Reel SF

San Francisco movie locations from classic films

San Francisco movie locations from classic films

Experiment In Terror - Rendezvous at Fisherman's Wharf

  Lynch takes Toby to a dark and dusty hideout.  When he orders the terrified girl to take off her clothes we all fear the worst, but his main concern is the money so he calls Kelly at the bank and tells her to get the $100,000  to a phone booth at Fisherman's Wharf and await further instructions.

  Then he chillingly adds:  " ... if anything goes wrong ... I'll kill her".

 

Then ...  Kelly, closely watched by the police, arrives at Fisherman's Wharf, here seen turning from the Embarcadero into Taylor Street (map).  Behind her is Shed A, one of the twin Pier 45 sheds (also briefly seen in the 1950 movie Woman On The Run).  The phone booth is just visible at far right and on the left is the Fishermen's Grotto restaurant which first opened in 1935.

... and Now,  not much has changed.  The Fishermen's Grotto is still there, as is the Pier 45 shed, except it is no longer the home of shipping lines - it now houses the Musee Mecanique, an arcade of antique coin-operated displays, where tourists can see and hear the Laughing Sal exhibit and others rescued from Ocean Beach's demolished Playland-At-The-Beach.

 

Then ...  In the same block, she passes Alioto's restaurant and parks in front of the Lighthouse Fish Grotto (CitySleuth composited this image from different views in the movie).  These two restaurants have been there since the mid 1930s.

... and Now,  both businesses continue to thrive.  The family-owned businesses at Fisherman's Wharf have been hardy survivors over the decades thanks to this popular destination's constant stream of visitors.  The address number of each restaurant (Alioto's is number 8) dates back to the number assigned to the fish stall that originally occupied the site.

 

Then ...  Kelly crosses over to the phone booth.  In the background, across the Embarcadero, is the Franciscan restaurant, another family-owned business, since 1957 combining fresh seafood with panoramic bay views.  To its left is the Pier 43 1/2 Bay Cruise sign, seen again in an updated version six years later in the movie Petulia.

... and Now,  the Franciscan is still there and so is a Pier 43 1/2 sign but a new restaurant, the Chowder Hut, blocks its view from here.

 

Then ...  While agent Ripley watches her approach the phone booth we get another perspective of Alioto's, Fishermen's Grotto and Pier 45.  The popularity of Fisherman's Wharf in movies dates way back,  here's the same location from the 1949 movie Impact.

... and Now,  the booth isn't there but it used to be about where the 'RIGHT TURN ONLY' sign is now.  Click on this image - there are at least 10 public signs - parking, turning, tsunami, rest rooms, wheelchair etc.  CitySleuth prefers the uncluttered past when the obvious was not overstated.

 

Then ...  The agents see Kelly take the call then slowly follow her when she walks to the end of the block, crossing Jefferson Street to a waiting cab parked outside the Sea Captain's Chest, at far right.  This view looks south along Taylor towards conjoined apartment buildings on the Russian Hill skyline.

... and Now,  those same distant apartments, at 945 and 947 Green Street, still stand tall, next to the newer 999 Green.  There's a remodelled building on the left corner where the A. Sabella restaurant was, above, but it is still called the Sabella Building.  The Sea Captain's Chest building has been rebuilt and now houses different stores.

 

  In the cab the driver hands over a package containing, to Kelly's alarm, Toby's sweater.  There's also a ticket to their destination, a Giants - Dodgers ball game at Candlestick Park.  Meanwhile the police car behind and a helicopter overhead are determined to not let her out of their sight.

Click in this box to search this site ...