Tip the world over on its side and everything loose will land in Los Angeles.

January 13, 2008 9:51 PM

Changing Times: Los Angeles in Photographs, 1920-1990
posted by miss lynnster (15 comments total)

People interested in this should read City of Quartz by Mike Davis.
posted by Ironmouth at 9:55 PM on January 13, 2008 [1 favorite]

Don't have time to actually look at any of this now, here are similar projects for NYC and Paris. Some photographers attempted to precisely recreate some early well known photographs of each city (the late 1930s for New York, 1888-1927 for Paris, though I can't see dates for the individual photographs). I suppose it's mildly refreshing that, in Paris, at least, there seem to be fewer advertisements now than there were a century ago.
posted by gsteff at 10:09 PM on January 13, 2008

Orange County is well represented in this collection about "L.A.".

miss lynster links to this one in Anaheim.

Awesome.
posted by psergio at 10:44 PM on January 13, 2008

These are incredible (and I'm extra-happy that the negative details haven't been cropped out).
posted by avocet at 10:54 PM on January 13, 2008

Some of the photos really just blow me a away. This one's SO Chinatown!

More...
Prime Minister Nehru and his daughter Mrs. Indira Gandhi touring Disneyland, 1961
Negro Nite Life on Central Avenue..Series, African American couple dancing with onlookers in Los Angeles, Calif., 1938
Women watching performance of male exotic dancers at Chippendales in Los Angeles, Calif., 1986
Actors Gary Coleman, Danielle Spencer and Kim Fields at the NAACP Image Awards in Los Angeles, Calif., 1980
Pianist Liberace, hoisted by crane above Sahara Hotel billboard on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, Calif., 1966
Actors Jodie Foster and Johnny Whitaker presenting painting to Mark Twain Junior High school students in Venice, Calif., 1973
Cartoonist Matt Groening in his "Bat Cave" Venice Studio, Calif., 1987
Cuban refugees outside the Cuban Consulate to show approval of U.S. break with Cuba, Los Angeles, Calif., 1961
Los Angeles' Union Rescue Mission's annual "Gospel Wagon" ride thru downtown Los Angeles, Calif., 1961
posted by miss lynnster at 11:24 PM on January 13, 2008

This is excellent.

It would be nice to be able to click from one photo to another a little more easily (and explore the archives a bit), but this is a really cool site nonetheless. Thanks!
posted by sellout at 11:36 PM on January 13, 2008

women watching performance of male exotic dancers at chippendale's...

miss lynster, i'm a fan (you, not male exotic dancers) but in the interest of language economy, isn't there a shorter word? i'll give it to you wheel of fortune style: s___pp__s.
posted by bruce at 12:12 AM on January 14, 2008

Back when we had the money and the heuvos to build meaningful infrastructure

sheez, wtf?

Dude's a bit ahead of the curve here . . . land of the free indeed . . . sigh, this is my old neighborhood, 1986-1988.
posted by panamax at 12:25 AM on January 14, 2008

People interested in this should read City of Quartz by Mike Davis.


I swear I thought I was the only person in the world thats read that.
God what a great book.
posted by Senor Cardgage at 12:26 AM on January 14, 2008

Thanks. I love this stuff.

(where'd "Tip the world over..." come from?)
posted by From Bklyn at 12:35 AM on January 14, 2008

Robert Blake, circa 1944
posted by miss lynnster at 1:37 AM on January 14, 2008

Hey! It's Trader Joe!
posted by miss lynnster at 1:42 AM on January 14, 2008

Great stuff! I was disappointed, though, to search the subject index for baseball and find only one lousy photograph. WTF, UCLA?
posted by languagehat at 6:05 AM on January 14, 2008

A 13 year old Ally Sheedy
posted by wfc123 at 10:40 AM on January 14, 2008

These are great.

*Sniffle!* I'm such a sap.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 10:47 AM on January 14, 2008