Customer Reviews

Baghdad by the Bay

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Baghdad-by-the-Bay" is a sentimental collection of essays by San Francisco's beloved newspaperman, Herb Caen, about the city he loved. Written in 1949, "Bhagdad-by-the-Bay" suffers not only from the syrupy civic pride newspaper columnists cultivate, but also from postwar gush for the average joe and the quiet of the home. But Caen has a heart of gold, and he writes skillfully and beautifully, and if you live, visit, or dream of The City, you must read this book. How else can you cultivate memories of the city before you were born?

Caen's 1949 city had a train that ran across the Bay Bridge. Its Third and Mission was Skid Row, not Multimedia Gully. The Sunset in 1949 was a laughable trend of new development, not the only (barely) affordable housing in town. San Francisco 1949 hadn't heard of the Summer of Love, didn't know what would happen at the corner of Haight and Ashbury, and Castro Street was just a street. After all, ships still used San Francisco as a port, and longshoremen were busy along the Embarcadero piers.

Some traditions still linger: Caen's city had a housing shortage, and traffic clogged Market Street. Even in 1949, people called the train system "Muniserable." San Francisco had great restaurants and a great orchestra, trendy first-run movie houses downtown, and cloak-and-dagger town politics. Defense attorneys slept through trials 50 years ago, too.