Sutter Hotel, San Francisco

[Bruce Day]

Parker historians may recall that Parker west coast sales agent Capt Arthur duBray resided at the Sutter Hotel, Sutter and Geary Streets, San Francisco. But they might not know that Sam Spade, late of Spade & Archer, then of the Samuel Spade Detective Agency after the untimely death of his partner, officed but a few blocks away, and while often at the Hotel Belvedere for dalliances with Mrs Archer, also frequented the late night coffee shop at the Sutter Hotel.

The records of meetings and conversations between the hard boiled detective and the indomitable Captain are missing, but wouldn't it be fun to find them? Sam Spade knew his handguns, and the good Capt his shotguns, and perhaps someday they will be found, perhaps in a black enameled vase.

While on stake out, I took this photo of the old Sutter Hotel, but was unable to record the arrival or departure of duBray or Spade.

[George Lander]

Bruce: Did the Sutter survive the quake or was it built after?

Inquiring Minds Want to Know........George

[Bruce Day]

Built post 1906 earthquake.

[Brian Stucker]

Bruce, That's my old stompin' grounds and I'd like to make a recommendation if you're there. Try Tadich Grill on California St. near Battery. The Fish Stew is killer and the garlic bread is too much. Full of characters and very noisy. Back in the day it was cash only (or a tab) and cigar smoking was permitted...that was then. Still a great experience.

Tony's been there forever, and was able to send a daughter to UC Davis to become a screen writer in the business. Quite an accomplishment for a waiter! All the waiters are men and attend to their charges with the old school touch. Brian

[Bruce Day]

Tadich Grill is one of the great old restaurants. I usually stay at the Marine Memorial Club now that theVisiting Officer's Quarters at the Presidio are closed. Used to go to the old A&F store off Union. I've been all over and to me SF is the most interesting major city.

Thought I'd throw in a little Sam Spade from The Maltese Falcon. So much more interesting than "I found this here old Trojan at a garage sale, how much kin I git fur it?"

[John Davis]

April 28, 1906, The Sportsmen’s Review, a report of the San Francisco earthquake reads in part as follows: “Our well-known contributor, Capt. A. W. DuBray (‘Gaucho’), was a guest at the Palace Hotel, San Francisco, two days previous to the earthquake, but a letter recently received from him indicated his intention of leaving on the following day. His many friends will be glad to learn that he was not in that city at the time of the terrible visitation.”

[Francis Morin]

Another possible fan of the late actor Humphrey DeForest Bogart perhaps? Not too shabby. I have different recollections of SF- didn't qualify for the BOQ at the now closed Presidio- but when we rotated back to the world in the late 1960's- we saw the Flower Power and Hairy Kirishnas (sans John Lennon and Yoko) all over- and we never got to "Hash-Berry" sectors either.

Just saw on the history channel one reason of many for the great devastation from the 1906 quake- No enforced building codes- from about the 1880's boom- then the rupture of the new-fangled gas pipes for the street lamps caused the conflagrations--:duck::duck:

[George Lander]

Francis: When you got to SF & saw all the Flower Children and the Hairy Krishnas and dodged their spit & curses it made you wish that you were back In-Country. "Where Have All The Flowers Gone"? They're Old, Fat or Dead.

Best Regards, George

[Brian Stucker]

A little off subject, but does anyone have old Abercrombie and Fitch pics they could post? Those stores were set up nicely; serious man caves.

[Francis Morin]

One of my buddies caught a Captain's Mast- he gave one of the "Hairy-K's" a Hank Williams Jr. form of 'attitude adjustment'- The Colonel was a good Officer- a Mustang from Korea- so he told my pal that his promotion to E-4 was being 're-evaluated" and then- told him-- "Son, the next time you thump up one of those &^%$#$#@# piss-headed freaks, try hard as ^%$# NOT to have any witnesses"--

Tommy made E-4 three months after I did- we both served in Puerto Rico on a TDY Engr. assignment, instead of a re-rotation back to "Uncle Ho's DisneyWorld"_ We lucked out, some others in our Unit weren't quite so lucky!

[Bruce Day]

I was a nuke bomber pilot and did rotations dropping conventional iron bombs in VN, south and north. I loved SF, people knew what I did and I never had any problems in San Francisco or anywhere else. My big issues were dating girls who were not doing drugs when I was around and staying out of parties where there were open trays of hash or coke. If I saw that I cleared out immediately regardless of my prospects for later and went back to the bar at the Presidio or to the old Italian restaurants in North Beach and up and down the streets in the old 240Z. What a great city.

Francis, the Bogart Maltese Falcon, you need to read the Hammitt novel, much better.

[Francis Morin]

Or play chess with David Niven. Or snag Lauren Bacall--boy could she 'whistle" a tune while old Howard Hoagland Carmichael was on the Steinway-- those were the days-- Bogart was- in a word- "Bogie" never has been another actor even close to him, IMO!!

And a footnote for my "Gent'man friend from NC--sure wish I could attend the Southern this year- maybe next. Do you ever get "Nawth" and attend the DamnYankee shoots in Michigan's UP or the Puglisi fest in MN??

Also, and I'll keep it short here. My feelings about the SF "hippies" of the '60's pale in comparison to the religious zealots who disrupted the funeral and Honor Guard for a young L/Cpl. (only the USMC has that enlisted rank) from MD-and our Courts ruled in their favor. To disrupt a grieving family under the aegis of the First Amendment- is akin to urinating on the headstone of any Veteran at Arlington, or defecating on Our Flag-an INFAMITA !!

[Bruce Day]

One of our members, who is a long time officer in the L C Smith Collector's Association, has Bogart's L C Smith, which has a cigarette burn on the stock where he put the cigarette down and left it burning.

We had a PGCA regional meeting in York, Nebraska some years back and those there got to see and pass around the Bogart gun.