Fri 23 Sep, 2011 Tags: 1920s, 1930s, Agness "Aggie" Underwood,
gold diggers, Hazel Glab, Herald-Examiner, Los Angeles Record,
murder, Robert J. James, snake handlers, William Randolph Hearst
Los Angeles has always had more than its share of creative
felons, so it stands to reason that it would take an equally
creative, gutsy, and dedicated reporter to cover them. One of
the most revered reporters who ever worked in Los Angeles was
Agness “Aggie” Underwood. Underwood began her career at the LOS
ANGELES RECORD in the 1920s. She was sharp, but there were lots
of sharp people in the news business at that time. What made
Aggie great were her instincts. She seemed to know just how to
approach a story to get the most from it. By relying on her gut
feelings she managed to keep several paces ahead of her
competition, and to earn a reputation for solving crimes. When
the Los Angeles Record folded in the mid-1930s Aggie, who by
this time loved the newspaper business (and needed the money),
agreed to work for William Ran