Then … Herbert needs cash. Fortunately he had brought his landlady’s jewelry with him for this very purpose. He first goes to Blackwell Antiques at 563 Sutter Street near Union Square - they deal in estate jewelry, it’s as good a place as any to try to sell it.
… and Now, Blackwell Antiques closed down years ago; the writing on the window tells us all we need to know about 563 Sutter today.
Then … They agree on a value but the shop owner won’t buy it without first seeing an I.D. which of course Herbert doesn’t have. He gathers up the jewelry and leaves.
… and Now, the buildings seen above across the street have different tenants but otherwise they look the same. The blue sign over the doorway left of center, above, read 560 Sutter; the number is still there but is now in fanciful art nouveau style. The arched entrance next to it has lost its awning but looks better for it.
Later he tries elsewhere … as he approaches a pawnbroker (at far right) a sign next door conveniently displays the address of a business there - 2447 Mission Street. CitySleuth should always be so lucky.
Then … We see more of the storefront as he walks up; the 1978 city directory listed it as the Argonaut Jewelry and Loan Pawnbrokers at 2449 Mission between 20th and 21st in the heart of the Mission District.
… and Now, it has a different owner but it’s still a pawnshop decades later. The storefront has the same tiles but painted over.
Then … We see a wider view of the same store when he returns to it later on. Note the movie theater next to it.
… c. 1980 … this contemporaneous vintage photo captured the Argonaut exactly as it appeared in the movie. The theater next to it was the Tower Theater at 2465 Mission.
… and Now, the theater opened in 1912 as the Majestic Theatre. It closed in 1996 and remains closed today but recent renovation activity holds promise for a new life for the currently blighted, graffitied site.
This time, no questions asked, a deal is struck, but not before Herbert is surprised to see guns on sale there. Unheard of in England, by Jove!
Then … Teddy hears a car honking outside his office window. He looks down and sees the mystery woman proudly beckoning to her image (most likely added post-production) advertising the re-opening of the cable car system.
… and Now, filmed in Los Angeles, she was parked on 5th Street near Grand Avenue alongside the east lawn of the Los Angeles Central Library. In this matching image we see that the dual-upright electrolier street light has survived but the expansive lawn has not; a new library wing was built on it in 1993. Nobody can deny it looked better before.
… a vintage photo … This photo shows the lawn and library in 1949; compared to the Then image above it had changed very little when the movie was filmed 35 years later. ‘X’ marks the spot where The Woman In Red would park next to the electrolier street light.
… a vintage photo … here’s a 1933 photo looking north across the lawn and across 5th Street towards the CalEdison Building (the setting for Teddy’s office). It was from one of its windows that the Then image above was filmed. Note the massive retaining wall supporting the sloping roadway in front of the CalEdison Building and the adjoining Engstrum Hotel Apartments …
Teddy has no time to grab an umbrella as he rushes out into the rain. This is the entrance of the CalEdison Building at 5th and Grand, seen earlier in the movie.
Then … As he swaggers up to her car the view looks west along 5th Street towards the 110 freeway . The Central Library is on the left and the aforementioned retaining wall is on the right.
… and Now, in today’s view the retaining wall is gone (removed in the late 1980s) and the 73-story U.S. Bank Tower, aka the Library Tower, has replaced the Engstrum Hotel Apartments (compare it with the 1933 image above).
Teddy tries to persuade her to go to dinner or lunch but she demurs and tries to drive off. He splays himself on the hood; his desperate rain-soaked expression softens her heart and she suggests they meet that evening at Giuglio’s in North Beach. For the first time he finds out her name - Charlotte.
Then … The time traveler is fascinated by the sight of boxes containing moving images at a store on a street corner. Note the windows wrapping around a structural column at left and on the right window pane there’s a reflection revealing a crosswalk behind Herbert showing a pedestrian next to a post on a short flared pedestal across the street.
Then … This view looking out from inside the store reveals there’s a similar post and pedestal on this side of the crosswalk; it has a parking meter next to it. The two posts and the parking meter helped confirm this location.
… and Now, ReelSF blog reader Al identified this location (see his comment below) as the Chinatown TV store at 653 Kearny on the corner of Clay Street. Since then it has been remodeled; the windows that caught Herbert’s attention above have since been made smaller to make room for an added Clay Street entrance but the structural column is still there. The store became a Subway sandwich shop from 2001 until 2019 and is currently a museum dedicated to the history and memory of the Chinese Railway Workers who helped build the U.S. Transcontinental Railroad.
… in 1964 … here’s a vintage photo of the Chinatown TV store. This view, looking east along Clay Street across Kearny, reveals that the two corner windows used to be as wide as the windows above them (which are unchanged today). The corner sign is the same one then as it is now, only the name has changed. (Nostalgic Turk Murphy jazz fans will appreciate the sight of Earthquake McGoon’s club at 630 Clay down the road on the far left).
For additional confirmation, here’s a 2015 Google Street View image looking in the opposite direction west along Clay Street when the store, left, was a Subway. It shows the two matching poles and pedestals on either side of the crosswalk that are seen in the movie images (only one is there now), plus the parking meter next to the pole by the store (it’s since been removed). Portsmouth Square is on the right.
Then … Herbert’s search for Stevenson takes him to several more banks beginning with Banco Di Roma.
… and Now, this is the California Street entrance of the Kohl Building at 400 Montgomery. Note Then and Now the matching ornamentation and flagpole wall cleat and halyard at the side of the entrance. There’s a different bank there now, a branch of Sterling Bank and Trust.
Then … Between bank visits he’s seen on the corner of Montgomery and Clay with the 1972 TransAmerica Pyramid headquarters behind him. Further back, left of center, is the original 1909 TransAmerica headquarters on the corner of Montgomery and Columbus.
… and Now, the same view today. The original TransAmerica building is barely visible from this viewpoint but it’s still there, now owned by the Church Of Scientology.
In this photo looking back along Columbus the old and the new TransAmerica headquarters buildings are nicely juxtaposed.
Then … More banks … next up is First Enterprise Bank at 260 Montgomery Street on the corner of Pine Street.
… in 1980 … A fire broke out in this building in July 1980, taking the life of a fire captain and injuring 13 others. Read here the harrowing accounts of firefighters who experienced the deadly collapse.
… and Now, a 15 story commercial building, addressed as 250 Montgomery, was built on this site in 1986.
Then … The Sumitomo Bank of California is next. (Note another Sumitomo branch across the street reflected in the window).
… and Now, this main office and agency were at 351 California Street per the 1978 city directory; the same directory listed a Sumitomo branch across the street at 320 California. The window below is the one seen in the movie - the street level space has been home to various retail businesses over the years and is currently being redone for the next tenant.
Then … And finally, the French Bank of California at 130 Montgomery Street. But no luck, Stevenson hadn’t stopped by any of them.
… and Now, here’s the same doorway today.
… and Now, it’s worth stepping back to admire 130 Montgomery Street. It’s a 1930 Art Deco gem, a delightful surprise sandwiched between two much taller office buildings.
Then … Ms Milner has gotten over being stood up; she wants to try again. She calls Teddy from a bar and suggests they meet at Le Club restaurant at Clay and Jones. Once again he thinks it’s the Woman In Red who is calling and readily agrees.
… and Now, this was filmed in Koreatown, Los Angeles at the Prince Restaurant at 3198 1/2 W. 7th Street. Its retro period decor has made this place a go-to location for dozens of movies and TV series over the decades. Note both Then and Now the yeoman statue in front of a red latticed window frame.
Then … Teddy arrives trying his best to look cool with a cigarette dangling from his mouth. Again, this is the Prince restaurant in Los Angeles. Note the red door over to the right…
… and Now, it’s been over 40 years but the door and the handrail have hardly changed. (Photo by Syd Rev).
Then … The instant he sits down he realizes who had called him. He lets out a yelp and promptly hightails it out of there.
… and Now, the three latticed windows behind them identify the two booths at The Prince used for the above scene. (Photo by J.P. Shelton)
This studio photo of Gene and Gilda relaxing before the shoot was used for a promotional lobby card.
Then … He rushes out - now we are back in San Francisco at the Clay-Jones residential highrise building at 1250 Jones Street, the very location that Ms. Milner had given Teddy. Note the signage at left on the awning above the window and the wall below it - there was indeed a Le Club restaurant in the 1980s in the lobby level of this building (the incongruous white ‘LE CLUB’ letters may have been added for this movie shot).
… and Now, 1250 Jones today. It has hosted a succession of restaurants over the years: after Le Club closed Charles Nob Hill succeeded it from 1995 to 2004, followed by C.A.L. Steakhouse then by the Michelin-starred Keiko a Nob Hill from 2011 to 2021. Currently the building is residential only - no restaurant.
Then … as he rounds the corner, the eye-catching view east down Clay Street encompasses the TransAmerica Pyramid and the Embarcadero Center high-rises with the Bay Bridge beyond. (Note the image on the back of the beer truck advertising San Francisco’s own Anchor Brewing Company’s Porter beer).
… and Now, the view is essentially unchanged today.
Here’s a closer look at the beer label seen in the Then image above. The dark Porter beer, released in 1972, supplemented the classic Anchor Steam beer which had been brewed in Potrero Hill in San Francisco since 1896. After being bought by Sapporo, the 125 year-old Anchor Brewing Company closed down in 2023 then was purchased in 2024 by the founder of Chobani whose stated intention is to revive the company. As of July 2025 it was still closed.
Then … Ms Milner pursues him, watching as he jumps into the back seat of his car.
… and Now, minor changes here - the corner mailbox is gone, awnings have been added at left on the side windows of 1250 Jones and the street signs have been replaced.
If looks could kill! Teddy fakes a heart attack but she shows no sympathy, leaning in to release the handbrake… fade out as the car rolls down the hill to blasting horns, screeching brakes and crunching metal.
Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned … still fuming the next morning she slowly and deliberately tips a bottle of ink onto Teddy’s desktop.
