noirish Los Angeles

[ethereal_reality]

Originally Posted by Dinkler

Betty is on the south side of the Wrigley Mansion (Tournament House) in Pasadena. Seems that in the ensuing years, a building extension has been added in/near the spot where she was standing.

A recent photo of the area

Sherry Schmidt Watercolors
http://sherryschmidt.blogspot.com/20...y-gardens.html

Thanks so much Dinkler!

Here's a glimpse inside the Wrigley Mansion, circa.1920s


https://www.tournamentofroses.com/hi...urnament-house



https://www.tournamentofroses.com/hi...urnament-house

Why is there a cord running up to the ceiling light fixture?
I've seen that before in noirish SROs, but not in a fancy mansion)



https://www.tournamentofroses.com/hi...urnament-house
__



update:
I just found a 2nd Betty White photo taken that same day at the Wrigley Mansion.

In this one, she's holding roses instead of that humongous radio microphone.


https://www.pinterest.com/pin/481111172662600428/

they give the date as 1963. (I was thinking earlier)

__

[ethereal_reality]

Here's some rather tittilating ephemera from 1954.

From what I gather "By Maureen" is a specialty business supplying swimwear for photo shoots.

The seller on ebay began with this grouping of several items.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/1954-FAMOUS-.../361849286264?





ebay



ebay


for search purposes:

"BY MAUREEN" 128 So. Alvarado St., Los Angeles 57 Calif.






this must be Barbara Osterman as well.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/1954-FAMOUS-...YAAOSwfZ1Wbif1



and finally the 1954 calendar, a bit larger.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/1954-FAMOUS-...YAAOSwfZ1Wbif1

Is anyone familiar with Barbara Osterman? (the model)

__

[tovangar2]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Why the cord running up to the ceiling light fixture......(wasn't it wired correctly?)
__

I should think the cord is plugged into the ceiling fixture to power the desk lamp which is not near a wall, not an unusual arrangement at one time. Some rooms, in some homes, did not have outlets, the electrics being confined to the chandelier & sconces.

(the cartoonist George Booth had a nice line in single ceiling bulbs/outlets in more modest homes. See here and here)

[CityBoyDoug]

Originally Posted by tovangar2

I should think the cord is plugged into the ceiling fixture to power the desk lamp which is not near a wall, not an unusual arrangement at one time.

[SIZE="3"]In those days it was thought to be OK to have only one electrical outlet per room. Of course today in 2017 we require on outlet on each wall and hopefully more.

[Flyingwedge]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Here's a glimpse inside the Wrigley Mansion, circa.1920s


https://www.tournamentofroses.com/hi...urnament-house

Why the cord running up to the ceiling light fixture......(wasn't it wired correctly?)

__

I guess that's how home wiring was done back then, e_r.


Los Angeles Times, July 27, 1930:



ProQuest via LAPL

[ethereal_reality]

Thanks t2, CBD and FW.



Here's a 1940s hotel room with one of those out-of-date ceiling outlets mentioned in FW's article.

pinterest

(unknown location)

[CityBoyDoug]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Here's some rather tittilating ephemera from 1954.

From what I gather "By Maureen" is a specialty business supplying swimwear for photo shoots.

The seller on ebay began with this grouping of several items. [see Reply by CBD below]


_

Notice the 1954 CA Sales Tax Rate. Circled in blue below.

In Los Angeles County the Sales Tax rate is 8.75% in 2017. [ in the 1950s it was 3% ]

Back in the 1950s the CA government had millions of dollars in surplus money.
Today CA is practically broke and the sales tax has almost tripled.
Ahhh....the joy of BIG government.


Previous forum photo by ER.

[tovangar2]

Originally Posted by CityBoyDoug

In those days it was thought to be OK to have only one electrical outlet per room. Of course today in 2017 we require on outlet on each wall and possibly more.

A friend's home (this was in the 60s) had painted metal baseboards, wired for discreet, two-prong outlets every 30" or so. I've never seen that anywhere else.


..........................................


Thank you FW, that article really laid it out.

[CityBoyDoug]

Originally Posted by tovangar2

A friend's home (this was in the 60s) had painted metal baseboards, wired for discreet, two-prong outlets every 30" or so. I've never seen that anywhere else.
..........................................
Thank you FW, that article really laid it out.

Must have been a nice up-scale home. Is it still standing? ....and where is it?

[HossC]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Has anyone heard of the 'Figer 8 Grill' on Figueroa?

I thought 'Figer' was a typo in the directory until I came across this matchbook on ebay.

ebay

The Figer 8 Grill appears at 748 S Figueroa in the CDs from 1956 to 1973, so I'm guessing that this 931 W 8th Street address was earlier.


Vintage Matchbooks of Los Angeles on Facebook

[oldstuff]

[QUOTE=tovangar2;7704927]I should think the cord is plugged into the ceiling fixture to power the desk lamp which is not near a wall, not an unusual arrangement at one time. Some rooms, in some homes, did not have outlets, the electrics being confined to the chandelier & sconces.

(the cartoonist George Booth had a nice line in single ceiling bulbs/outlets in more modest homes. See here and here)[/QUOT


I believe that the fixture with a light bulb socket and one or two plugs on the sides was called a "current tap" . We had one on the front porch light for years to plug in the Christmas Lights. I still have one or two hanging around in the garage somewhere (one of the advantages, or disadvantages of never moving)

[oldstuff]

Originally Posted by Flyingwedge

I guess that's how home wiring was done back then, e_r.


Los Angeles Times, July 27, 1930:



ProQuest via LAPL

My 1939 home has wall outlets, at least one on each wall. I also have an outlet for plugging a radio antenna into which supposedly used the house wiring as an antenna in the days before TV. Does anyone have a picture of one of those?

[odinthor]

Originally Posted by John Maddox Roberts

A few months ago we saw a picture of SoCal Indians living in what looked like Army Sibley tents from the Civil War. Many of these men are wearing U.S. military jackets and even hats, but they have no military firearms so they are not Indian auxiliaries. Were they given castoff military attire as government support?

Not sure in this particular instance what the backstory is; but now and then I run across instances of California or other Southwest Indians--usually a chief--being given a military coat or headgear as a diplomatic or otherwise friendly gesture, or as a reward for outstanding and perhaps unexpected assistance. The only Indian/uniform anecdote I can put my finger on at the moment, however--and it's not as relevant as I might wish--is this, from the Los Angeles Star of May 16, 1863: “Our city has been favored this week with a visit from As-par-qua-miah, alias ‘Eagle Sky,’ the principal Chief of the Mojave Pah-Utes. He and Iratabia, (who was here some years ago) command the tribes of the Colorado; and both of them have rendered service to the whites on the river. Eagle Sky came here in the charge of Mr. John Moss, who speaks several Indian languages fluently. He stops at the Bella Union Hotel, which he calls ‘big eat house,’ and some of the boys dressed him up in soldier’s uniform of a late local company, in which he struts around quite proudly."

[Blaster]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Here's some rather tittilating ephemera from 1954.

From what I gather "By Maureen" is a specialty business supplying swimwear for photo shoots.

The seller on ebay began with this grouping of several items.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/1954-FAMOUS-.../361849286264?




ebay



ebay


for search purposes:

"BY MAUREEN" 128 So. Alvarado St., Los Angeles 57 Calif.






this must be Barbara Osterman as well.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/1954-FAMOUS-...YAAOSwfZ1Wbif1



and finally the 1954 calendar, a bit larger.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/1954-FAMOUS-...YAAOSwfZ1Wbif1

Is anyone familiar with Barbara Osterman? (the model)

__

Here's an obituary for her. She appears to have led a happy and successful life.


http://www.mailtribune.com/article/2...ws04/310159974

[Godzilla]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Thanks tovangar2!

With the information you provided I was able to track down some additional information.



http://amertribes.proboards.com/thre...ameleon-people

. . . . .

But I'm a bit confused; the information at the top says the photograph was taken by D.P. Flanders [1873-1874], but on the stereo-view (I posted earlier)
it says "photographed by T.E. Stanton".

I wonder which is correct?


found on ebay

and why was it labeled 'Los Angeles Cal'?

__

Pioneer Western photographers, Flanders and Stanton, both had Los Angeles connections although they both traveled with their cameras outside of the area. It is just an uneducated guess that Flanders may have captured the image and Stanton printed/published it. Or someone may have co-opted the image, innocently or otherwise.


A source of similar images bearing "T.E. Stanton's" imprimator (Calisphere) indicates that Los Angeles was the "place of publication." See e.g., https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/tf4d5nb6c7/
T.E. Stanton is listed as a photographer at 119 N Main in the 1887-8CD. (He resided at "7 Friend Av.")

D[udley].P. Flanders, according to one source, was allegedly born in 1840 and, among other things, had a Los Angeles gallery prior to 1872 and had him as a registered voter in 1875. Evidently, he collaborated with other photographers. https://books.google.com/books?id=Nn...rapher&f=false https://books.google.com/books?id=Nne4L9h27RsC&pg=PA240&lpg=PA240&dq=d.p.+flanders+photographer&source=bl&ots=a1N1bqEs15&sig=OS6SGRGmylzFDOiWBEF9Bk9IvAw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiR4N6EjoHSAhVEjLwKHbkmCUcQ6AEIKTAF#v=onepage&q=d.p.%20flanders%20photographer&f=false

[tovangar2]

Originally Posted by CityBoyDoug

Must have been a nice up-scale home. Is it still standing? ....and where is it?

I can't remember. I recall the inside, but not the outside. There was also some push-button arrangement for the kitchen sink to control the water flow & temp. It was a real contrast w/ our old frame home.

[odinthor]

Originally Posted by Godzilla

Pioneer Western photographers, Flanders and Stanton, both had Los Angeles connections although they both traveled with their cameras outside of the area. It is just an uneducated guess that Flanders may have captured the image and Stanton printed/published it. Or someone may have co-opted the image, innocently or otherwise.


A source of similar images bearing "T.E. Stanton's" imprimator (Calisphere) indicates that Los Angeles was the "place of publication." See e.g., https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/tf4d5nb6c7/
T.E. Stanton is listed as a photographer at 119 N Main in the 1887-8CD. (He resided at "7 Friend Av.")

D[udley].P. Flanders, according to one source, was allegedly born in 1840 and, among other things, had a Los Angeles gallery prior to 1872 and had him as a registered voter in 1875. Evidently, he collaborated with other photographers. https://books.google.com/books?id=Nn...rapher&f=false https://books.google.com/books?id=Nne4L9h27RsC&pg=PA240&lpg=PA240&dq=d.p.+flanders+photographer&source=bl&ots=a1N1bqEs15&sig=OS6SGRGmylzFDOiWBEF9Bk9IvAw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiR4N6EjoHSAhVEjLwKHbkmCUcQ6AEIKTAF#v=onepage&q=d.p.%20flanders%20photographer&f=false

My scanty notes on Flanders are: Dudley P. Flanders; of Flanders & Godfrey’s Art and Photographic Parlor; ca. 1840, born in Massachusetts; 1865-1867, in San Francisco; 1872, 200 Main St.; 1873, present in L.A. at 205 3rd St. and 727 Main St.

[Earl Boebert]

Originally Posted by CityBoyDoug

In those days it was thought to be OK to have only one electrical outlet per room. Of course today in 2017 we require on outlet on each wall and hopefully more.

Our house in Minneapolis was built in 1906 and originally had "knob and tube" wiring for overhead lights only and no sockets, with backup gas light fixtures. There was a brass pushbutton panel in the entry hall that controlled all eight lights in the house.

My first task after purchase was to trace the wiring. When they upgraded it to conduit they just disconnected the old knob and tube and left it in place. I discovered that some idiot had reconnected a section of it in the basement to power a light, and the circuit was 110v to waterpipe (ground). Hey, if the light lights, it must be OK, right? I spent several happy weekends pulling wires.

Cheers,

Earl

[ethereal_reality]

Originally Posted by oldstuff

My 1939 home also has an outlet for plugging a radio antenna into which supposedly used the house wiring as an antenna in the days before TV.

Does anyone have a picture of one of those?

Is the radio outlet something like this oldstuff?


http://www.electrical-contractor.net...io_Outlet.html

but I'm still confused how the house wiring doubled as an antenna.

[HossC]

I know that Azusa is outside the area we usually cover, but we have visited several times before. This Julius Shulman photoset is "Job 2883: Ben Parker, Azusa Public Library (Azusa, Calif.), 1959". A couple of these pictures appear to have been taken at twilight.



I've left out a few exterior pictures, but I liked this one.



Here's the reception desk. I'm not sure what's on the shelves on the left.



There's plenty of space to read.



More shelves with unidentified objects.



The library even had an outdoor reading area. What better place to check out 'Favorite birds of America' by John James Audubon?



All from Getty Research Institute

There are now a lot of trees in front of Azusa City Library at 729 N Dalton Avenue, but the exterior is recognizable. I didn't look for recent interior shots.


GSV