The Lady From Shanghai - Walhalla Bar
On the boardwalk at Whaler's Cove in Sausalito , O'Hara again tries to persuade her to run away with him, telling her he can get his hands on $5000, but she continues to resist.
Then ... The turretted house along the boardwalk behind Elsa used to be a beer garden and rooming house where Jack London is said to have written his novel 'Sea Wolf' while staying there. Up the sloping walkway at left is the Walhalla, a bar and restaurant at 201 Bridgeway (map) with a long and checkered history (click the image to enlarge).
... and Now, In this recent (2011) photo (we see that the turreted house is still there as is the Walhalla building, most recently the Gaylord India restaurant but currently vacant.
Below is another recent view of the Walhalla building. Compared to the 'Then' movie view above, the original building has been expanded out towards the water and has a gabled section added to the right side.
Then ... Later in the movie the Walhalla is seen from a different perspective. Incidentally, the bar’s name was spelled the German way with a 'W'. In German the ‘W’ is pronounced as a ‘V’.
... and Now, the same view today.
The Walhalla received Marin County's first liquor license in 1870 when Sausalito (Spanish for 'Little Willow', named after a row of willow trees along the shore) was known as 'Dirty Ol' Sausalito'. In 1946 Sally Stanford, who in her storied past had run a high-class San Francisco bordello, became Walhalla's owner, expanding it into a restaurant in 1950 (pictured below in the Valhalla). She became Mayor of Sausalito in 1976 at the age of 72. (Read about her colorful life here).
Here’s a photo of the rear and entrance of the restaurant viewed from 2nd Street in 1982.
Update … The remodeled, mostly renovated historic building was listed in 2020 as a private residence at $11.8 million. By 2027 after substantially more renovation (below), it has been relisted for $28 million. Sally would be impressed.
Inside the Walhalla George Grigsby reminds O'Hara that there's $5000 in it for him if he goes along with his scheme. He wants to feign a murder, Grigsby's murder no less, and have O'Hara sign a confession. Then Grigsby will disappear to a new life, away from the threat of nuclear warfare, in a safe distant place. He tells O'Hara he won't be at risk because ... "There's no such thing as homicide unless they find a corpse - according to the law I'm dead if you say you murdered me but you're not a murderer unless I'm dead".