noirish Los Angeles v2.0

[odinthor]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

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This is actually pretty cool.

A Los Angeles fireman's personal postcard.




[...]

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This would be LeRoy Herbert Woods (5/12/1890-3/15/1961). Not to be confused with another contemporary Leroy Woods.

Digesting mainly from the CDs listing occupation then residence:

1906: Driver, Maple Grove Creamery, residence 1535 E. 53rd (appears to be the parental home)
1907: Upholsterer, same residence
1908: Fire Dept., same residence
1909: Fire Dept., 2144 Sunset (which is Fire Station 20)
1910: Fire Dept., 2144 Reservoir (that it's the same number as the above seems to be a coincidence)
1911: Fire Dept., rear 1128 E. 48th
1912: Fireman, 1535 E. 53rd

Ultimately a veteran of WWI. Died 1961, a citizen of North Hollywood. Further info in Find-a-Grave.

[HossC]

Originally Posted by 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

We looked into this photo in February 2025 (in the old thread). I think ProphetM came closest to identifying the location. See the posts on page 3120.

[ethereal_reality]

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THE CASE OF THE MYSTERY OBJECT IN THE DISTANCE



I'm stumped.











Does anyone have any ideas?


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[ethereal_reality]

From the same .58 video. (HERE)


I don't remember an oil well so close to the Occidental Tower.







Do you think it's still in the area?



VIDEO
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[ethereal_reality]

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. . .a mystery location also from the same video. (HERE)







Go forth!

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[HossC]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

From the same .58 video. (HERE)

I don't remember an oil well so close to the Occidental Tower.

I have a vague memory of covering this in NLA 1.0, but so far I can't find it.

[Alkapone]

Originally Posted by 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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An error correction…the Richfield was on the Hollywood-Hillhurst corner next to the Ford dealership. The old triangle was left as open land,and we see a car parked there behind Alan Ladd, after the late era where the gas station lot had been enclosed with a building. More important, could this building row in front of Tiffany-Stahl Studios (ex-Reliance-Majestic, and several others) be a remodeling of this one in the ebay image?…see here: https://wikimapia.org/6829812/Reliance-Majestic-and-Griffith-Fine-Arts-Studios

The ebay shot looks like only 1/2 of the full structure, and that would give it two wings around the central building which has an arched door at the middle. The later row looks like the center was raised to a 2nd story but retained the arch, and the wings kept a tile roof overhang. Or am I just imagining too much here?

The later row of (modified?) buildings..



sourced from wikimapia as above.
Note that N. Virgil has been cut through already and this row reaches from that corner.

[Lwize]

Originally Posted by 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

How is the building leaning, but the pole is vertical??

(I don't think I'm drunk)

[Noir_Noir]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

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. . .a mystery location also from the same video. (HERE)




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Looking east from the 6400 block of Wilshire Blvd. The Sky's Restaurant was at 6401 on the corner with S. La Jolla.

There was a Tiny Naylor's at that location for much of the 1950s. It was then Daf's Restaurant until Sky's had a two year stint in 1964/1965.

[ethereal_reality]

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Odinthor was absolutely correct about L. H. Woods' career in the LAFD.....






By chance, Woods sent a postcard of the Sunset Blvd. Fire Station back to his friend back in Texas..



I wonder which one he is?




Ta Dah!

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[ethereal_reality]

um. . .

is this Aimee's temple or some other church?


just found on eBay

[ethereal_reality]

. . .here's another look.





both original photographs are currently on eBay.

[ethereal_reality]

. . . and here's a third / from a Methodist Church.

1913 Methodist Hospital Of Southern California Nurses Parade Banner



eBay


Does anyone recognize the church in the background?

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[ethereal_reality]

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I believe this is our vey own L. H. Woods driving a three horse fire apparatus down an unnamed street in Los Angeles.


LAFD Postcard via an archive in Texas



. . . and here's a closer look.



There is no writing on the back of this one. ...(darn it)

[ethereal_reality]

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I LOVE SOUVENIR SHOPS!


"Gift Shop Interior Lockheed Air Terminal Hollywood Burbank Airport c1950"


eBay

And there's a Snack Bar next door - - - - - - - >



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[JeffDiego]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

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I LOVE SOUVENIR SHOPS!


"Gift Shop Interior Lockheed Air Terminal Hollywood Burbank Airport c1950"


eBay

And there's a Snack Bar next door - - - - - - - >



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Interesting photo, Ethereal. Thanks. Judging by the women's clothes and hair, it's surely from WW2...I'd date it 1942, give or take a year.

[Alkapone]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

.

I believe this is our vey own L. H. Woods driving a three horse fire apparatus down an unnamed street in Los Angeles.


LAFD Postcard via an archive in Texas



. . . and here's a closer look.



There is no writing on the back of this one. ...(darn it)

Engine Co. #20 seemed to have had quite a range, responding to a fire as far away as Hollywood Boulevard. So downtown does not seem improbable after the tunnel on Hill was opened (?). Given the retaining wall & stairs along with a trolley dropping downslope, I’m wildly zeroing on S. Hill around W. 2nd and see similar structures in this (shorpy) image found on Martin’s blog: scroll down https://martinturnbull.com/photo-blog/20...t-downtown-los-angeles-circa-late-1800s/

Cropped close-in from panoramic…



sourced Martin Turnbull as linked above.

I could be way off but the chimneys and frontages look similar although the billboards may not be there yet. It’s on the upper left area.

[Alkapone]

Ref. Fire Engine photo…I checked three other views and both buildings on the SW corner of S. Hill & W. 2nd seem to match in the details. But only in the last view can I spot that odd white squared chimney structure on top of the bigger building…maybe something added later. No billboards could be seen and may have simply been too low. But I believe a similar billboard panel can be spotted on the NW corner of S. Broadway & 3rd around that 1890-1910 era, so they may not be unusual in the area back then. (Would be a good way to hide any undeveloped dirt parcels for a while. And then the sign would simply be gone before the next photo was taken.)

[Alkapone]

Originally Posted by 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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It’s the Western Avenue face, apparently with the William Fox Studio letters removed from above the row of six windows on the right. They’re there in the 1921 shots that pop up online. Deluxe Labratories was noted as present there still in 2011, but I believe that has changed too? I think the photo is just indicating where Additional (“Add”) Fox facilities can be found at the time.

[Alkapone]

Originally Posted by Lwize

How is the building leaning, but the pole is vertical??

(I don't think I'm drunk)

Lwize, I’m gonna guess you already know and are just havin’ some fun. But for anyone else who actually is thrown by it, the road is on a downslope given away by the unequal walls and footings of the building such as to compensate and keep the roofline level. The pole itself is not vertical but slightly canted to keep a right angle to the sidewalk, where it is embedded in the concrete and sunk below ground level..so it ain’t a gonna topple over. The wires are heading downhill too so it’s not a problem. The photo itself is probably not squared to the horizon because the photographer is not using a tripod with telescoping legs that would adjust to the sidewalk and allow for leveling the camera. It might just be handheld and that shutterbug may have had a few themselves. I personally don’t need to think about whether I’m drunk, I just know it from experience, If I was, I could never put these microscopic letters inside this tiny little box. 🥳🤪