Theatre St. Francis

333 Geary St. | map |

Opened: October 2, 1916. The opening attraction was Pauline Frederick in "Ashes of Embers," a September release. The building is on the south side of the street between Powell and Mason. The screen was on the street end of the building. Patterns or pictures appropriate for a given film such as fall colors, storm clouds, etc. could be projected on the glass panels above the entrance. 

 

Seating: 1,100. Reports at the time mention both a balcony and a gallery, accessed by "easy inclines." 

 

Architect: Matthew O'Brien. The Pacific Coast Architecture Database has a page on him. With his partner Carl Werner they did a number of theatre projects and other buildings as O'Brien and Werner. N.L. Josey, the owner, liked to take credit for the interesting aspects of the design. The theatre's lot had been vacant since 1906.

 

Prior to information emerging about Mr. O'Brien as the architect, Joe Vogel had suggested it might have been Alfred Henry Jacobs. It's unknown why the theatre took so long to complete. Perhaps O'Brien and the owner had a falling out and Jacobs did later work on the project. Joe reports: 

 

"The October, 1916 issue of The Architect and Engineer of California has an item concerning what must be the Theatre St. Francis, although it calls it the St. Francis Theater... Here is the relevant part of the item: 

 

'It is announced that plans for the big moving picture theater at Fourth and Market Streets, San Francisco, are being made by Alfred Henry Jacobs, architect of the recently completed St. Francis Theater on Geary Street. The latter theater has occasioned some favorable comment on account of certain unique features, one of which is the placing of the picture screen at the entrance end of the theater, instead of forward. The seats all face the rear, the idea being to avoid the glare of the pictures when entering the theater.'"

 

Jacobs also designed the the Avalon Ballroom (1911, later the Regency II), the California/State Theatre on Market St. (1918), the Granada/Paramount (1922) and the Curran Theatre (1922). 

 

 

A rendering appearing in the January 1, 1916 San Francisco Call & Post. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating it via the California Digital Newspaper Collection website. The article appearing with the illustration:

 

"Latest Indication of Realty Activity Shown by Handsome Playhouse - There is much activity in the realty world. This is evidenced by the many structures now in the course of construction. Among them is the erection of a handsome motion picture theater in Geary street. Located on the southerly side of Geary street, about ninety feet west of Powell street, one of the most up-to-date 'movie' houses in the West is being built. The structure is of reinforced concrete and will be fireproof. It will represent an investment of approximately $300,000. 

 

"Two important features are the lighting arrangements and the installation of a pipe organ costing $25,000. The lighting effect will be in changing pastel shades through the front art glass decorations. This is unique in theatrical lighting and should make quite a hit with patrons. Edward B. Baron, manager of the new theater, states that only the highest class photoplays will be produced. The owner is N.L. Josey. The building is being erected by C.L. Wold & Co. from plans drawn by Architect Matthew O'Brien." 

An item appearing in the February 5, 1916 Organized Labor. Thanks to Art for locating this in a Building Contracts column of the paper via the CNDC:

 

"S Geary, 92-6 W Powell, W 45xS 137-6. Structural steel, two fire escape stairs for one-story reinforced concrete theater building. Owner. N. L. Josey; contractor. Ralston Iron Works. Twentieth and Indiana. Cost, $25,000."

An illustration that appeared in the September 28, 1916 San Francisco Call. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating it via the California Digital Newspaper Collection website. Call's discussion about the new building:

Comfort and Convenience of Its Patrons Is a Paramount Feature - A big idea impelled by a big ideal has taken concrete form in the Theater St. Francis, the new moving picture house on Geary street at Powell, which will open its doors to the public on October 2. N. L. Josey, who created and carried to completion this last word in modern efficiency in moving picture theaters, used for his working principle the ideal that life in all of its branches returns in exact proportion to what it receives. In consonance with this he employed in his plans the laws of gravitation, the rules of geometry and the T square, adding by way of altruism a large understanding of human impulses. The first great essential is safety. The building is Class A, built entirely of concrete and fireproof to the highest degree. Comfort follows in the long list of virtues. 

 

"From entrance to exit the theater justifies the intuition that consideration for the patron was the fundamental and paramount purpose of the mind which conceived it. Comfort in its highest interpretation is manifested in the seats of this new playhouse. They are made to lend themselves to the idiosyncrasies of the human form. They fit the patron instead of torturing him into a forced position. They are of mahogany and leather. The dressing rooms situated on the mezzanine floor are fitted up luxuriously with every device necessary to milady's comfort. They are handsomely carpeted and will be in charge of a competent maid. The mezzanine floor is also handsomely carpeted. On either side of the staircase are French plate mirrors with handwrought frames of fruit and flower design. A marble fountain plays in the center of the balcony, where it can be seen from below. 

 

"The artistry of the St. Francis Theater will prove a factor in its capacity for enjoyment. Bright and discordant colors are ever trying to the eyes. The decorations and frescoes here, done according to a perfect understanding of tone and design which is the dominant impetus of new art, are restful to the eyes. They are in soft hues of mauve, blue and green with a touch of orange to give them character. The indirect lighting fixtures are of a design to harmonize with the decorations and are splendid examples of up to date illumination accessories."

An article titled "The New Theatre St. Francis" was located by Joe Vogel. It appeared in the magazine The Argonaut in September 1916:

"When the Theatre St. Francis opens on Monday evening, October 2d, at 8 o'clock, citizens of San Francisco will see the first theatre in America that is not a theatre—that is, not a theatre in the commonly accepted sense. The St. Francis, from tile pavement to projection-room, and from double roof to basement music library, is a pioneer as a perfect photoplay house—designed and built scientifically for the best showing of the silent art of the screen. N. L. Josey, the man behind the St. Francis, knew there were very many reasons why the old type of theatre wasn’t exactly suitable for photoplay shows, so he set out, with scientific mind, to invent a new type of 'theatre' which would best suit the one and only purpose: to present, in the best possible manner, screen productions and only screen productions. The result of his work, and the proof of his science, is the Theatre St. Francis, at the corner of Geary and Powell Streets.

"Unique features and innovations abound. The sidewalk itself in front of the theatre is an area of two-toned tiles, laid in a pleasing geometric design. The lobby is of fair size, with ticket booths at the sides—thus leaving plenty of room to pass in and out of the theatre. The entire façade of the theatre consists of an immense window of photographer’s glass, around which a stained-glass border runs, the whole set in a concrete 'front' embellished with art nouveau modelings. On this window can be projected, from behind the glass, colored effects or pictures. Again, the St. Francis is a ‘reversed’ theatre—that is, patrons in facing the screen also face the street, as the mammoth screen is behind that beautiful glass façade. So in passing into the auditorium to see the photo-play the seats reached first are the ones closest to the screen. Although the building is even better than Class A for fireproof construction, still in the event of panic the entire house can be emptied in two minutes, because it is built to save time whether one is entering or leaving.

"Stretching back on a comfortable incline are rows of especially comfortable chairs. And the seats in the balcony are just the same as those downstairs, although the admission prices are lower for the balcony. The mezzanine floor contains the ladies' rest room and the gentlemen’s retiring room —both of these fitted up in the best possible manner for convenience and comfort. The interior decoration is absolutely new in America, as far as large buildings are concerned, being l'art nouveau throughout, soft colorings and simple treatments. New standards have been adopted, in order to make the Theatre St. Francis the only one of its class in the United States. Heating apparatus is provided for cool days and nights, the air itself being warmed as it enters the theatre. The floor coverings are of the best soft colored velvets. Bubbling drinking fountains are placed handy to all parts of the house.

"And the policy of the house is in keeping with its structural beauty. Manager Rosenthal and his co-workers decided long before the ground was broken that no so-called sex dramas or other pathological or harmful photoplays would ever be shown at the St. Francis. The sign, ‘No one under sixteen admitted,’ will never be seen at the St. Francis box-office, because the scheduled plays are of a class that that sign does not apply to. There will be frequent changes of programme, the prices will be moderate, and there will be a section where seats can be reserved. Only first-run pictures will be shown. The opening attraction will be 'Ashes of Embers,' with Miss Pauline Fredericks in the stellar role. Music under direction of Messrs. Jaulus and Polak—the former on opening night."

An October 2 story in the Chronicle. Thanks to William David French, Jr. for locating it. 

 

 

 An October 2, 1916 opening night photo from a scrapbook of Hamilton Henry Dobbin that's in the California State Library collection.

Another opening night photo from a scrapbook of Hamilton Henry Dobbin in the California State Library collection. When it appeared the day after the opening in the Chronicle it had this caption: 

"Newest of the City's Picture Playhouses - Facade of the St. Francis Theater, which was opened auspiciously last night, and a suggestion of the throng that invaded the commodious playhouse, and overflowed its doors long before the first picture, 'Ashes of Embers,' was projected on the big screen." 

An article on the same page in the October 3 Chronicle:

"New Picture House Built on New Lines - St. Francis on Geary Street Opens Its Doors For the First Time - Old Traditions Ignored - Ideas Inherited From Old 'Legitimate' Theaters Discarded. By Walter Anthony. Something new was revealed last night when the St. Francis theater on Geary street was opened. A playhouse has been conceived and constructed with every feature, from the sidewalk to the back wall, designed with the view of the theater's functioning. It is a motion-picture theater. The screen is set back of no proscenium arch designed to frame living, speaking players, but is placed against wall of the Geary-street entrance. You emerge through curtains and find yourself at the front row and not the last row of seats. Balcony and gallery are established at the far end of the cozy playhouse and entrance to those loftier reservations is effected over easy inclines and past several decorations of unobtrusive and refreshingly chaste character.

"Every One Can See - The tones of the building are pastel, not strident, and the seats have been so placed that every one yields a favorable line of vision to the screen, which is seen over the heads of the twenty instrumentalists who compose the splendid orchestra, and over the head of the organist, who releases harmonies from pipes cunningly hid behind the trellis work which borders the big screen. The theater was opened last night without ostentation. It was merely planned. There are 1100 seats inside. There were 1150 persons, at least, who found their way past the portals, and the management, overwhelmed by a throng whose eagerness couldn't be curbed, made the announcement that any who had purchased tickets and were unable to reach their seats would have the privileges of the house for any afternoon or night during the week.

"Elegance and Taste - An air of elegance and taste is all over the theater. Nothing is cheap nor tawdry. The facade glows, lighted, that is to say, from the huge dome of the Horticulture Palace of glass at the Exposition; pictures of famous stars of the screen adorn the outer doors; the eye is allured even by the sidewalk, which is decoratively laid, and with this there is found hardly the suggestion of the 'legitimate' theater. Everything suggests 'pictures' and moves the visitor to a mood wherein the human voice is so little expected, much as you do in a library. Last night's picture was 'Ashes of Embers,' with Pauline Frederick in a double role. She plays twins. She is Laura, the wicked, and Agnes, the good. She is a vampire vixen and a virtuous beauty. The scenes which she has with herself, when the vampire faces Agnes, are evidences of the ingenuity of picture-makers. Accompanying the picture, the music by the big orchestra under the direction of Bernat Jaulus and Sydney Polak was of a highly 'legitimate' quality."  

Thanks to William David French, Jr. for locating the article.

An article that appeared in the December 2, 1916 Moving Picture World. It's on Internet Archive.

A larger version of the crowd photo from the Moving Picture World article. 

 

Despite getting off to a great start the owner, N. L. Josey, soon ran into financial difficulties. The building he owned and the property underneath it, which he had leased, were both soon sold. 

 

The buyer was Thomas W. Corder, owner of the hotel to the west of the theatre. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this in a column of real estate news in the December 20, 1916 San Francisco Chronicle.

Although Josey lost ownership of the building he had erected, the theatre continued to operate with his creditors in charge. Here's another article located by Joe Vogel. This one appeared in the January 6, 1917 issue of Moving Picture World:

"Creditors in Charge of Theater St. Francis. San Francisco, Cal. — The Theater St. Francis, which was opened last October by N. L. Josey, is now in the hands of creditors. A meeting of these was held a few days ago in the offices of Attorney Leo Kaufman and a committee was appointed to look out for their interests. Charles A. Rosenthal, Jr., who has been manager of the house since it was opened, will continue in this capacity."

At some point there was a closing. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this item about a reopening that appeared in the March 1, 1917 San Francisco Call:

"St. Francis Swings Way Into Popular Favor - The St. Francis Theater, reopened, refurnished and refurbished, is swinging its way into popularity with its new policy and sterling entertainment. This week Franklyn Farnum and Agnes Vernon delight in a serio-comedy entitled 'The Man Who Took a Chance.' Next week Joe Knowles, the modern cave man, will personally appear in conjunction with his new film feature, 'Alone in the Wilderness,' and will give a demonstration of kindling a fire by friction. The Bluebird superpicture,'The Eagle's Wings,' a sensational preparedness feature, showing for the first time authentic pictures of munition factories in operation, will also be shown. The new pipe organ will be ready and other new features will be offered with the great double bill."

More upgrades to the building followed. Thanks to Art for locating this contract item mentioned in the August 25, 1917 Organized Labor: 

"S Geary N of Powell. All work for alterations for St. Francis Theater. Owner, T.W. Corder; contractor, C.E. McMullin, 110 Jessie. Cost, $2l00."

 

 

The "Safety First Theatre" was back in business in September "After Extensive Alterations" and with a ladies orchestra. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this ad that appeared in the September 9, 1917 Chronicle.

 

Art located this in the September 10, 1917 San Francisco Call: 

"ST. FRANCIS AGAIN IS IN MOVIE FIELD - The St. Francis Theater again entered the field of local amusements yesterday, and the event was signalized by crowds at every performance, drawn to the Geary street playhouse both by the splendid opening program and by a desire to see just what a 'safety first' motion picture theater looks like. As for the program, it is but necessary to say to prove its worth that the feature presented was George Beban In the Paramount production 'The Cook of Canyon Camp.' In this picture the inimitable portrayer of Latin characterizations appeared in the role of a French-Canadian cook in a lumber camp. It is a most unusual and cleverly done bit. The balance of the program was made up of the latest news weekly, a comedy and a scenic. 

 

"The rehabilitated playhouse itself is still the house of surprises. Among the innovations offered is a ladies’ orchestra, which most acceptably rendered concert numbers, while the pictures were interpreted in a pleasing manner with the aid of a splendid pipe organ. There have been many changes made in the fittings and arrangements of the theater that both please the eye and add to the comfort of the patrons, but the most pronounced are those which tend toward the perfection of the 'safety first' idea, which is fundamentally made possible by the placing of the screen in the front of the house instead of the back. 

 

"This idea of 'safety first' construction is not a freak, as those unaccustomed to it might think. Though new to San Francisco theatergoers, it is not new to the motion picture world outside of this city, for in many places such construction is made imperative by law. The state of Texas requires that all movie houses be built with the screen in front, and it is prevalent in many cities of the other states of the Union and in Canada. The St. Francis is a welcome addition to the picture playhouses of the city."

 

A "Safety First" ad appearing in the September 15, 1917 San Francisco Call. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating it. This article, announcing the introduction of "kiddie matinees" appeared on the same page: 

"The St. Francis Theater, beginning with the matinee performance tomorrow. enters its second week under new management and that the readvent of this playhouse into the movie field has been most successful is proved by the large audiences that have greeted the performances since its opening. For the week starting tomorrow the 'safety first theater,' as the St. Francis is known, will offer that vivacious little star, Vivian Martin, in the Paramount production 'A Kiss for Susie,' a little wisp of a girl, full of vitality and charm and with a roguishness all her own. Miss Martin has been hailed as the 'elf' of the film. In 'A Kiss for Susie' the star is surrounded by a case of unusual excellence. 

 

"The program also will include the latest news weekly, a clever comedy, a travelogue and other films, while the music will be furnished by the St. Francis Ladies' Orchestra and the new pipe organ. As a part of the policy of the new management the St. Francis this morning at 10 o’clock showed for the first time what is to be a regular Saturday morning feature—a picture especially designed to entertain the kiddies. A big lot of youngsters were on hand to show that they appreciated what the new theater is doing for them."

Art Siegel located a mention of the St. Francis near the end of an October 19, 1918 San Francisco Call article about the shutdown of theatres due to the influenza epidemic.

During the shutdown the Techau Tavern people were after the lease. In the November 16, 1918 San Francisco Call this article appeared noting that the theatre building would be the new home of the venerable tavern:

"TECHAU TAVERN PLANS NEW HOME - Negotiations are under way today for the lease of the St. Francis Theater building in Geary street near Powell by the Techau Tavern restaurant. The lease will be for ten years at a rental of $1250 a month. The building now occupied by the tavern at Powell and Eddy streets has been bought by the Bank of Italy. The lease on the present quarters expires July 3, but it is expected an extension will be obtained probably to September 1, when the new quarters will be ready. Work of remodeling the theater building will begin about March 1. The cost is fixed at about $80,000. A Powell street entrance will be obtained by renting a store in the Elkan Gunst building."

The other news in the November 16, 1918 San Francisco Call was that the theatres had reopened. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this article:

"The St. Francis Theater is today presenting as its reopening offering that famous star of opera and screen, Geraldine Farrar, in the great emotional drama, 'The Turn of the Wheel.' Farrar herself is said to have selected this vehicle which gives her the greatest emotional role she has ever played. The story is highly dramatic. It deals with the adventures of a woman who staked her all to save a man from himself and his greatest weakness, gambling. The romantic and exciting atmosphere of Monte Carlo supplies the atmosphere of the photoplay. Miss Farrar is surrounded by a splendid cast, chief in her support being Herbert Rawlinson. 'The Turn of the Wheel' will be the feature attraction at the St. Francis for the first three days of next week as well as today."

Although the theatre had reopened, its fate had been determined. We got some specifics about the remodel plan in this November 16, 1918 Chronicle article located by Art Siegel. They planned to dig out a basement and remove the balcony. 

The theatre manager noted that his lease doesn't expire until September 1919. This item appeared in the "Real News of the Reel Fellows on Film Row" column in the November 30, 1918 San Francisco Call:

"E.C. Cunningham, manager of the St. Francis Theater, is authority for the statement that his lease on that building does not expire until September, 1919. Despite reports that the Techau Tavern will take over the building early next year, Cunningham says that no such arrangement has yet been made with him."

Closed: Sometime in late 1918 or early 1919. Despite the manager's claims about the lease, plans proceeded for conversion of the building. Art Siegel located this in the Building Contracts column of the March 22, 1919 Organized Labor: 

"S. Geary 92-6 W Powell W 45xS 137-6. Wrecking, excavation, bulkheading, underpinning, brick chimney, concrete, sidewalk, sidewalk doors, prism lights, curbing, etc., for alterations and additions to St. Francis Theater building for cafe. Owner, T. W. Corner, Inc.; contractor, Richard J. H. Forbes, Monadnock Bldg. Cost, $13,750."

More contract news in the May 17, 1919 Organized Labor: 

"SW Geary and Powell S 85xW 92-6. Wrecking, lumber, labor mill, roofing, flooring, sash and doors, glass, stairs, lockers, wire mesh sump cover, concrete floor in lavatory, etc., for store in building. Owner, Techau Tavern Co.; contractor, Branch & Coffer, 228 Mills Bldg. Cost, $4390."

And in the May 31, 1919 Organized Labor:

"S Geary 92-6 W Powell W 45xS 137-6. Electric wiring for lighting, telephones and power, etc., for building. Owner, Techau Tavern Co.; contractor, Butte Eng. & Elec. Co., 683 Howard. Cost, $5650. Heating and ventilating on above. Contractor, Scott Co., 243 Minna. Cost, $5190."

 

The Techau opened in their new home in November 1919. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this ad in the November 17, 1919 San Francisco Call. He notes: "They're showing the new address as 247 Powell, indicating that they had rented space in the Elkan Gunst Building on the Geary / Powell corner that went through to the 333 Geary building."

 

A postcard view of the building on the corner with the Powell St. entrance to the Techau Tavern on the far left. Thanks to Art Siegel for spotting this in a 2012 post on the Gold Dust Lounge Facebook page. Their article notes that after the Techau closed in 1922 the 247 Powell location became a florist's shop and then a bar after prohibition ended. And, as we see in this c.1939 image, for a time it once again used the Techau name. Later it was called the Gold Dust. 

We get a description of the remodeled premises in the November 20, 1919 San Francisco Call. Thanks to Art for finding this article in the "News of the Shops About Town" column by Betty the Shopper:

"The House of Joy !—I mean: Techau Tavern! Is open to You! —And for all: — Go now and forget sorrow! — For the new Techau Tavern is a very wonderful place! —I say so! You enter through a Marble Hall facing on Powell Street, and this Hall is mirrored and chandeliered to a most artistic beauty!— The Hall ends at the Main Dining Room, and you are in the Chamber of Epicurean Delights!— This Room is Magnificent!—Very! - So much splendor and beauty that it is impossible to describe it; — The walls are decorated: The ceiling chandeliered; — There is a dais on each end of the room and a dais for the orchestra!— In the center of the room is the dancing floor!—This is in the form of an oval, the only one of its kind in the West!— Exquisite carpets cover the Dining Room, which surrounds the Oval Dancing Floor! The Dining Room seats 600! Because this room cannot be fittingly described,—l can only say: —Go!— 

"The Tavern opened Monday night!— Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday Nights were Special Dinner Nights! And on all these nights the places were all filled with well known people. Well, all I can say is that everything is of the regular standard of the Techau Tavern, and that means Perfection; Perfection in all things!— Go now to;—Techau Tavern! — The most beautiful Tavern in the world! — I say so! And you'll say so!— P. S. —A New Departure is the Techau Tavern Tea Lectures, which begin this afternoon! Major Watson will lecture on 'The Indian Folk Lore of Mexico.'"

Prohibition was a major problem. This was in the November 4, 1921 San Francisco Call:

"Manager, 3 Waiters Get Terms For Booze Sale. Albert C. Morrison, for many years manager of Techau Tavern, today was sentenced by Federal Judge M.T. Dooling to six months' imprisonment, without alternative of a fine, for violation of the prohibition laws. V.K. Lardi, captain of waiters, was given similar sentence and Richard Bucking and John Antonetti, service bar employees, who had pleaded guilty, got four months' sentences. A big gallery of lawyers was in the court when sentence was pronounced, including Robert H. McCormack, assistant United States attorney general, and Ben F. Geis, assistant United States district attorney, who prosecuted, and Bert Schlesinger for the defense. Ample Warning Given..."

The closing of the Techau was discussed in this story Art located in the February 15, 1922 San Francisco Call: 

"Techau Tavern To Close; May Reopen As Candy Shop. Techau Tavern, Powell and Geary streets, for twenty-one years the gathering place of bon vivants. has been unable to survive prohibition and high rent, so will close on Saturday night. When 'Techau's,' as the famous restaurant is familiarly known throughout the country, reopens it will retain its name, but its business will be catering to the light lunch, candy and ice cream soda trade. The dance floor will be missing. 

"Plans In Doubt. Carlton H. Wall, who holds the lease, stated today that definite plans for the future have not been determined. Negotiations are in progress with the management of the Golden Pheasant which would make the Techau Tavern a light lunch and candy shop, or on the other hand A.C. Morrison, the present manager, may operate it as such. Wall states that the leases he holds on the Powell and Geary streets properties comprising the Techau Tavern premises, have become so valuable that numerous offers have been made which, if accepted, would likely see an entirely different place of business."

The new about the demise of the famed venue with "dancing girls and orchestra music" made the Los Angeles Times on February 16. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this item: 

 

A "Grabeteria" on the horizon. Art found this story in the February 28, 1922 San Pedro Daily News:

"Techau Tavern, Once Gay Bohemian Cafe, Becames Grabeteria. San Francisco, Feb. 28. (United Press). Another famed San Francisco Bohemian cafe, the Techau Tavern, is rapidly being reconstructed into a modern-priced grabeteria; Volstead 'done his worst' and eventually the Techau Tavern had to give up hope of operating at a profit without serving liquor. The name will be retained by the new occupants."

If the "new occupants" kept the Techau name it wasn't for long. Later in 1922 it became the Virginia Lee Inn with the entrance back on Geary. Thanks to Art for spotting this ad in the September 14, 1922 San Francisco Call.

Wilson's, a candy store and soda fountain, took over the premises later in December 1922. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this ad in the December 5 Chronicle. There was also an ad for the grand opening in the December 5 Call. An article in the December 6 issue of the Chronicle was headed "Peninsula Candy Man Invades This City."

Evidently a second floor was inserted into the former auditorium as it was occupied by a beauty parlor beginning in 1930. An ad on the bottom of the front page of the January 29 issue of the Chronicle saying "Notice, New Location of Jessie A. Reid." Art Siegel wonders about the access: "Probably via the 'hidden stairway' cited in a 2009 NBC Bay Area article about a visit to the attic?"

 

A December 27, 1931 Chronicle ad for the Beauty Salon with the "Entrance in Wilson's Confecturant." Wilson's evidently was running until 1935.

 

In December 1935, Gene Compton announced a remodeling of the building to become a cafeteria style restaurant. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this item in the December 7 Chronicle. That "Stewart Estate Company" refers to the Stewart Hotel west of the former theatre building that had been owned by Thomas W. Corder. Compton took his time getting the cafeteria open. It didn't happen until May 1937.  

 

 

 

Thanks to Dennis Snelling for finding this ad in a May 1937 issue of the Chronicle. He added it as a comment to a share of a post of his on the San Francisco Remembered Facebook page. That's the former theatre in the lower right. It remained Compton's until Lefty opened his saloon at the location in 1958.

 

Status: Lefty O'Doul's lost their lease and closed in January 2017. The building is owned by the Handlery family, who also own the adjacent Handlery Hotel. It's a family firm now headed by Jon Handlery. He announced plans for a new restaurant in the space but in 2022 it was still vacant. 

 

Upstairs in 2009: 

This series of photos of the upstairs by Joe Rosato, Jr. appeared with "Lefty O'Doul's Bloody (Mary) Secret," his November 23, 2009 story on the site NBC Bay Area. Thanks to Kevin Silva for spotting the story. In the article Joe commented: 

"On a recent visit, Lefty’s owner Nick Bovis popped a padlock off a door in the middle of the dining room, revealing a hidden stairway, with dark, wooden steps worn from a century of footsteps.... Around another corner, a staggering sight materialized: A ceiling of glass skylights illuminated a massive room of wooden beams and ornate molding. At one end of the 70-foot long room, the wall is a faded powder blue. Sculptures of fish hung on every corner, standing guard over a place time and progress have forgotten."

The question is: What are we looking at? Theatre stuff or decor from a later tenant? It hadn't been a theatre since 1919 so most likely the latter. It's tempting to see the arch in this photo as the remnant of a proscenium -- maybe that railing across midway was a later addition.

Gary Parks comments: "I'm of the opinion that most, or all of these decorative elements are from whatever went in there right after its theatre days. Neither railinged balconies along the sides, nor skylights, seem like theatre attributes. Maybe the proscenium-like arch is from its theatre days, but, if you consider the tall-thin profile of it, plus the fact that there are two such arches--one at each end--I think we're looking at what was once a really fine retail, or restaurant space. One possibility: The ceiling, and the proscenium arch and its rear-of-room twin, could be theatre decor, but then skylights were retrofitted into the spaces between the ornamental beams, along with side balconies and their ornament. In any case, this is a terrific piece of urban archaeology!"

A 2014 main floor view:

Looking in from the front doors. Photo: Bill Counter 

 

 

More exterior views:

A 1951 view by an unknown photographer taken before the windows got plastered over on the upper floors. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this in the Open SF History Project collection. 

 

A detail Art extracted from the 1951 photo.

A fine c.1962 view from the Facebook page Lost San Francisco looking east showing Lefty's with Union Square beyond.

 

The building in 2014. The Art Noveau facade has endured. Mostly. The big arched area in the middle was once glass panels. They could do projections on the back of the panels: falling leaves, a storm scene, or whatever was desired to promote a particular film. Photo: Bill Counter

Looking west on Geary. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 

A photo appearing with a 2016 post about the building's past by Ellen Campbell on the Facebook page San Francisco Remembered. There were lots of comments. Thanks to Ernie Manzo, Jr. for spotting the post.

A look down on the former theatre building from the St. Francis Hotel across the street. Note the added skylights. Thanks to Craig Blyeth for the 2016 photo. He added it as a comment to a long thread about the theatre on the BAHT Facebook page.

 

More information: See the Cinema Treasures page about the Theatre St. Francis. 

 

Dennis Snelling covers some of the building's history in a post on the Lefty O'Doul: Baseball's Forgotten Ambassador Facebook page. Paula Lichtenberg shared Snelling's post on the Facebook page San Francisco Remembered where there were additional comments.

 

The site Noe Hill has a page about the very busy San Francisco architects the Reid Brothers. Somehow the authors of the page decided to credit them as architects of the St. Francis. 

The other St. Francis Theatre: The one on Market St. opened as the Empress and was later called the Strand. It didn't get the St. Francis name until 1925, long after this one on Geary had closed. See the page about that St. Francis for a history and many, many photos. Also note that the Strand Theatre had been called the Francesca between 1921 and 1928. 

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