noirish Los Angeles

[ethereal_reality]

.
I have quite a mystery on my hands.

I happened upon this fascinating cabinet card on eBay.



The seller labeled it as... "Antique 1880s Original Photograph Men Hats Daily Newspaper Argyle House, Drawing"


As you can see the actual location is a mystery.

I thought Argyle House sounded familiar so I looked it up in some old Los Angeles Directories from around time the photograph was taken.


Sure enough, there was an Argyle House


LAPL

. . .but no street address.



Argyle House shows up again in the 1893 Los Angeles city Directory.


LAPL

. . .but still no street address.


I wonder who, among the men in the photograph, might be Robert Turner (the real estate agent in the 1888 directory) or Clarence Haviland (in the 1893 directory).





The seller also included this:...It mentions a newspaper named THE DAILY.



I assume the boy sitting on the ground is holding the newspaper. (perhaps he's a newspaper carrier)

But, frustratingly, all we can see looking at the photograph is a few letters.


detail



And sure enough, Los Angeles had a newspaper named The Daily.


LAPL


______________________________________________________________________________________________________________






Now let's take a closer look at the people.







How many of you noticed the twin boys sitting on the banister?


detail

They remind me of the twin girls in The Shining.










Here are the people on the left side of the photograph.


detail / left

I like that the workman (gardener?) was included in the photograph.



. . and on the right.


detail / right

Note the wide variety of the men's clothing styles. The gentleman in the middle on the right, the one in the lighter colored clothes, looks like a Southerner to me.


When I look at photographs like this one I am always mesmerized by the people. Each and every one of them have a story to tell.
Sadly, we'll never know what kind of lives they lived or what the future held for them. ...I inevitably succumb to a certain wistful melancholy.




BUT is this the Argyle House located in Los Angeles?... Is there any way to prove this is Los Angeles? ...(I believe we'd have to find another photograph of the Argyle House, right?)







I'm in the process of deleting the redundant photographs so bear with me. I'm seeing double.
.

If anyone is interested in buying the photograph go Here

[ethereal_reality]

Oh, I almost forgot!

This is why the seller included "drawing" in the description.




It refers to the house on the back of the cabinet card. . .

.... . .possibly drawn by one of the twins on the banister. (well, it's possible)............................anything's possible

It doesn't appear to be the house in the photograph. . .so my imagination tells me it's the house across the street.

note the dog.


.

[riichkay]

flickr.com


Here's another group photo, labeled only "Los Angeles boarding house"....undated but the attire appears similar to that in e_r's picture, so likely 1880's-90's.

The stamped notation is "Please Return To George E. Farrand"....the original flickr poster found the following...

"A Google search of that name turns up a bunch of information. Mr. Farrand was a fairly important lawyer in Los Angeles. At one point he was the general counsel for the California Fruit Growers Exchange. There is a historical record of a letter Herbert Hoover wrote to him, and on Find Law (a web site) one (or several) references to legal cases in which he was involved. One of those cases, concerning the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad, was decided in 1914.

Mr. Farrand was also on the Board of Trustees of The California Institute of Technology, and he had a fairly extensive record of correspondence with Linus Pauling, who taught there."

[ethereal_reality]

.
...That is a phenomenal photograph!

Think of all the personal stories on that one porch. Hopefully we can dig up more information on George Farrand.

You made my afternoon, riichkay

[CaliNative]

Originally Posted by riichkay

flickr.com


Here's another group photo, labeled only "Los Angeles boarding house"....undated but the attire appears similar to that in e_r's picture, so likely 1880's-90's.

The stamped notation is "Please Return To George E. Farrand"....the original flickr poster found the following...

"A Google search of that name turns up a bunch of information. Mr. Farrand was a fairly important lawyer in Los Angeles. At one point he was the general counsel for the California Fruit Growers Exchange. There is a historical record of a letter Herbert Hoover wrote to him, and on Find Law (a web site) one (or several) references to legal cases in which he was involved. One of those cases, concerning the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad, was decided in 1914.

Mr. Farrand was also on the Board of Trustees of The California Institute of Technology, and he had a fairly extensive record of correspondence with Linus Pauling, who taught there."

^^^
This photo above is almost certainly later than the other porch photo above ("Argyle" house), which I agree is 1880s. The fact that nearly all of the adult men are clean shaven in the above photo (facial hair was declining by the 1890s compared with the 1880s), plus the more modern style of men's hats and the women's dresses in the above photo is more like those in the 1890s, or even first years of the 1900s. The "Argyle" photo is likely 1885 +/- 5 yrs., the above photo perhaps 1898 +/- 5 yrs.

[GaylordWilshire]

A little insomniac research:

From what I can tell, George E. Farrand didn't move to LA until ca 1918...according to the 1900 census--already a lawyer at age 22--he was living in Santa Paula--no specific address given--with his parents, two bros, and a granddaughter of the parents (her parents not indicated). Could the house in riichkay's pic be theirs? (The family had come from the east, George having been born in Pa; his father was in farming.)

By 1910 George was married and living in Ventura with his wife and two sons at 1111 Poli Street...there is no 1111 today, although there is an 1109...BUT it's not the house in the picture. Maybe a replacement.

Farrand is first listed in the LACD in 1915 but with his residence as being Ventura. Same 1916; by 1917 his residence is listed as South Pasadena. 1918: he's living in LA at 525 S Kenmore.

In 1923 he built 322 S Windsor Blvd in Windsor Square:



Farrand died here in 1954, his wife in 1958--the family appears to have retained the house until 2006. More here.



.

[oldstuff]

Originally Posted by odinthor

Under the heading of "This May or May Not Have Anything To Do with Anything": Painter and ceramist Karoly Fulop--well-known to the L.A. art scene (going by articles over the years in the L.A. Times)--had a brother Julius:


LA Times, 4/9/1963.

More on Karoly:

http://www.papillongallery.com/karol...p_clarion.html

So is Julius the "J.J. Fulop" of the mugs?

Julius could be the decorator of the mugs. He is listed in census and citizenship documents as a painter. Julius, the younger brother of the more famous Karoly, was born in Hungary in 1899.

[ethereal_reality]

So it looks like odinthor's summation was correct,......................................................... perhaps.

Excellent information on George E. Farrand, GW.

[riichkay]

The Huntington Library holds an extensive collection of George Farrand's papers, here is their mini-bio....

George E. Farrand (1878-1954) was born in Dogton, Pennsylvania to William and Jeanette (McKevett) Farrand. He moved from Pennsylvania to Ventura County, California in 1899. He served as Ventura County Clerk from 1900 to 1907. He married Alice Knox in November 1903. He was a founding partner at the law firm of Farrand & Slosson. His sons, Knox and Stephen, joined him in his practice. George E. Farrand served as the Chairman of the California Agricultural Legislative Committee and as legal counsel for farmers' co-operative organizations, including the California Fruit Growers Exchange and the California Walnut Growers. Herbert Hoover appointed him to the position of general counsel of the Federal Farm Board. George E. Farrand worked with his friend Henry Mauris Robinson on the merger of First National and Security Pacific Banks and subsequently served as a member of the executive committee of the consolidated bank. 

Turns out he was also something of a latter-day Samuel Pepys....from the Huntington...

"The Manuscript series contains 20 journals written by George E. Farrand from 1915 to 1954 as well as two printed publications. The journals include daily entries regarding his law practice, the weather, his weight, as well as details regarding family matters and world events, such as the Great Depression, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, World War II and the start of the Cold War. At the end of most of the journals, he includes a brief summary of his year, including personal, business and world events. The later journals also include numerous news clippings. The Correspondence series is arranged alphabetically by author and predominantly contains letters related to business transactions such as the merger of First National and Security Pacific Banks in Los Angeles and the Julian Petroleum scandal as well as personal correspondence amongst friends."

Unfortunately none of Farrand's papers are available online. 

I can't find a photo of Farrand....in the boardinghouse picture there is a well groomed/dressed young man at the extreme rear of the group, I'm wondering if that's him....it's unlikely that as a young attorney he was living in a boarding house, maybe he was otherwise involved with the place....

The Huntington references the "Julian Petroleum scandal", I'd never heard of it....a search of the forum turned up nothing....it is certainly a story befitting the Noir city, summarized here...

 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/julia...ndal_b_3606113


A victim of the con murdered a banker who was testifying in a civil case related to the fraud....

[Noir_Noir]

Originally Posted by riichkay

I can't find a photo of Farrand....in the boardinghouse picture there is a well groomed/dressed young man at the extreme
rear of the group, I'm wondering if that's him....it's unlikely that as a young attorney he was living in a boarding house,
maybe he was otherwise involved with the place....

Is this the well groomed/dressed young man you mean riichkay?

I think you might have got him in one.

The picture I found is likely from the late 1920's - he was on the Advisory Committee On Preparations for the 1932 Olympic Games.

He's much older and in profile but I'd have a decent bet it's the same man in both pictures - George E. Farrand.



digital.la84.org

[KevinW]

Originally Posted by CaliNative

In the scene where Ben is crossing the Bay Bridge from SF going to Berkeley he is on the upper deck, which is actually the deck going in the opposite direction to SF. These little errors don't really ruin the movie, which I can watch every year or two. And the music of S&G is GREAT.

Ben was & is a hero to aimless college students and graduates, but as I age I root more for Mrs. Robinson. Ben was a spoiled n'er do well floating in his parent's pool. But Ben still holds the record for most car trips on the 101 between L.A. and SF/Berkeley in the shortest time. I guess Interstate 5 hadn't opened yet. I think I once made the trip in less than 5 hours.

P.S.--the hotel where they meet seems like the Hollywood Roosevelt to me, although they call it something different.

Never fails to amuse: "Ben, are you listening? ....Plastics". Typifies the '60s. Today it would be "Ben, are you listening? ...Bitcoin".

I was once stuck in Thanksgiving LA to SF traffic on the 5 for 14 hours. On the flipside, I once made it door to door in just over 4 hours averaging about 95 mph.

[Beaudry]

I don't have to tell noirishers that a lot of good work gets done here (preaching to the converted). I'm just thankful it was NLA that started me five years ago picking at the whole Cooper Do-Nut riot thing, which has now resulted in this post. Viva NLA!

[ethereal_reality]

.
..........................re: Acme Sequoia Lodge

Originally Posted by stanklem

Interestingly it is a racially integrated group. Unusual for 1942.

I noticed that as well, stanklem.

Your comment reminded me of an old photograph of a young African-American couple with their two young children posing in front of their property in Los Angeles.



eBay (no longer listed)





Here's the same image larger.



They have a nice amount of land. . .enough for a small orchard and, what looks like, a vegetable garden. Their rather small house can be seen through the vegetation.





. . .and finally a close-up of the proud family.






Luckily for us there is an address on the reverse side of the photograph.



It's a bit difficult to read.



Let's try this. . .


detail




detail




detail



for search purposes:...merry christmas 1913 for mrs. garner......1822 e. 52nd st.......los angeles, calif.

[Martin Pal]

Originally Posted by Beaudry

I don't have to tell noirishers that a lot of good work gets done here (preaching to the converted). I'm just thankful it was NLA that started me five years ago picking at the whole Cooper Do-Nut riot thing, which has now resulted in this post. Viva NLA!
_________________________________________________________________

Thank you so much for the link! Any time I see someone write about this online or anywhere, which seems to be quite a bit lately, if I can, I respond by hinting that this event is of dubious distinction. Now I can link this article!

Hulu's recent PRIDE series of documentaries talks about this particular event, using the same photo, and yet, although they do show a photo of the Black Cat riots they don't talk about that at all, which is heavily sourced.

Again, thanks for the link!

[Flyingwedge]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

They have a nice amount of land. . .enough for a small orchard and, what looks like, a vegetable garden. Their rather small house can be seen through the vegetation.


. . .and finally a close-up of the proud family.




for search purposes:...merry christmas 1913 for mrs. garner......1822 e. 52nd st.......los angeles, calif.

I don't know who Mrs. Garner was, but if that's 1822 E. 52nd St. at Xmas 1913, I believe we're looking at:

Theodore Wilkerson Brown (B. Kentucky Feb 15 1864, D. Los Angeles Oct 19 1948) and his wife,
Lydia Melinda Bartholomew Brown (B. Illinois Sep 25 1871, D. Los Angeles May 8 1949). They were married in Illinois in 1900. We also see their son,
Prentiss Bartholomew Brown (B. Missouri Aug 20 1902, D. Los Angeles Jan 19 1986) and his sister,
Mozelle J. Brown (B. California Jul 8 1907, D. Los Angeles Sep 16 1991)

I think their house in the 1913 photo appears on the 1920 Sanborn map below as 1822-1/2 E. 52nd St, and sometime between 1913 and 1920 the
house marked 1822 on the map was built:



ProQuest via Los Angeles Public Library


Here's Prentiss from the 1920 Jefferson High School yearbook:



Ancestry.com


Theodore Brown's initial appearance in an LA city directory is in 1904. He seems to have worked mostly as a janitor and porter; in 1913 he's listed as a shoe salesman.

He is first at 1822 E. 52nd St in the 1907 directory, and he is last there in the 1940 edition. In 1942 he is at 3522 S. Gramercy.

There is a Sep 10 1941 building permit to move the house at 1822 E. 52nd St. all the way out to Northridge at 10131 Louise Avenue, where it still sat in October 2020.

[ethereal_reality]

.
Amazing sleuthing, Flyingwedge!

Thanks for much.


.

[riichkay]

Add re: Cooper Do-Nuts at 316 E. 5th, it appears again in this clip from "The Wild Party", a 1956 release....the narration is by Nehemiah Persoff (he's still with us at age 101), the sequence is designed to illustrate the seedy world his character once inhabited...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ0S...GrubbyKowalski


We get a peek into a bar adjacent to 320 E. 5th....




Then 320, which houses the A1 Cafe....








....then Cooper's at 316....




Later in the sequence this place appears, where the action was downstairs....








Then up to the Strip for a shot of the Melody Room, where Rae Bourbon, a female impersonator, is appearing....




Included in the sequence is a good look at this place, that I don't believe we have seen...



...the Near 'n Far....presumably this is in Hollywood....next door is Hollywood Exclusive ???....looks like it might be a dry cleaners.

[Lorendoc]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

.
Amazing sleuthing, GW!

Thanks for much.

I think it was FW who did this particular sleuthing on the Browns

[ethereal_reality]

.
Awk!

Sorrying above that, FW.

.

[Martin Pal]

Thanks for that post, riichkay.

Originally Posted by riichkay

Later in the sequence this place appears, where the action was downstairs....






_________________________________________________________________

This is the Waldorf Cellar, as seen in this post from GW:

Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire

unitedartists.com/

Looks like it started out as the Waldorf in the Waldorf Hotel, at 521 S Main, later becoming the Waldorf Cellar, as it was listed in the '56CD, and seen in the pic [above].
_________________________________________________________________

The link doesn't bring up what that UA photo is from.

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

I finally found a matchbook from the 'often talked about' Waldorf Cellar.



ebay

I'm surprised they used military imagery.....wasn't it eventually put on the 'OUT OF BOUNDS' list?
_________________________________________________________________

I found this on OldShowBiz/Tumbler (whether the top is related to the writing or not, I'm not sure. It mentions Near 'N Far:

Originally Posted by riichkay

Included in the sequence is a good look at this place, that I don't believe we have seen...



...the Near 'n Far....presumably this is in Hollywood....next door is Hollywood Exclusive ???....looks like it might be a dry cleaners.
_________________________________________________________________

I haven't found the address, but I found this info about the Near 'N Far:

The Near n’ Far was a Hollywood nightclub on Santa Monica Boulevard. It was owned by mobster Mickey Cohen. Famous for striptease dancers and jazz musicians, it operated from 1956 through 1958. Lenny Bruce and his writer Frankie Ray played the venue often.