Then … The story begins at a medical facility, a clinic run by Dr. George Dumurrier.
… and Now, but in the real world this is actually a hotel. And what’s more although the story sets it in San Francisco, it’s located 120 miles south of there on the Monterey Peninsula. This is the Lodge at Pebble Beach, a world-renowned golf resort (map). Was the movie’s director, Lucio Fulci, a golfer?
Then … The entrance is identified by a sign above the door.
… and Now, as is the resort’s, modestly.
Then … Another great view, captured by the panning camera - this one filmed from the rear of the Lodge as Henry Dumurrier, George’s brother, hurries across the lawn carrying a newspaper.
… and Now, taken from close to the same spot. The 18th green is visible just past the lawn with the beautiful coastline of Monterey Bay beyond it. The narrow white line in the middle distance is the white sands of Carmel.
Then … He walks up the stairs at the rear of the clinic.
… and Now, the Lodge today has seen some remodeling since then. The stairs have been expanded and now climb in two directions, the balcony has been widened over part of its length and its windows have been restyled.
Inside the clinic Henry (Argentinian actor Alberto De Mendoza) demands an explanation from George (French actor Jean Sorel, on the left), for an article in the paper announcing a heart transplant operation at the clinic. It’s fake news, planted by George to reel in a potential investor in Reno. (Interior scenes throughout the movie were filmed at the legendary Cinecittà Studios in Rome, Italy).
The newspaper page is very odd. First look at the date - the 8 in the year has obviously been changed. February 25 1968 was a Sunday, not a Tuesday; in fact this is the February 25 1969 front page of the Chronicle with an inserted article about the transplant. The caption on the photo is in Italian - a translation of the English caption. This apparently was for the benefit of Italian audiences (the director was Italian and the movie was first released there) but is totally unrealistic in an English-language newspaper. And what’s with the bizzare photo? Sloppy work, Lucio!
Then … Taking an inexplicable route from the scene of the crime, Callahan heads towards us on his way to the Bank of America Center to confirm the sniper had fired his fatal shot from there. Filmed from the corner at Pine Street, this looks south down Montgomery (map). The building in the center facing us across Market Street is the historic Palace Hotel.
… and Now, this recent view reflects the loneliness of the 2020 coronavirus lockdown. The Mills Building with its archway entrance is on the left; the Russ Building is on the right. The Palace Hotel is still there too - originally built in 1875, it survived the 1906 earthquake then burned to a shell in the fire that followed but was rebuilt by 1909. It has since been through a major renovation and seismic upgrade after the 1989 earthquake and another extensive upgrade and renovation in 2015. A true survivor and city icon.
Then … He rounds the corner into Pine. His destination, the shiny Bank of America building, is across the street.
… and Now, the building has since changed hands and is now known simply by its address, 555 California Street - what we see here is the Pine Street side. In the distance atop Nob Hill is the Mark Hopkins Hotel.
Then … The camera slowly pans up to the top of the towering high-rise.
… and Now, a more detailed recent view. The modernistic 52-story granite and glass tower was the tallest in the city when it opened in 1969. The 31-story Russ Building on the left, one of CitySleuth’s favorite early high-rises, reigned as the highest building in San Francisco when it opened in 1927; here it reveals some of its neo-gothic architectural adornments. Opposite is 315 Montgomery, originally the Commercial Union Assurance Building, another elegant 1920s structure.
Then … Callahan walks around the tower’s rooftop perimeter walkway in a series of shots that show off the city’s vistas in all directions. In this west-facing view Twin Peaks and Mount Sutro look bare two years before Sutro Tower made its jarring appearance. Note the building’s air conditioning cooling towers lined up behind Callahan.
… and Now, in this Google 3-D satellite view the updated cooling towers are clearly visible as too is the flat graveled roof section that he walked around.
To the south, paralleled streets climb Potrero Hill; Bayview Hill is behind them, as too are the San Bruno Mountains in the distance at far right.
Looking to the east, the western double suspension spans of the Bay Bridge reach across to Yerba Buena Island on its way to Oakland.
The panoramic tour is complete with this northwest view capturing high-rise apartments atop Russian Hill at far right and the flats of Cow Hollow and the Marina beyond them. The Golden Gate Bridge in the distance spans the north bay, connecting the Presidio to Marin County.
Now facing due north, Callahan looks down to the hotel rooftop pool, watching as the sniper’s victim is carried off to the morgue.
After finding a spent shell at the spot where the sniper had been he spots a note pinned to an antenna - a chilling ransom note addressed to the City of San Francisco.
Then … Director Lucio Fulci originally set his storyline in Louisiana but fortunately for us ended up filming it in San Francisco. It was his first film in the U.S. and he wore his tourist hat when it came to choosing locations. What more iconic if formulaic an intro than to rent a helicopter for the day, fly over the Golden Gate Bridge and tour the city as the opening credits roll?
… and Now, this recent wider panoramic view shows off the beauty of the city spread out before us. The large green expanse in both images is the Presidio, then a military base but since handed over to the city and now open to the public. A bridge feature seen below not there back in 1969 is the central divider which is seamlessly moved daily to add or subtract a lane as demanded by the commute traffic.
Then … Our tour of the city continues - this view across the western span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge shows Coit Tower atop Telegraph Hill in the background on the right and Russian Hill off to the left. The Financial District clusters behind the aging piers of the waterfront.
… by 2014 … this image shows the proliferation of the Financial District since the 1960s, spreading South Of Market, an inexorable process that continues to this day. The other big change is along the Embarcadero where many of the piers have been removed, opening up and transforming the waterfront. (Photo credit Q T Luong/ terragalleria.com).
Then … the aerial tour next swings by the domed City Hall at the Civic Center. The building in the foreground right of center is the War Memorial Opera House with its vertically extended roof above the stage.
… by 2008 … this view was taken 12 years ago but is close to how it looks today (2020). An added building is visible in the bottom right corner - the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall, built next to the Opera house in 1980 on the parking lot site seen above. The long narrow pool that ran down the spine of the plaza (barely visible above) has been removed.
Then … Here, our tour guide is flying directly over Russian Hill looking east across the North Beach and Telegraph Hill neighborhoods. The view looks beyond Coit Tower towards Yerba Buena Island and the Bay Bridge. Note the ugly double-decker Embarcadero Freeway at far right, destined to be torn down after being damaged in the 1989 earthquake. In the foreground the twin-spired Saints Peter and Paul church faces Washington Square Park.
… and Now, here’s the same view today, taken from a Russian Hill rooftop. Its wider perspective shows in the left distance the Bay Bridge’s multi-billion dollar eastern span tower that replaced its predecessor, again because of damage from the 1989 earthquake - the western span suspension bridges however survived relatively unscathed. These neighborhoods are little changed since mostly being rebuilt after the 1906 fire.
Then … “Hey, this is San Francisco - let’s fly over Alcatraz!” The island has been a military prison dating back to 1861 but the infamous Federal Penitentiary that we see here - it opened in 1934 - was operational for only 29 years. Nevertheless, the sight of the dramatic skyline and the sounds of the city must have been cruelly painful for the prisoners to see and hear each day.
… and Now, today the former prison is one of San Francisco’s most popular tourist attractions; 1.4 million visitors are shuttled by ferry each year to and from the island. CitySleuth recommends the audio tour!
Then … We next head over to the far west of town to the Pacific Coast - beneath us is the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center at 42nd Avenue and Clement Street at the former Fort Miley Military Reservation, between Lincoln Park and Point Lobos (map).
… and Now, here’s a recent Google satellite view of the hospital showing significant expansion since then.
The tour ends with the helicopter pilot skimming the surf just off the south end of the Great Highway alongside the San Francisco Zoo (map). In the distance on the left a horizontal green sliver (Golden Gate Park) bisects the Sunset and Richmond districts and Lincoln Park and the Presidio outline the horizon.
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.