Clarence suspects that Sam Blotz and his crony Red Moran are responsible for the fire. He also remembers that he had overheard Blotz ask the operator to connect him to someone in City Hall. He lobbies the City’s Chief Of Police to allow Polly at the local telephone switchboard to report the address if that number is called again. The Chief (played in a cameo by the real San Francisco Chief Dan O’Brien) agrees to help.
Chief O’Brien served as the city’s Chief from 1920 - 1928. Because it was so uncharacteristic for him, the press at the time reported on his movie role.
Sure enough Blotz (top left) calls his crony, Assistant D.A. Gerald Fuller, at City Hall (top right) - he who had falsely accused Tom’s son - to crow about the Chronicle’s plight. But not before Polly at the switchboard (bottom left) had delayed connecting them while she looks up the originating caller’s address. She quickly notifies the Sergeant (bottom right) at the local police station.
The movie presentation alternates between shots of the car and the responding fire engines - as with the fire engine scenes posted earlier, Citysleuth has separated out the car scenes to present them sequentially...
Then … Clarence again hangs onto a car, this time with a police motorcycle escort, dashing across town to get Sam Blotz. Here we see them turning from Grove Street into Larkin Street.
… and Now, the background both Then and Now showcases San Francisco’s grand City Hall.
Then … Next they make a turn where behind them a store sign advertising E. J. Margett’s wholesale and retail rug store heralds this location.
… and Now, per the city street directory, Margett’s was at 989 Market in the corner building at 6th Street so this was filmed as they turned from Market into Golden Gate Avenue. Note the small retail building to the left that a century later is still there, still sandwiched between two larger buildings - Oxford Street menswear is its current tenant.
Then … And here they pass a cable car at the turntable at the south end of Powell Street at Market. Clinton’s Cafeteria is on the right at 18 Powell in the Flood Building.
… and Now, today’s Powell-Mason line terminates at the same spot alongside the Flood Building where the cable cars still depend on manpower to rotate them on the turntable. This block is now a car-free precinct, unusually free of tourists when CitySleuth stopped by on a beautiful winter’s day.
For the nostalgists out there, check out this photo taken in 1945 at the same spot; it was 20 years after The Last Edition was filmed but Clinton’s Cafeteria was still there.
Then … This next corner was seen in an earlier dash across town - the view looks west along Market Street as they turn into Golden Gate Avenue (it’s a reverse look at the same turn in the 2nd Then image in this post).
and Now, Twin Peaks in the distance is clearly visible below but hard to see in the poorer quality Then image above. The most recognizable extant building is 1020 Market at far right on the corner of Golden Gate Avenue.
Then … this is a continuation of the above Then clip as they enter Golden Gate Avenue. On the right is the Golden Gate Theatre; it had opened four years earlier in 1921.
and Now, the theatre continues to be an active performance space to this day. Note the traffic flow - it was two-way a century ago but now it’s one-way.
This 1930 photo shows the junction as it was when the above clip was filmed. That’s Market Street across the bottom with Golden Gate Avenue on the left and Taylor Street on the right. One of the city’s many Owl Drug stores is on the corner at far right.
Polly continues to cut off Blotz’s connection, apologizing profusely each time, holding him there as long as possible.
From a location point of view this post could have been titled ‘A Tale Of Two Cities’…
Then … Clarence gets word that Sam Blotz is at San Francisco’s City Hall; he parks outside, intent on following him.
… and Now, the imposing Beaux-Arts structure was built as a replacement for its predecessor that was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake; more than a century later it hasn’t changed at all, viewed both Then and Now from Larkin Street. (The three tall cylinders in the foreground in this recent view are ventilation units for Brooks Hall, an underground exhibition space built in the the late 1950s but unused since 1993). At far left beyond City Hall is a glimpse of the War Memorial Opera House on Van Ness Avenue, not yet built in the Then image above.
On a historical note, here’s the older City Hall after the dust settled and the fire burned out. Located across the Civic Center Plaza where the main library and U.N. Plaza are today, it was destroyed a mere nine years after it was completed.
Then … Clarence, parked in front of classically styled columns, spots Blotz …
A 1922 vintage photo reveals where this was filmed. But this isn’t San Francisco, it’s the Masonic Temple at 6840 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles (map).
… and Now, The Greek Revival building with Ionic columns is still there today, the home of the Jimmy Kimmel late night television show. Clarence’s car in the Then image above was parked exactly where the black sedan is, below. This block is part of Hollywood’s Walk Of Fame - note the embedded stars arrayed along the sidewalk - at this address they honor artists as diverse as Jimmy Kimmel, Rod Serling, Little Richard and Donald Duck.
Then … Clarence sees Blotz exit the building and climb into a swanky Pierce/Arrow town car. The number above the doorway that looks like it was written by a 2nd-grader reveals where this shot was filmed - still in Los Angeles, this was the Hotel Regent at 6162 Hollywood Boulevard (incidentally, for the picky amongst us, this is several blocks from where Clarence was parked).
… and Now, over the decades this block has changed drastically - right here is where the hotel used to be.
... a late 1920s photo captured it back in its heyday, between N. El Centro and Argyll Avenues.
… from this newspaper ad it’s clear that the hotel had newly opened when the scene was filmed there (The Last Edition was released in November 1925 ). Note the proud boast … “A Radio In Every Room”! (TV was not yet invented).
Then … But as Blotz’s car takes off we are transported back to City Hall in San Francisco. Note the continuity goof; Blotz is sitting behind the driver but in the Then image above he’s behind the front passenger seat. Note too the car is right hand drive which means it was a 1920 or earlier Pierce/Arrow model.
… and Now, This is the Grove Street side of City Hall, the same one seen in the first photo in this post. The long balcony in the center is shared by the Mayor’s office and that of the adjoining office staff.
Then … For this next shot as Clarence follows Blotz we jump back to Los Angeles to the southwest part of Downtown. The camera looks east along 12th Street with Trenton Street crossing just ahead.
… and Now, in the late 1960s this block and several others aound it were demolished to create a site for the Los Angeles Convention Center which opened in 1971. The Staples Center indoor arena was built there in the late 1990s - this recent photo of the south edge of the arena shows where the two blocks of 12th Street, above, used to be.
CitySleuth thanks reader Notcom for tracking down the 12th Street location and unearthing this 1917 newspaper photo of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company building at 1265 Figeroa, the large building at the end of the block in the movie’s Then image above. Compare the building’s left side, on 12th Street, with that image - they match.
Angelenos have at least one thing in common with San Franciscans: a nostalgic preference for beloved stadium names. Staples Center was renamed Crypto.com Arena in December 2021 but continues to be referred to by most as Staples Center, aka ‘The House That Kobe Built’. In much the same way, San Franciscans still fondly remember Giants ballpark Candlestick Park, eschewing subsequent renames 3Com Park and later, Monster Park.
Then and Now aerial view … Click or tap the 1928 image below to see the dramatic urban transformation of the blocks containing 12th and Trenton Streets. ‘X’ marks the spot where the camera was set up to film the 12th Street shot.
Then … Once again Callahan has been summoned to the mayor’s office; Scorpio has sent another ransom note. The camera, filming from the Civic Center Plaza, slowly pans across the east side of City Hall (map). The impressive Beaux Arts building was completed in 1915 after its predecessor, a block away on Larkin Street and McAllister, was destroyed by the 1906 earthquake.
… and Now, City Hall anchors the Civic Center surrounded today by the not-quite-identical-twin Opera House/Veteran’s Buildings, Symphony Hall, Art Museum, Main Library, Civic Auditorium and other city and state government buildings.
On a history note, the north-facing image below left shows the original City Hall in 1900 three years after it was built (that’s Larkin Street at far left)). Just 6 years later it was reduced to ruins, below right. 27 years of planning and construction, 9 years of use. Such are the vicissitudes of life. Read more about it here in a FoundSF article with interesting archival photos and videos.
Then … When Callahan arrives he looks up to see Lt. Bressler, his boss, waiting for him on a 2nd floor balcony spanning the Polk Street entrance.
… and Now, this is the gilded balcony outside the mayor’s office.
Then … On the balcony Bressler enjoys a panoramic view across the plaza; at that time in 1971 it was bisected by a long reflecting pool.
… and Now, CitySleuth received permission to visit the Mayor’s office to take matching ‘Now’ photographs for his blog. Here he is enjoying the same view, wondering why the pool was taken out.
Then … Callahan enters City Hall; in following him to the office we are taken on a mini tour through the building. Here, he’s just inside the Polk Street entrance, approaching the entrance to the rotunda.
… and Now, these days, daytime visitors to the rotunda will often find themselves surrounded by newlyweds and their photographers.
Then … He effortlessly bounds up the Grand Staircase (no easy task), the centerpiece of the majestic rotunda. In addition to official business the rotunda is used year round for many community events including galas, weddings, dinners and celebrations. For a full pictorial tour that captures the grandeur of this magnificent building go here, lean back and wait a couple of seconds for the photos to begin scrolling by.
… and Now, this bride and groom are probably unaware they shared this spot with Clint Eastwood.
Then … He enters the mayor’s office suite, Room 200 on the second level.
… and Now, the U.S. and California State flags flank the doorway. When people leave the office they have a view down to the Grand Staircase on the lower level of the rotunda.
Then … The entrance door opens to an anteroom; Bressler greets Callahan there and leads him to the mayor’s office.
… and Now, same door, different desk. The portraits (former mayors Ed Lee on the left , George Moscone on the right) are by artist Elaine Badgeley Arnoux.
Then … They pass along a dimly-lit corridor.
… and Now, brighter now, the corridor links a number of small offices and, then as now, it’s lined with portraits of every mayor of the city …
… beginning in 1834 with the alcaldes under Mexican rule, a nod to the city’s Spanish heritage. Several of the most recent portraits were also done by Elaine Badgely Arnoux.
Then … In the mayor’s office they hear details of Scorpio’s ransom note. He wants $200,000 dollars and a jet aircraft to be ready and waiting for him at Santa Rosa Airport.
… and Now, incumbent Mayor London Breed has brightened the office with color and moved her desk across the room to the opposite wall ...
They receive a call from Scorpio and hear that he has kidnapped a school bus and the children will start dying if his demands are not met. He tells them the route they’ll be taking on the way to the airport, cautioning … “I don’t want to see any police cars, helicopters, whatever”.
Then … The mayor confirms the money and the jet will be ready at the airport, guaranteeing there will be no interference … “I give you my word of honor on it”.
… and Now, the wall-mounted flag trifecta behind the desk, above, has been replaced by a mirror and the formality of the space has been further mitigated by the addition of comfortable furniture. This photo was taken from behind the desk.
Callahan is disgusted. “When are you people gonna stop messing around with this guy? He’s gotta be stopped now!” When the police chief asks if he’ll take the money to Scorpio, he’s had enough: “You can just get yourself another delivery boy”. He turns and walks out.
(An earlier scene was also filmed in this office. Click here for that post).
Then … The Ferry Building is in the distance as the chase continues down Market Street. The cops are right behind Mason’s stylish convertible coupe as he makes a right into Fremont Street.
… and Now, the same junction today (map).
… in 1948 … thirteen years after the movie’s release San Francisco rolled out a new fleet of buses with a parade down Market Street seen here in this photo taken from the same block - Fremont Street is at far right.
Then … Another random jump across town sees them driving west along Washington Street between Gough and Octavia at a time when it was served by a cable car line (map). Lafayette Park is on the right.
… and Now, here’s that same block today. At far left at 2080 Washington is the old Spreckels mansion, now hiding behind an enormous privacy hedge. The cable car line was discontinued in September 1956.
Then … They turn right from Washington down Octavia probably oblivious of the unobstructed view across the north bay to Alcatraz and Angel Island.
… and Now, the matching view is a good example of many of San Francisco’s great views that are now obscured by trees grown wild. The Spreckels mansion, on the right, would be prominently seen fifteen years later in the 1950 movie The Man Who Cheated Himself.
Then … Next they are in the Civic Center passing the city’s main library on Larkin Street…
… and Now, which today houses the Asian Art Museum (map).
Then … Now they are traversing the streetcar turnaround area in front of the Ferry Building (map). Note the pedestrian overpass crossing over to the Ferry Building, more clearly seen behind the opening credits of the movie.
… and Now, this is taken from close to the same spot, reflecting the extensive changes seen in this space but sparing us the ugly Embarcadero Freeway whose brief tenure existed during the decades between the Now and Then images above.
… in 1954 … here’s a later look at the turnaround that, in addition to later-generation streetcars and autos, shows the same buildings and billboards seen in the Then image above. The large billboard has moved from the rooftop to the side of its building but continues pushing alcohol, moving on from gin (Gilmore) to beer (Burgermeister). By then the pedestrian overpass had been sacrificed, becoming much-needed scrap iron for the war effort in the 1940s.
Then … Back to the Main Library on Larkin, this time turning west into Mcallister.
… and Now, as mentioned earlier, the Asian Art Museum is now in the Library building. Two blocks down McAllister is the stately 1920s 100 McAllister high-rise that was used earlier in the movie for a panoramic city view.
Then … Next, a step back down Larkin Street, Mason’s car again approaching the Main Library. There’s a clear view across the unbuilt block to, on the far (eastern) side of Market Street, the Hotel Whitcomb which is still there today.
… and Now, but trees and newer buildings hide the hotel from here. One of them, on the right, is the city’s current main library.
Mason urges Spudsy on; it’s imperative they get to the airport in time… “If she gets off on a plane it means she’s running away. And that’ll hang her!”
