Originally Posted By Schmitty Good Vibes The real title I wanted to give this topic was too long, but do you remember The Summer of Love? I’ve met quite a few LP’ers and corresponded with many more who were fortunate enough to have lived in or nearby San Francisco during one of the most fantastic times in American history. You had to be there to fully understand what I’m talking about, and, if you have really done your homework, you’ll know that the whole thing really started off in Berkeley across the Bay, before the whole thing came to San Francisco and Haight-Ashbury where it quickly self imploded because of drugs and other self indulgences. What am I talking about when I refer to the “whole thing� It’s hard to describe, but one way to see it was as a social movement – virtually a revolution – where the generation now called the ‘baby boomers’ rebelled against ‘the establishment’, that is, we were sick and tired of the people leading us to war after war. There had to be another answer. Women had been denied to many basic rights for too many hundred of years, in fact, always. This generation insisted that race was only skin deep – actually it was issues regarding race that kicked the ‘whole thing’ off in Berkeley. Things changed. Not nearly as much as we wanted, but things changed. So, I want to hear from you who were also there, not just in the 60’s but also in the 50’s and 70’s and 80’s and 90’s. And what I want to hear about is the stuff that will bring back memories. I don’t want to hear about your protest marches. I remember many of them. What I want to hear about is the little stuff that will bring back the era. The times you spent running up the two-story ‘down’ escalator at the Cannery, and the incredible delicatessen that was there at the bottom. Can you remember that? What else does that make you remember? Did you ever eat at El Sombrero on Geary Blvd. and 21st? Or Schroeder’s , the best German food in the City? Did you shop at Tower Records at Columbus and Hyde? Do you remember being there when the White Album came out? Tell me about your Cable Car adventures, or the Tea Garden, or Playland by the Beach. Can you remember Frontier Town there? Give me all your best memories of being in and around San Francisco in the last half century. Your memories will fuel others. I’m betting that there will be more than a few LP’ers who can contribute to this. O.K. I’ve really stuck my neck out there, and it’s too close to Thanksgiving to do that sort of thing, but if you have anything to share, go to it!
Originally Posted By Lisann22 I shall be back tomorrow night... Too much cooking to tend to tonight. ;>
Originally Posted By jonvn I was born and raised in the LA area, in the San Fernando Valley. Back then it was fairly rural, still, and we'd go to the dairy farms and feed them hay and roll down the manure hills. But my sister, who is much older than me, moved out when I was very young and moved to the Bay Area. So we would be up here all the time, too. One fond memory I have back in the 70s was going to Marine World in Redwood City. It was located where Oracle is now. In fact, the fountain in front of the Oracle buildings is the same one that was put in for Marine World. It's fun, now because when we take her here, she can't really remember much. We drove through the Haight, past the park there, and she said, "Hey, that's where we used to go and smoke dope." She's a health care professional now. I also remember Playland, and that stinking laughing sal. I hated HATED that thing. Now I take my son to Musee Mechanique, put in a couple of quarters, and he isn't the least bit frightened of it. I think though that before the Haight, the alternative lifestyle thing really started out in North Beach, with the beatnik crowd. IT got very touristy there. They moved to the haight. It fell apart almost instantly. Only in the last few years has it started to get a bit better there, although it is still a bit seedy looking. I think they like it like that. But it's changed a lot. Last time I was in the area there, I bought girl scout cookies. That's about as wild as I'm interested in getting. By Frontier Town, do you mean Frontier Village? Sad that it closed. I think there are condos there now. Oh, and you should see how they've wrecked the cliff house. It's totally sterile now.
Originally Posted By iamsally ^^Hate the Cliff House nowP But love to eat at Louie's just down the street. I always thought the Summer of Love ended because winter came and it is COLD in San Francisco in the winter!!! Loved Laughing Sal and have a picture of my granddaughter climbing up my arm to get away from her at the museum. Haven't been to it since they had to move it. And oh, that fun house!!!!! The waxed wooden slides, spinning wheel thingy that you slipped off of as it went faster, the compressed air holes that blew my mom's skirt over her head when she was carrying me. I went by the Playland memorial a few months back. Took a bunch of pictures as it is being allowed to deteriorate. DH and I lived in North Beach in '71. Sold Berkley Barbs on the Wharf. (You could make an easy $10 by sleeping on Alliotos corner to save it for a vendor.) A Black guy taught me how to throw a Frisbee at Aquatic Park in the 60's. On O'Ferrel St. there was an adult movie house that had a real nickoledeon at midnight on Tues + Thurs. We saw Yellow Submarine, Creature From the Black Lagoon, Reefer Madness and many of the old serials. And the Fillmore and Winterland. I may add more later. Got to go but San Francisco holds some of the best memories of my life. Excuse the spelling bloopers. I am usually really picky about that but too tired to proof read.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss I was born in '61, so I'm a bit too young to have understood anything about the Summer of Love. My parents were the (Chinese) establishment... hippies and the like were no good. We went to Frontier Village quite a bit, but don't have many photos of the place. I probably enjoyed it just as much as DL. We went to Marine World a number of times too; it was virtually within sight of our house in Foster City. Other stuff no longer around that I miss (even though I haven't lived in the Bay Area since the early 70's): Tarins Nothing But Trains, a hobby shop in downtown San Mateo, San Remo Pizza in the Hillsdale shopping center, and the outdoor set up of the same shopping center; it was converted long ago to an indoor mall.
Originally Posted By DlandJB Visited San Francisco the summer of 1968. I was 7. My three sisters and I were traditionally dressed alike (although not the same color clothes, but same style) and we were with our parents walking somewhere when some "hippies" walked over to them (mom in her dress and likely gloves) and they told my parents they thought we were adorable kids and gave us each flowers. Never forgot that. Other than that, I have a sketch done by an artist from Fisherman's Wharf and the memories of going through the "Chamber of Horrors" in the Wax Museum holding tight to my dad's hand and squeezing my eyes shut as tight as I could. Didn't get back there until 2005. I was surprised by the things I remembered. The Wax Museum is actually in a slightly different place now and you don't have to go through the chamber of horrors now (of course now I could!). I have a godfather in San Francisco who is going to be 73 this year and has lived there most of his life, so got to spend time with him and that was wonderful too. Have been back twice since then - including once with the kids and Doug. Now it is easier to get to and it is a city I still love very much.
Originally Posted By Schmitty Good Vibes Frontier Town was a very small amusement park (about a square block) behind Playland at the Beach. I spent a lot of time at the Fun House. Frontier Village was in San Jose, and I believe there is a tribute site to it on the web. I remember Marine World at Redwood City very well. I spent so much of my free time at Trains Nothing But Trains!
Originally Posted By ReadingMom >>Oh, speaking of the wharf, A. Sabella went out of business last month...<< I can't believe that they are closed. We were just at the wharf for dinner two weeks ago and I never noticed they were gone. The food was incredible.
Originally Posted By jonvn I am drawing a complete blank on Frontier Town. A. Sabella closed because there was no one in the family who wanted to run it anymore. There are other choices in SF anyway. There are about 4500 restaurants in a city of 47 square miles. Scoma's is considered one of the better places to go to on the pier, but there are so many other places to eat in SF. My in-laws like to come up from LA, and they ALWAYS go to Scoma's. With all the variety available, it's a bit annoying, but that is their tradition.
Originally Posted By Schmitty Good Vibes It's been so long since I ate at Fisherman's Warf that I think I confused A. Sabella's with Alioto's. I hate to dis the wrong place, but I believe it was at Alioto's I had one of the worst meals ever. It completely turned me off to eating at the Warf, since there are so many other places that don't aim at the unsuspecting tourist. So, sadly, I don't think I ever visited A. Sabella's as an adult (as a kid, my folks took us everywhere!). Anyone remember El Sombrero at 21st and Geary? It's been gone for a decade or more, but it was fantastic! My first meal there was when I was in the womb, and I continued to eat there well into my thirties. On the top floor of the Cannery was a place called the Hungy Tiger, run by a group from the Flying Tigers. It was one of my favorite places to take a date.
Originally Posted By jonvn Hungry Tiger? That must have been a long long time ago. I haven't heard that name in ages. It morphed into a Charley Brown's, and is now office space. The Charley Brown's sign is still up there.
Originally Posted By iamsally Currently we like Tommy's Joint for buffalo stew. And I think it's Wooey Gooey Loui's (spelling is sure to be off on that) for food in Chinatown. Or just some chowder in a bread bown from a vendor on the Wharf. Our tradition, dating back to traveling with five children on a limited budget, is to get some FRESH sourdough and some salami and a good cheese, add some Ranch dip, chocolate milk and old fashioned donuts; must be eaten on the beach. My kids still insist on this when we go to the beach. Oh, the memories of youth.
