More L.A. Then and Now stories
March 21, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
The city that loves the car was slow to pay for parking
Los Angeles lays claim to being the birthplace of such phenomena as drive-in church services (Emmanuel Lutheran, North Hollywood, 1949), hang-gliding (Dockweiler State Beach, about 1960) and the Cobb salad (the Brown Derby, 1937).
March 14, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
The (Miss) Universe in its hand
For years, Long Beach seemed to have conflicted feelings about women's bathing suits.
February 14, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Long before 'American Idol,' the performances were live -- and strange
Television's "American Idol" is, of course, famous partly for its comically inept performances.
February 7, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Before they could spout off on the airwaves, folks debated (and spit) in the open air
The story goes that in the 1880s, a woman spotted some tobacco-chewing debaters on the veranda of the Long Beach Hotel and complained to a friend: "All they do is spit and argue."
January 31, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Elephants were the heavy favorite
Just how an Elephant Racing Club materialized at Orange County State College, now Cal State Fullerton, in 1962 is a matter of debate.
January 24, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Local talk-show hosts' barbs, onstage and off, hooked viewers
The talk-show tumult involving Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien and David Letterman wouldn't have fazed viewers half a century ago in Southern California.
January 17, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Lionizing Frasier, a first-class lover
A quarter of a century before the dawn of Viagra, American men found hope in the prowess of an aging Lothario named Frasier.
January 10, 2010
L.A. THEN AND NOW
L.A. air show in 1910 awed a nation
One hundred years ago, "few Americans had seen an airplane, let alone an air race," Air & Space magazine recently noted.
1:14 PM PST, January 14, 2013
INTERACTIVE
View from Los Angeles City Hall, then and now
The changing downtown landscape as captured by two photographers shooting from the observation deck nearly six decades apart
November 15, 2009
L.A. THEN AND NOW
These traffic reporters do their work on the fly
One day in 1967, a fashion model named Kelly Lange got into a line at a Buena Park shopping mall, figuring "they were giving something away."
November 8, 2009
Santa Anita racetrack played a role in WWII internment
A plaque near the entranceon the sprawling grounds of the Santa Anita racetrack is the sole reminder of the track's place in World War II history as the nation's largest assembly center for Japanese Americans on their way to internment camps.
November 1, 2009
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Like ghost stories? Hollywood and environs will oblige
Even after the costumes are worn, the candy collected and the ghoulish jack-o'-lantern turned back into a pumpkin, Halloween doesn't have to be over -- if you are willing to be entertained by a good ghost story.
October 25, 2009
L.A. THEN AND- NOW
An unassuming movie capital of yore
As a heavyweight contender four decades ago, 6-foot-6 Jack O'Halloran battled such tough hombres as George Foreman, Ken Norton and Cleveland Williams.
October 18, 2009
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Living chic by jowl in the Malibu Colony
When Cheronda Guyton, a senior vice president with Wells Fargo, used a foreclosed home to host lavish parties last summer in the Malibu Colony, she broke more than a few company rules. But by caving to her craving for the beach life, the now-fired bank executive joined a long line of people aching to lay claim to that fabled stretch of sand.
February 17, 2008
Hidden Hollywood sign uncovers history
There's the Hollywood sign everyone knows -- white letters 50 feet high, recognized the world over as the landmark of Tinseltown.
May 11, 2008
Historic Long Beach band shell is restored to its former glory
The Bixby Park Bandshell isn't really a shell, but the name is ingrained in the Long Beach vernacular.
February 4, 2007
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Unwitting pioneer of the battered-woman defense
Nellie May Madison got off on the wrong foot in life. She eloped at 13, married several times, chain-smoked, drank whiskey and, she'd later say, shot husband No. 5 in the back because he'd abused her.
April 30, 2006
L.A. THEN AND NOW
A Tale of Adultery, Mutilation Yields Obsession
Angela Mellus Copeland is obsessed with the 1928 murder of her grandfather's first wife.
April 22, 2007
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Buffalo Soldier's story finally is told, by kin
Civil War veteran George Hutchinson has been forgotten by everyone but his family.
January 20, 2002
L. A. THEN AND NOW
A Mother's Love Was the Death of Her Daughter-in-Law
The worst mother-in-law in California was also the last woman to be executed in the state, in 1962.
August 27, 2006
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Tooting the Horn for `All-Girl' Band Leader, 101
Indomitable saxophonist Peggy Gilbert got the beat back in the 1920s, when Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington and the Kansas City Nighthawks were wowing Jazz Age dance crowds.
June 25, 2006
L.A. THEN AND NOW
Photo Pioneer Shot More Than Just Pictures
Eadweard Muybridge's pioneering time-lapse photography laid the foundation for Hollywood movies -- and his colorful life could have been one.
May 21, 2006
L.A. THEN AND NOW
1st Woman Boxing Referee Rolled With Punches
Belle Martell's moment as queen of the boxing ring was almost as short as a knockout countdown, but she did it gracefully.
June 3, 2007
L.A. THEN AND NOW
What's in a name? Clues to a city's past
Every city has a story to tell — and in Los Angeles County, that means 88 of them.
Copyright © 2013, Los Angeles Times
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