In the opening shot the audience finds itself staring down the barrel of a sniper’s (Andy Robinson) rifle.
Then … He uses his telescopic sight to aim directly at an unsuspecting woman enjoying a rooftop swim.
… and Now … The pool was for the use of guests staying at the Holiday Inn Chinatown. Brand new when the movie was filmed, the hotel was built on the site of the old Hall Of Justice at 750 Kearny Street following its 1968 demolition (map). After an extensive renovation the hotel became the Hilton Financial District in 2006 at which time the pool was closed. This 2020 Google 3D aerial view reveals a covered area where the pool had been. In this view Portsmouth Square is on the left and at far right we see the sloping sides of the TransAmerica Pyramid which was under construction and just out of sight in the Then image above.
Then (1958) … this image from the excellent Eli Wallach movie The Lineup captured the old Hall Of Justice taken from Portsmouth Square a decade before its demolition. Note that its frontage ran along Kearney Street. (Coincidentally the new Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant Street appears a number of times throughout this movie).
… and Now … here’s a recent photo of the Hilton Financial District on the same site now. The replacement building is set back from the main road.
The sniper homes in on the swimmer through his scope as she glides through the water, then delivers a single fatal shot.
Then … San Francisco Police Inspector "Dirty Harry” Callahan (Clint Eastwood) responds to the call, approaching the covered victim. In the distance we can see Treasure Island, Yerba Buena Island and the east bay hills.
… and Now … the pool was shut down in 2005 when the Holiday Inn was refurbished as a more upscale Hilton hotel. It never did reopen - here’s how it looks in 2023.
Then … He looks up at the likely place where the bullet came from - the top of the Bank Of America Center, a 779 ft 52-story office skyscraper that towered 415 feet above the rooftop pool. It was the highest building in the city back then but would soon be eclipsed by the TransAmerica Pyramid.
… c. 2005 … We thank Hank Donat, Mistersf of the website mistersf.com, for publishing a couple of photos of the pool taken shortly before it closed - CitySleuth combined them into this single image. The Bank Of America Center, since sold and now known as 555 California Street, is in the background at far left: the victim was lying in the foreground corner on the right.
… and Now, here’s the pool in 2023, still closed down.
O’Hara and Grayson accuse Dr. Neva, whose laundry had contained the handkerchief carrying a secret formula, of treason. She vehemently denies any knowledge of passing on secrets, admitting only of being in love with fellow top scientist Dr. von Stolb.
When von Stolb is discovered dead in his quarters of an apparent suicide by poison it didn’t take them long to work out that he had in fact been murdered. Now they wondered if perhaps somebody else might have been responsible for both the leaks and the murder.
They recheck their video of the scientist’s meeting looking for clues that might implicate one of the other attendees: director Townsend, Dr. Forrest and Dr. Allen. Once again they see nothing suspicious but later O’Hara has an ‘Aha!’ moment, recalling that Dr. Allen, on the right, had pressed the palm of his hand on the paper containing the formula that had been smuggled out.
They and the local police follow Allen to a remote house where he rendezvous with the members of the spy ring. A furious gun battle ends up with Braun, Krebs and the other spies dead and Allen in custody.
Denying everything, Allen insisted he had been kidnapped by the spies …
… but was caught in a lie when O’Hara grabs his hand and wets it with a solution that reveals the formula, still there. They finally got their man!
Then … the movie fades to black as our intrepid G-men exit an elevator and stride purposefully away as the narrator intones the stern reminder that “… those who walk the crooked miles are followed by such men as Grayson and O’Hara”. The ‘Tower Express’ signs on the elevators suggest this was filmed in Los Angeles’ classic City Hall, whose landmark art deco tower has a public viewing gallery on the 27th floor.
… and Now, indeed it was; our two heroes above are striding across the building’s 3rd floor byzantine rotunda. The 10 marble columns bordering the rotunda each have their own distinctive and colorful patterns, all of them different. In the recent matching photo, below, visitors walk past the elevators towards the rotunda, approaching the same set of columns.
… and Now, and here’s a reverse view of those columns looking back from the rotunda.
Los Angeles City Hall opened in 1928. Its architecture is a blend of styles, with an Art Deco tower and an entrance announced by elegant columned arches. It has been a popular location site for moviemakers over the years, a fitting place for the final scene of this San Francisco/Southern California based movie.
The movie opens with a tribute to those police officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice while serving the people of San Francisco.
Then … A set of marble panels on a wall lists all of the fallen from 1878 to the present time.
… and Now, the panels are still there, clearly with the same striations in the marble but apparently with updated gold lettering (unless the movie images were doctored in some way to make them more readable). The panels are mounted in the lobby of the Hall Of Justice at 850 Bryant Street, SoMa (map).
… and Now, here’s the full tribute, spread out across five panels.
Then … A superimposed police badge shines in the background as the camera slowly pans down the list of names, the first in 1878 and the last in 1970, the most recent entry when the film was made. The beginning and end of the list are shown in the dual image below.
… and Now, since then 20 more names have been added to the tribute list, the most recent in 2006. (the absence of movie lighting makes the names a little more difficult to read).
… and Now, here’s a recent photo of the Hall of Justice viewed across Bryant Street. The three tall openings along to the left frame the entrance doors to the lobby.
Here’s another shot of the Elite Laundry, located at 14519 Sylvan Street in Van Nuys. (It was described in more detail in the previous post).
Agent Grayson has managed to get a job at the laundry and is in a good spot to watch incoming customers. He watches as Dr. Neva, one of the senior scientists, drops off her laundry.
Then … He observes the man at the counter slip one of her handkerchiefs into a package, picked up shortly afterwards by Krebs, one of the spy ring members. Below, Krebs is seen leaving the laundry which back then was one of many small shops and stores lining the block.
and Now, the building that housed those stores looks very different now. It dates back to 1922 but was extensively changed in 1988.
Then … Krebs walks on, passing a large plumbing and appliance store that conveniently displayed its name on the window …
and Now, a street directory identified this location - the J. Hokom plumbing showroom at 860 N.Highland Avenue - but it’s in Hollywood, miles from Van Nuys. A not unusual geographical hiccup for the moviemakers but confusing for locals in the audience. The building is still there today.
The FBI agents have no intention of allowing any more secrets to be spirited out of the country so they waylay Krebs, snatch the package and take the handkerchief to a lab for analysis. Sure enough, it yields yet another formula.
It’s not easy being an FBI agent - Krebs, still bruised from his earlier roughing-up from O’Hara, turns the tables and regains possession of the handkerchief while dishing out revengeful rough stuff. He leaves the agents to his henchmen … “You know what to do …” but a brave, unfortunately sacrificial, intervention by Grayson’s landlady enables their escape.
