums/z...5.jpg~original
GSV

https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7531/2...f9625f62_o.jpgLooking east on Delano Street, Van Nuys, 1953

From LAPD '53, words and music by James Ellroy. No further info at this time.


https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8264/2...582212a7_o.jpgComes a horseman, 1953

USC Digital Library/Los Angeles Examiner Collection



https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8484/2...25fc85b4_o.pngSmoke break, Skid Row


https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8312/2...a2b989d9_o.jpgM (1951)

David Wayne cuts the corner at the 3rd Street tunnel and Angels Flight.


https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8867/2...b08f93cd_o.jpgFour Clanton Street gang members, ca.1947


Four Clanton members standing on the corner of Essex & Clanton Street, Los Angeles, circa 1947

Clanton 14th Street is a predominately Hispanic gang originally from Los Angeles’ eastside. The original Clanton varrio started in the early 1920s on Clanton Street which was located between San Pedro and Central Avenue. The territory of Clanton varrio once went from Olympic Blvd (north) to Santa Barbara Avenue (south) which is now known as Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd and they shared their turf with Primera Flats 23rd Street. During the early 1950s the city decided to change the name of Clanton Street to 14th Place in an effort to discourage the Hispanic gang from continuing their gang activities. There was the Sleepy Lagoon murder of Clanton member Jose Diaz in 1942 and the shooting of Clanton member Frank Torres in 1942 at the coliseum and then the Zoot Suit Riots in 1943 which were connected to gang / pachuco activity in the area. After the street name change, the neighborhood just embraced the new street, 14th Place, and added 14th Street to their name. - See more at: <a href="http://www.streetgangs.com/hispanic/cityofla/eastside/clanton14th-original-hood#sthash.CUu1fBOQ.dpuf" rel="nofollow">www.streetgangs.com/hispanic/cityofla/eastside/clanton14t...</a>

Well, the Ciro's/Kay Thompson pic seems to have caused something of a firestorm. I posted it as I thought it gave us a good look inside a legendary nightspot. Inherently with any photo like that spot-the-star becomes part of the process, and as others have said the forum has done this in the past. I'm aware it's primarily an architectural forum, but the conceit is "noirish" L.A., and the notion of the noir city is largely based on the films of the period....created by the industry types seated in Ciro's that night. Let me respectfully suggest that if we are going to be rigid about all this there's a lot that does not fit, i.e. photos of the city in the 1800's, not exactly what most would consider germane to "noirish" Los Angeles.

And I must second the comments of JeffDiego regarding Kay Thompson, she was far more than a novelty act. Truly a significant figure in mid-century popular entertainment.

Anyway, let's move on, still on the Strip but a little bit east. This is the property across Sunset from the place that's been The Player's, Imperial Gardens etc, and across Harper Ave. from The Body Shop...we are at 8240 Sunset Bl., when it was the Marquis restaurant, 1953:

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...psi1xkeeoi.jpg
photo: George Mann

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...ps86fqhsf7.jpg
photo: George Mann

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...psvf9ioxqn.jpg


Our restaurateur is Paul Verlengia. He owned the Marquis until 1960, when he opened a new place further east at 7800 Sunset:

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...psdq0whigg.jpg

Verlengia turned the Marquis over to George Dolenz (yup, you guessed it, the father of Monkee Mickey)

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...pszc0issoe.jpg


Martin Turnbull tells us this about Dolenz:

"George Dolenz, a rather dashing sort of chap, was a maitre d’ at Ciro’s night club some years ago when he caught the eye of Howard Hughes and made him a movie star in the swashbuckling type roles. Then when the recession hit Hollywood, Dolenz reverted to his former calling. “Even actors have to eat,” he said. He took over a well-known Hollywood restaurant, the Marquis, and could be seen nightly at the door greeting movie profiles and producers including, at times, even Howard Hughes."



George ran the place until he met an untimely demise there, as described by blogger Kim on the onbunkerhill.org site:

"The Marquis sailed on sans Verlengia, and into a tragedy. On February 8, 1963, the restaurant’s corporation president George Dolenz (dad of future Monkee Mickey and himself star of TV’s Count of Monte Christo), climbed onto the roof of the Marquis to inspect recent construction. He suffered a heart attack, was brought down by firemen, and was declared dead on arrival at Citizens Emergency Hospital. Since 1951, Dolenz’ main focus had been the restaurant. He was just 55."


Flash forward to the late '70's and 1980's, most on this board probably remember the building as this place, Carlos 'n Charlies:

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...pskbr3vvm0.jpg

As a (somewhat) young man-about-town in those years I was in Carlos 'n Charlies often. They had an active bar/disco room upstairs (I recall at one time they called the room El Privado) and later on they booked the Chippendales male dancers act into the space. When Carlos 'n Charlies closed sometime in the 90's the building housed Dublin's Irish Pub, who maintained the character of the original structure:


http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...psendcjcnp.jpg


http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...ps49gq1rxg.jpg


The building has now had a comprehensive facelift:

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/...pscaxvtzrr.jpg

Hi Looking4OldLA

When I started "noirish Los Angeles" back in 2009 I didn't give much thought to the title.
The initial photographs I planned to post were mostly black & whites from the 1930s and 40s that I felt had a certain 'noirish' quality to them. (hence the title)

At the time I had no idea the thread would eventually morph into this all-encompassing juggernaut (1800 pages and over 12 millions views!)

If I had known I would have named it accordingly....something beyond the narrow parameters of 'noir'.
__________________________________






That said.....

Man hanging, Los Angeles [1951]

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...922/NMVdi3.jpg
http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...id/13176/rec/3

I thought this crime photo was taken underneath one of the bridges that cross the Los Angeles River, but the usc_archives describes the location as:

"Suicide under 1st Street and Figueroa Bridge, 1951"





Here's 1st Street crossing N. Figueroa in 2015.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/128...922/C8ZBlk.jpg
gsv

-note there are some stairs (like in the old crime photo)------>

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800...924/DNSAF3.jpg
detail / gsv

but I don't know the configuration of the bridge/stairs back in 1951. (I'm currently looking for a vintage photo that shows this same viaduct)



__

https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7302/1...464cc73f_o.jpgFigueroa &#x27;bottle-neck&#x27; at 1st Street, 1937


Another street-level view of the Figueroa 'bottle-neck' looking north on Figueroa at 1st Street showing the narrowing traffic lanes north of 1st Street due to the unimproved hillside encroaching on the east side of the roadway between 1st and Diamond Streets. Teney Apartments on the left, a slice of the Hotel Shasta on the right edge.

USC digital archive/Automobile Club of Southern California collection, 1892-1963


https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8077/2...1c16ae57_o.pngLooking north on Figueroa Street from 2nd with the 1st Street viaduct under construction, 1940


USC Digital Library/Automobile Club of Southern California


https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8051/2...c8f9d8f5_o.pngLooking south 1st Street viaduct over Figueroa Street, 1940


USC Digital Library/Automobile Club of Southern California


https://c5.staticflickr.com/6/5720/2...ff33eebf_o.jpgLooking northeast from 1st and Figueroa Streets, 1955


1st Street bridge over Figueroa at lower right, Diamond Street angling slightly away 1st from the lower edge near center. Court Street stub, above Figueroa, near image center.

USC Digital Library


https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8250/2...528aedcf_h.jpgLooking southeast across the Harbor Freeway at the 1st Street viaduct, Dick Whittington, 1954


USC Digital Library/Dick Whittington Collection

:previous: That was fast! Thanks MichaelRyerson.

_

:previous:

I posted some pictures of the intersection of Figueroa and First, before the bridge was built, in post #21400. I concluded with this image of the bridge under construction. I checked the other pictures at USC, but none show the stairs in place. It looks like it could be the location of the hanging.

LAPL has this picture with the following caption:

"The longest girder ever used in Southern California construction, 148 feet long, is shown being lifted into place at the First and Figueroa Streets grade separation. Three more like it, each weighing 32 tons, will be installed to carry First Street over Figueroa Street, speeding up traffic. Photo dated: March 7, 1940."

http://i809.photobucket.com/albums/z...roaBridge1.jpg
LAPL

I read that here in LA during WW2, zoot suits were considered unpatriotic because they required a large amount of material that the War Board felt should be used for uniforms and the war effort. Some pachucos wore the zoot suits to antagonize visiting servicemen. Obviously the Zoot Suit Riots were more complicated than that, but I never knew about the restrictions on garment material and zoot suits being so provocative.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...921/KcdUpl.jpg
detail

It looks like they're planning the stairs to go here.

thx for finding this pic Hoss.
__

For most of us, this is about L.A. in the "Old days," ('30s-'60s) the time most of us associate with the classic films noirs. The emphasis has always been on the architecture (note that this is a sub-thread of the Skyscraper Page). But it has taken on a life of its own and is now thread about the most photographed city in the world. The noir stuff is the bloodstained, icky icing on the cake.

I'm pretty sure this is new to NLA because its title in the usc_archives is so vague. (making it rather difficult to find in any search)


"Grade separation over an unidentified street in Los Angeles, ca. 1930"

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/128...923/r3hXLk.jpg
http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...id/5522/rec/47

First of all, I think the date is wrong....it appears later to me.

Secondly, isn't this the 1st Street and N. Figueroa viaduct.....the very viaduct we were discussing earlier today?



If so, it clearly shows the stairs where the poor guy hung himself (unless he was murdered) in 1951.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...921/R4QDbU.jpg


I think he tied the rope about here (circled) -I counted the steps.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/640...922/WY1hdK.jpg
detail




But now something else has caught my eye.

What are these? (circled below)

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/128...922/0gHrhe.jpg
detail

They look like pedestrian entrances.


east side
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/640...921/phIUSB.jpg

west side
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/640...922/ge7K6B.jpg

Was there a pedestrian tunnel that used to run beneath Figueroa street?

_

Well, I'd say it's pretty clearly the 1st Street viaduct over Figueroa and judging from the condition of the roadway I'd say 1940. The building beyond the overpass
that can be seen to the left is the Clift Hotel on the NE corner of Figueroa and 2nd Street and we can also see the top of the Richfield tower above and beyond
the Clift at Flower and 6th Street. I wasn't aware of the pedestrian undercrossing but I can't think of another explanation for the structures you've circled.
I'd love to find a clear photograph of the pedestrian underpass.

No problem Looking 4....we're here to please the readers.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...pslcr4duc3.jpg
derangedlacrimes dot com



It was about 4 a.m. on October 27, 1951 and Virginia Pauline Thomason, a pretty twenty-four year old defense plant worker, was driving home alone after attending a baby shower and visiting a bar with a girl friend. She was near Fairview and Vanowen streets in Burbank, headed for her Van Nuys home, when a shot from a rifle shattered her jaw. She slumped over, dead, as the driverless sedan rolled for two or three blocks before it came to rest against a railroad right-of-way embankment.

Following Thomason’s shooting William Frank Cairns, an unemployed mechanic and WWII Navy vet, walked into the Van Nuys Police Station and told the cop at the desk that he had shot at a traffic violator who had tried to crowd him off the road. He was then told that the victim of his road rage was Virginia Thomason, his former sweetheart!

more of the story here:

http://derangedlacrimes.com/?tag=william-frank-cairns

"road rage" murder
 

Gawd, what a photo, CityBoy. Interesting story. We are back to "Noir" with a vengeance.

French Village
 

Facinating photos, Flyingwedge. All that imaginative charm and atmosphere...gone. Thanks for posting.

French Village
 

Facinating photos, Flyingwedge. All that imaginative charm and atmosphere...gone. Thanks for posting.

'mystery' location


Two well dressed ladies posing on a rock overlook, Los Angeles 1890s.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...923/OYMsls.jpg
eBay http://www.ebay.com/itm/Well-Dressed...YAAOSwaB5Xk2sA

The seller says there's a possibility the view in the distance is the San Fernando valley.
__


I could be wrong, but I think the interesting oval shape at the foot of the hill is a covered reservoir.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/128...924/0699ek.jpg
detail


I used to have a map in one of my files that showed all the old reservoirs, but I haven't been able to find it again.
I'll keep searching.

__

It was the rocks on the hillside that were the first clue. The only rocks like that in the LA area are in Chatsworth and Riverside. The snowcapped mountains, the size and age of the homes for the 1890s, and the street grid were the other clues.

Check 4664 9th Street in Riverside on Google Earth and you'll see the oval.