The Penalty - Murder At The Hippodrome
Then ... The Barbary Coast is not a place for the faint of heart, nor the overly inebriated, as this unfortunate imbiber is about to find out. He makes the mistake of accepting an offer from a shady lady, Barbary Nell, to join her for a drink. He's so out of it that she practically has to carry him into the bar.
Lon Chaney and director Wallace Worsley returned to the same location in 1922 to film Voices Of Spring. Here they are on the sidewalk next to the same sign seen above.
... a vintage photo ... This 1920s photo reveals where this was filmed - at the entrance vestibule of the Hippodrome dance hall at 560 Pacific Avenue (map).
... and Now, the building, constructed in 1910, has since been modernized and rebuilt into offices. But note the narrow building on the right - it still retains its original exterior. This mix of cheek by jowl old and new typifies today's Jackson Square neighborhood.
When the drunk passes out she helps herself to the contents of his wallet and stuffs it into her stocking...
... but as she sneaks out an unsavory addict known as Frisco Pete (perennial villain James Mason - the other one) demands the spoils. She resists, a fatal mistake ... he callously thrusts a knife into her.
Then ... The crowd on the dance floor, alerted by Nell's screams, pursue the fleeing killer.
... and Now, Were these interior scenes filmed inside the Hippodrome? In hopes of finding the answer CitySleuth is searching for but has yet to find a contemporaneous photograph that may show that stage as confirmation. But, just in case, here's the hip interior of 560 Pacific Avenue now.
Then ... The pursuers rush out into the street between the twin columns that flanked the Hippodrome's entrance.
... and Now, in the same view today the yellow-capped parking meter stands where the columned entrance used to be. During the Barbary Coast era the older building on the left at 574 Pacific - with an exterior retaining its original character - was Spider Kelly's Bar Room.