So Long Microfiche

As linked to in EW's Popwatch, the LA Times has put up an interactive display of its original newspaper clippings pertaining to the Black Dahlia murder. Check it out here.

This is, of course, tied in to the movie "The Black Dahlia," which comes out on September 15th. Unfortunately, it was directed by Brian DePalma, which means it's going to suck.

It's based on the book by James Ellroy which is, while not brilliant, certainly an entertaining fictional take on the Black Dahlia case. I remember after I read it as a teenager I immediately went down to the library and looked at a bunch of newspapers on microfiche and read all the original articles about Elizabeth Short and her murder. It was quite fun; it almost felt like going back in time. Now all of that is available with the click of a mouse, and I suppose that's progress, but it's not nearly as exciting as playing make-believe detective and combing through all those old stories yourself while sitting in the back room of an old, marble library.

Edited to add: Of course, the Internet makes it easier to learn about kooky theories and suspects, like this one that says Orson Welles may have been the killer.