San Francisco movie locations from classic films
San Francisco movie locations from classic films
Madeleine continues to make mysterious trips across town. This time she returns to the art gallery then heads out to Fort Point. Every block traversed is listed and described sequentially. In this sequence an asterisk (*) indicates a route discontinuity, i.e. a location jump.
Then ... Bullitt tracks down the cabbie who had picked up Johnny Ross and meets him at a car wash to retrace Ross's steps.
... and Now, the same corner, looking across Bayshore Blvd to the 101 flyover. The car wash was located at the corner of Bayshore Blvd and Marin Street close by the Army Street (now Cesar Chavez) exit of Highway 101.
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Then ... The cabbie retraces Ross's journey for Bullitt then takes him back to his car at the car wash, below. This is the view south down Bayshore Blvd, taken from the Army Street corner, looking past the car wash.
... and Now, this matching photo is taken from a new on-ramp to the freeway which has been built along Bayshore. The distinctive 1950's-kitsch car wash has been replaced by a nondescript structure with self-wash car bays.
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In this great shot of Steve McQueen his character Bullitt leans forward to start his Mustang and spots the two hit men waiting for him in their Dodge Charger.
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Then ... The car chase begins below as Bullitt leaves the car wash and passes under the freeway, followed by the hit men. The sign points left for Potrero Avenue and Army Street West and right for Army Street East.
... and Now, several new ramps and access roads have changed the original traffic pattern.
After Parry climbs down the 1201 Greenwich Street fire escape he hops onto a passing cable car.
Then ... There weren't many tourists back then as the cable car rumbles south on Hyde Street between Greenwich and Filbert (map).
... and Now, we could be in a time warp as another cable car passes by the same spot.
Then ... The cable car is next seen heading down Powell Street alongside Union Square. (A reader has pointed out that, unlike today, it would have required a change of cable cars to make this journey from Hyde Street prior to 1957). On the Post Street block seen across the square the Fitzhugh Building that housed the Robert S. Atkins department store is on the left and the Hotel Plaza is at far right.
... and Now, all but one of the Post Street buildings, the smallest, have since been replaced and the square has been redesigned but the bronze Victory statue still surveys the scene from atop the Dewey Monument at far right.
Then ... The cable car reaches its turntable terminus at the corner of Powell and Market (map) and Parry jumps off. The Owl Drug Co. store, one of 19 branches throughout the city at that time, occupies the prime corner site in the Flood Building. The stores were subsequently taken over by Rexall's.
... and Now, the cable car line still ends at the same place but bollards surround the turntable and The Gap has replaced The Owl.
A number of times during the movie we see diesel trains plying back and forth along the Embarcadero. They belonged to the State Belt Railroad system whose purpose was to provide a link between the piers and the four railroad companies serving the city, namely the Southern Pacific, the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe, the Western Pacific and the Northwestern Pacific. The railroad ran between King Street south of Market and the Presidio via a 1500 foot long tunnel under Fort Mason. It began in 1889 using steam locomotives and was finally shut down in 1993 after the loss of most of the port traffic to Oakland. More information can be found here.
Then ... Below is engine number 20, one of a total of six, filmed in front of Shorty's Bar with pier 46 and China Basin in the background.
... and Now, pier 46 has been replaced by a marina and the same viewpoint today looks across South Beach Park towards the AT&T ballpark at China Basin.
Then ... Here we see Nick and Rica walking towards the Colchester Hotel past engine number 23 alongside the Wellman Peck building at the east end of Jackson Street.
... and Now, the corner of the Embarcadero at Jackson has completely changed, as shown below. The Wellman Peck corner building site is now part of this parking lot.
... from 1946 ... Below is an archival photograph of engine number 24 passing below the Bay Bridge.
... and Now, from the same spot we see the train was passing Pier 28, still there today. The railroad tracks have been replaced by the muni tracks of the T Third and N Judah lines.
But wait - take a look at the Bay Bridge in the 1946 photo above. Is that a train passing by on the bridge? It sure is - in the bridge's early years there was an electric train service, part of the privately owned Key System, connecting Oakland and San Francisco. Its two tracks ran along the south side of the lower deck, shared with automobiles using the north side. See the closeup below taken the day the service began, September 23, 1938.