noirish Los Angeles v2.0

[ethereal_reality]

Here's another recent find.


Vintage B&W Snapshot Photograph Palm Trees Los Angeles? CA West Coast 104 Th St


eBay


But looking east from where??

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[ProphetM]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

I just happened upon this on eBay






detail

So what landmark was being restored in 1922. . . the Plaza Church?


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Yes, that's the north side of the Plaza Church. 3 big palm trees still there.

[Bristolian]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Here's another recent find.


Vintage B&W Snapshot Photograph Palm Trees Los Angeles? CA West Coast 104 Th St


eBay


But looking east from where??

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I took the Googlemobile up and down 104th st. and the only possibility I saw was at Morningside High School at Yukon Avenue in Inglewood.



The number of palm trees has shrunk but those there today look like they've been around for a long time.

odinthor, Are they the same type of palms, now trimmed and does the timeline/height line up?

I am certainly not convinced.

[odinthor]

Same species, for sure. Height, very likely about right. Line up? It's hard to tell; strange to say, palms are easy to move, even tall ones, so they may have been shuffled around to accommodate one thing or another. I notice that they all seem to have a gentle curve at about a certain height, suggesting that they all experienced some change at about the same time. Conclusion: A strong . . . maybe.

[Bristolian]

Thanks, I knew you could add some insight. FWIW Morningside High opened in 1951.

[riichkay]

Caption:

"Cars flew like an endless chain down the humps night and day. Here at Taylor Yards of the Southern Pacific in Los Angeles, the humpmaster watches from his tower as the cars are classified after arrival in the yard."

Photo is dated 1930s, and is credited to the US Chamber of Commerce, via hagley.org.


....detail....

[HossC]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

I was just informed that we covered Mr. Karpe in NLA 1.0.

I had forgotten all about it.

Me too, but at least I didn't post about it first time around (it's embarrassing when I forget my own posts!). From January 2023, there were several posts about the Karpe family including 3½ Louise Karpe being kidnap(p)ed - they start about 3/4 of the way down page 2990.

[Alkapone]

Originally Posted by riichkay

Caption:

"Cars flew like an endless chain down the humps night and day. Here at Taylor Yards of the Southern Pacific in Los Angeles, the humpmaster watches from his tower as the cars are classified after arrival in the yard."

Photo is dated 1930s, and is credited to the US Chamber of Commerce, via hagley.org.


....detail....

Unless you’re one of the lucky folk who have their own clean copies, anyone interested in how the hump yards worked can find footage with narration in Gene Walker’s Espee documentary “This Is My Railroad” (1947, steam version) shown from Marathon Music & Video (1995 VHS) on Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6R_Y6LaJyM

Some of the footage was actually shot pre-war even though the reels came out later. The re-edited later diesel version is cut down to half length and omitted some stuff. BTW..The roofs of passenger cars to the right of the tower were probably for ones used in Maintenance of Way (M.O.W.) services rather than ongoing passenger ops. These would have been downgraded older cars that were still too useful for retirement to the scrappers torch. Supply trains used the old cars too.

[ethereal_reality]

Here's an interesting photograph that I happened upon earlier today on eBay.


"1930 Fox Studios Front Office Westwood Los Angeles Photo Cars "


eBay

And the back.



I wonder if this building stills stand somewhere on the Twentieth Century Fox lot.

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[ethereal_reality]

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A curious place to build your garage.


Los Angeles CA 1930s Family Classic Car Snapshot 1934 - Original Photo





eBay

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[ethereal_reality]

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Here's another 'find' from today.


Seller's description:.."Sunset Blvd Vista Theater Hollywood Strip Vintage Photo Cleaners Laundry 1930s"


eBay

I'm not sure if this is a shop in the theater building itself- or if the Vista Theater is across the street as seen in the reflection of the window. ..


So is this the Vista?


detail

It can't be both. ....*scratches head*

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[Scott Charles]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

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Here's another 'find' from today.


Seller's description:.."Sunset Blvd Vista Theater Hollywood Strip Vintage Photo Cleaners Laundry 1930s"


eBay

I'm not sure if this is a shop in the theater building or if the Vista Theater in across the street as seen in the reflection of the window. ..


So is this the Vista?


detail

It can't be both. ....*scratches head*

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That's the Vista in the reflection. I live just a few blocks away from there. I figured it would still be the Lou Bard Theater, but apparently it became the Vista three years before this photo was taken.



But where are these buildings? I can't figure what corner they must have been on to give that reflection in the window...

[HossC]

I only found the Sunset Pressing Parlor in the 1928 CDs. It was at 4504 Sunset Blvd.

[Alkapone]

Originally Posted by HossC

I only found the Sunset Pressing Parlor in the 1928 CDs. It was at 4504 Sunset Blvd.

“Physics is Phun”…I=R. To get this angle, you’d have to have the Triangle Garage (the old Ventura gas station site that I previously mentioned) just behind your left side. Martin Turnbull’s Photo Blog on July 15 2026 had a page with the list of movie producers from 1941 and we can place some at 4516 Sunset:
https://martinturnbull.com/photo-blog/

So this would be the east corner side where a Texaco gas station turns up in the days when Stan’s was still operating across the street (4500?)…we recently saw that in a film clip. I would venture that , assuming they were using a background projection, this is approximating where Alan Ladd was looking into a window at a — in that West Street film. If the building was still there at the time of filming, how could the Texaco exist, or was the building just west of that corner? I have never seen a photo looking over there later than the silent film era, and that building was not in them.

[Alkapone]

On this page of Court Fox Ford history, there’s a clip with Stan’s at the time. At the old Ventura Gas triangle stands a Richfield. Fox Ford is left on Hollywoid Blvd..At the extreme left is Sunset & Virgil with a Texaco star sign (lookin’ funky here). The site: https://roden.jcoconsulting.com/Dealership

As was mentioned before, the entire block of the studio complex went up in flames and was replaced with a stoopermarket and here it comes..….parking lot!

[Alkapone]

Sort of related by location…a 1931 shot (by getty here from USC) looking north on North Virgil at Santa Monica Blvd. during the LARy trackage re-alignment to solve the badly offset intersection that had existed there: https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-...north-news-photo/969005444?adppopup=true Notice the Route 66 signage on the left.

The original Los Angeles-Pacific Hollywood line on Prospect worked its’ way through this neighborhood. With the building of the Hollywood Boulevard extension down to Sunset, this neighborhood became LARy local Los Angeles service (the Huntington agreement to keep out of each other’s territory). Virgil Avenue had a different alignment then, turning right toward Sunset. Eventually Virgil was cut north through the studio property to meet a straight line with Hillhurst. The old roadway section apparently became Virgil Place after that.The LARy made a left turn westward at Fountain running to Berendo. It was later cut back over by Vermont. Services by trolley terminated about 1947 and it was all busses in the area from then on. Pacific Electric retained trolley routes through either border only into the early ‘50’s.The pioneer line on Santa Monica Blvd. ended first, followed by Hollywood Blvd. in 1954.Only the LARy”V”-line from LACC on Western remained into 1963.

[ethereal_reality]

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Thanks for the follow-ups to the Vista Theater reflection mystery, Scott Charles, HossC and Alkapone.

I appreciate it.


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[ethereal_reality]

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This is actually pretty cool.

A Los Angeles fireman's personal postcard.







This could use some decipherin'.
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[ethereal_reality]

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Here's another LAFD postcard from the same Texas archive.

It shows a 'water tower' charging down Aliso Street, Los Angeles - California


texashistory




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[Snix]

This photo marked "Dr. Michel's store" and "Whittier Blvd." is on eBay. It's a copy of a photo made into a postcard? I didn't see a Dr. Michel in the 1929 city directory but thinking this is unincorporated East L.A. Do they have their own book?

eBay