Tribute - John Gorman's vintage San Francisco

[Nancy123]

It's always interesting to see what the passage of time can do. This block looked so much nicer 80 years ago, 1562 California Street, San Francisco, taken in 1945. Golden Gate Undertakers is now Nob Hill Mall. Betty's Cafe is now Cordon Bleu, a Vietnamese restaurant (!) And back then, there was no graffiti. (Color photo is a screenshot from Google Earth.)

 

[koraks]

I love these "then and now" comparisons; thanks for tracking that one down @Nancy123!

 

[Ben 4]

It's always interesting to see what the passage of time can do. This block looked so much nicer 80 years ago, 1562 California Street, San Francisco, taken in 1945. Golden Gate Undertakers is now Nob Hill Mall. Betty's Cafe is now Cordon Bleu, a Vietnamese restaurant (!) And back then, there was no graffiti. (Color photo is a screenshot from Google Earth.)

Nice contrast. Some interesting details: the two 1930s cars in front have what appear to be fabric-covered roof sections—like early sunroofs! I never knew that. And I like the small art deco canopy suspended over the door between the California Bargain Spot and the California Music House (coming soon!).

 

[Nancy123]

I love these "then and now" comparisons; thanks for tracking that one down @Nancy123!

I love them, too. Google Earth and Google Search come in handy for this.

 

[Nancy123]

It's always interesting to see what the passage of time can do. This block looked so much nicer 80 years ago, 1562 California Street, San Francisco, taken in 1945. Golden Gate Undertakers is now Nob Hill Mall. Betty's Cafe is now Cordon Bleu, a Vietnamese restaurant (!) And back then, there was no graffiti. (Color photo is a screenshot from Google Earth.)

For the car people, from my car friend: "The black car is a 1935 Ford, the next car is probably a '36 Chrysler, the next car a '41 Buick and the last car is a '31Pontiac."

 

[AnselMortensen]

This is a great thread.
Thank you for posting these great photos!

 

[MattKing]

Betty's Cafe is now Cordon Bleu, a Vietnamese restaurant (!)

Might be a reflection of the ~100 years of colonial rule that the French imposed on Vietnam.

 

[Nancy123]

This is a great thread.
Thank you for posting these great photos!

It's great fun for me with an appreciative audience like this

 

[Mick Fagan]

All four of those parked cars, have their steering wheels facing the kerb. Signs of the handbrake of yesterday and the handbrake of today. My grandfather in the early 1950's would turn the wheels in, put it in reverse and finally pull the handbrake on. Run away cars was a real thing on steep hills.

 

[Don_ih]

My grandfather in the early 1950's would turn the wheels in, put it in reverse and finally pull the handbrake on.

That's how I was taught to park. I haven't used the handbrake since then, though. But if I lived in a city of hills like San Francisco, I probably would.

I like looking at the architectural changes across those time periods. There's not much significant change between these two photos, actually - it would take minimal effort to make the facade look original.

If you go to Google Street View, you can click through almost 20 years of captures of this little stretch of road. It's almost like watching something decay.

 

[Nancy123]

If you go to Google Street View, you can click through almost 20 years of captures of this little stretch of road. It's almost like watching something decay.

Don, that's fantastic. I didn't realize Street View was so much better than G. Earth for this. It's way better and will be lots of fun. Thanks for the tip!

 

[Nancy123]

Might be a reflection of the ~100 years of colonial rule that the French imposed on Vietnam.

Makes perfect sense!

 

[Nancy123]

I didn't know what that Lumiere theater was all about but I found this on cinematreasures.org:

Another of San Francisco’s select art-house cinemas, built in 1974 by Mel Novikoff of Castro Theatre and Surf Theatre fame. It opened January 24, 1975 with “Lenny Bruce Performance Film” & Kenneth Anger’s “Scorpio Rising” & Jack Kerouac’s “Pull My Daisy”. It was taken over by Landmark Theatres in 1991. Seating was provided in the two screens for 100 & 250. It underwent extensive renovations and reopened as a triple screen theatre on December 16, 1983. It was renovated in 2003. The Lumiere Theatre was closed on September 23, 2012 with Francois Cluzet in “The Intouchables”. By 2022 it was in retail use as a clothing store.

 

[Nancy123]

Found this in the archives, want to give this hero some recognition today.
On the 4x5 negative sleeve: "Lt. Col. James P.S. Devereux at Oakland (Calif.) airport; was Wake Island commander when war broke out; captured by Japs when the island fell and remained prisoner of Japs until end of war. Pic taken when he first returned to U.S. Sept. 21, 1945."
He's also on Wikipedia.

 

[Nancy123]

National Shirt Shops Coast to Coast, San Francisco, in the 1940s.
Anyone know where this was located? I don't have the street names available. I'd like to see what's there now on Google Streets.

 

[Kino]

Possibly?

Delger Building on facade of lower right in photo...

National Register #86000729: Market Street Theatre and Loft District in San Francisco, California

The Market Street Theatre and Loft District is comprised of 131 acres containing twenty contributing buildings and ten intrusions.

noehill.com

 

[MattKing]

It may be the same as this building:

 

[Nancy123]

Possibly?

Delger Building on facade of lower right in photo...

That would be it! Thank you!

 

[Nancy123]

It may be the same as this building:

It is definitely the same. Thank you!

 

[Nancy123]

One of my favorites showing how shooting fashion can be fun and interesting.
Taken in the 1960s at the Conservatory of Flowers, San Francisco; the low-res version is all I have on hand at the moment.

 

[grahamp]

Interesting contrast with the 1940's work. The older stuff needed to get a lot in a small space (wartime/post-war materials) and document things/events, while the 1960's had far more space to use for illustration.

 

[Nancy123]

Interesting contrast with the 1940's work. The older stuff needed to get a lot in a small space (wartime/post-war materials) and document things/events, while the 1960's had far more space to use for illustration.

So true. And for newspaper work, no doubt the photographers were happy when 35mm cameras came along!

 

[Nancy123]

Unhappy immigrant baby, I'm assuming. Only a low-res version for now. No details at the moment, such as the date but it looks to be from the 1940s.

 

[Kino]

Believe it or not, you used to be able to send Children via the US Mail.

A Brief History of Children Sent Through the Mail

In the early days of the parcel post, some parents took advantage of the mail in unexpected ways

www.smithsonianmag.com

 

[AnselMortensen]

National Shirt Shops Coast to Coast, San Francisco, in the 1940s.
Anyone know where this was located? I don't have the street names available. I'd like to see what's there now on Google Streets.

1001-1008 Market St.