Category

History Lessons

At my heart I’m a historian. So sometimes I write essays on weird topics. Yes, I write these because I want to, not because I’m getting paid or anything. Seriously.

The Moulin Rouge on a postcard from the period. A low roof building features towering script that reads "Moulin Rouge." A tall tower on the left also reads "Moulin Rouge" in neon, and also features a massive neon version fo the Eiffel Tower. Script across reads "Greetings from the Moulin Rouge"

The Fleeting Life of America’s First Integrated Casino, the Moulin Rouge

, 4 Comments on The Fleeting Life of America’s First Integrated Casino, the Moulin Rouge

“In Vegas for 20 minutes, our skin had no color. Then the second we stepped off stage, we were colored again. The other acts could gamble or sit in the lounge and have a drink, but we had to leave through the kitchen with the garbage.” That is how Sammy Davis Jr. described performing in…

Read More…
Screencap: Men take a body out of the orange and blue Laff in the Dark building, covered in a white sheet.

Tracing the Journey of Mummified Outlaw Elmer McCurdy to the Long Beach Pike

, 3 Comments on Tracing the Journey of Mummified Outlaw Elmer McCurdy to the Long Beach Pike

Last week I talked about the history of Long Beach’s infamous Pike, including the location being used in an episode of Charlie’s Angels and The Six Million Dollar Man. What I didn’t mention was that in the Charlie’s Angels episode, “To Kill an Angel,” a man’s body is found within the Pike’s Laff in the…

Read More…
Myself standing in front of the old west medicine wagon sits in the middle of the parking lot. It is red and reads "Gower Gulch Medicinal Ointment" and has an image of an Indian wearing a headdress, wearing a black peasant top, and a green skirt with western images on it.

The Forgotten History of Gower Gulch, Hollywood’s Western Strip Mall

, 6 Comments on The Forgotten History of Gower Gulch, Hollywood’s Western Strip Mall

Gower Gulch. Sounds like a small town in the deserts of Arizona, right? But you’d be wrong. It’s in fact a western themed small strip mall that sits at the corner of Gower and Sunset in the middle of Hollywood. But why a western theme? And just how did this corner get its name? The…

Read More…
A rounded front building faces the street, atop it a tall spire stretches toward a bright blue sky. Near the bottom red letters spell out "Crossroads of the World." Atop the spire a globe.

The Violent History of LA’s Iconic Crossroads of the World

, 3 Comments on The Violent History of LA’s Iconic Crossroads of the World

Sunset Boulevard is synonymous with Hollywood. It’s home to a plethora of iconic buildings and linked to many legendary people. One such building is Crossroads of the World, a bizarre little 1930s shopping center turned office complex that looks like something out of a Disney theme park, with a steamship style building “sailing” past storefronts…

Read More…

The Buffalo Soldiers: Multi-Talented Defenders of Westward Expansion

, 3 Comments on The Buffalo Soldiers: Multi-Talented Defenders of Westward Expansion

On September 21, 1866, a brand new regiment was formed. The 10th Calvary Regiment was comprised of Black men, and was given the nickname, The Buffalo Soldiers. The nickname was given to them by the Native Americans, due to their hair reminding them of the top of a buffalos head. The regiment served in the…

Read More…

Bill Pickett: The Rodeo Innovator that History Forgot

, Leave a Comment on Bill Pickett: The Rodeo Innovator that History Forgot

Bill Pickett was born the second of thirteen children on December 5th, 1870 in Williamson County, Texas. Pickett’s bloodline was of Cherokee and Black. In the 5th grade, he left school to be a ranch-hand, and he learned all there was to know about being a cowboy. He invented the technique known as Bulldogging, which…

Read More…
Donald and his arsenal to do his taxes: A range of books (including two law books, a math book, and an algebra book), yardstick, globe, a bottle of paste, a bottle of aspirin, a box of files, two adding machines, a compass, and his piggy bank.

That Time Donald Duck Helped America Pay Their Taxes

, 4 Comments on That Time Donald Duck Helped America Pay Their Taxes

For those in the United States, it’s tax season…everyone’s favorite time of the year, right? Well, once upon a time, a little angry duck helped everyone pay their taxes a lot quicker. On December 12th, 1941 Walt Disney received a call from the United States government. Walt had already lent his studio’s services for the…

Read More…