Time After Time - Homeless
Then … Herbert is desperate with nowhere to go. He drags his way up one of the city’s steepest streets.
… and Now, we are in Nob Hill looking south down Taylor street from California towards Pine. At far left with a temporary ramp is the Huntington Hotel; it was closed for extensive interior upgrades when CitySleuth took this photo.
Then … Exhausted, he sees a large church across California Street.
… and Now, this is Grace Cathedral on the northwest corner of California and Taylor (map). The sidewalk utility box is now twice as wide as it was then.
Then … A shot looking down from the Huntington Hotel reveals a little more. On the right in front of the cathedral there’s a brick building, Cathedral House, built as the George William Gibbs Memorial Hall in 1911 for the Church Divinity School.
… and Now, that building was demolished in 1993, enabling a grand staircase to the main entrance; the cathedral now stands resplendently unobscured as a result.
Then … Seeking solace he enters, standing reverentially next to a marble baptismal font.
… and Now, CitySleuth’s matching photo includes Beniamino Bufano’s statue of St. Francis on the left.
Then … Perhaps a silent prayer will help ease his plight.
… and Now, the pews have aged well. There are older murals along the walls but those visible here were painted after the movie was filmed.
Then … He gets a gentle reminder that the church is about to close.
… and Now, this fine view towards the apse and the main altar captures just part of the cathedral’s splendour. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a sermon during the consecration of the cathedral in March, 1964 from the pulpit right of center.
Then … With nowhere else to go he spends the night on a bench next to a children’s playground in Huntington Park across Taylor Street from the cathedral. Cathedral House behind him is partially visible across Taylor.
… and Now, the playground has been moved to another part of the park and a parking garage has replaced Cathedral House.
Then … A birds-eye view of the cathedral from a high-rise apartment building on Sacramento Street clearly shows Cathedral House. Across California on the corner of Taylor is the Masonic Auditorium and Memorial Temple.
… and Now, Cathedral House is gone but the Masonic Auditorium is still there; this view also shows the Huntington Hotel across Taylor at far left.
Then … A misty early morning shot from the Huntington Hotel captures the park as Herbert awakens. But note the production goof here: the bench where he slept next to the children’s playground (check it out two Then images above) is missing. The arrow shows where it should have been.
… and Now, because the Huntington Hotel was closed when CitySleuth stopped by he had to resort to a Google satellite image to show us the park today.