Impact - Desperately Seeking Su Lin - 1
Looking for ways to bolster Walter's defense, Marsha suggests that Irene's maid Su Lin, who has gone missing, might be able to shed more light on Irene and Torrence's relationship. She persuades Lt. Quincy to help find her.
Then ... They go to the immigration office to check the record of Su Lin's entry into the country. San Francisco's immigrants were processed on Angel Island from 1910 until a fire closed down the Station in 1940. In 1944 the immigration administration moved to the 9th floor of the newly built Appraisers Building at 630 Sansome Street, represented in the scene below.
... in 1964 ... but the scene above was filmed in a studio using a photograph for the window view. In the vintage photo below we see the real view from 630 Sansome, looking west towards Nob Hill. The Mark Hopkins Hotel is at far left on the horizon; the high-rise next to it is the Fairmont Hotel Tower, not yet built when the movie was filmed.
... in 1944 ... viewed from the opposite direction, here is the Appraisers Building at 630 Sansome (map), photographed from the Mark Hopkins Hotel on Nob Hill in the year it opened. California Street is at far right.
and Now ... the Appraisers Building, seen from the Sansome/Jackson Street junction, still houses some of today's expanded immigration functions.
Then ... The records show that Su Lin resided at her uncle's address in Chinatown. As they head there the camera vertically scans a building; Quincy can be seen at the bottom of the resulting panorama.
and Now ... this is 838 Washington Street (map), one of the many buildings in Chinatown featuring a pagoda-style roof that replaced the devastation of the 1906 earthquake and fire.
But their search founders when her uncle, with Su Lin (Anna May Wong) hanging back inside and out of sight, denies any knowledge of her whereabouts.