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Activist envisions museum in S.F. Tenderloin
By Charlie Wells‚ San Francisco Chronicle, Aug. 7‚ 2010
Spilling out of studios or wafting through nightclubs, the now instantly recognizable refrains of jazz greats, folk revivalists and rock legends enchanted generations of visitors to the notorious San Francisco district. But we're not talking about the Haight. Or the Fillmore. Or even North Beach. It was in the city's still gritty Tenderloin, where Miles Davis played when he came to town, where the Grateful Dead, Santana and Jefferson Airplane recorded what would become the San Francisco Sound. And now, Randy Shaw, a fast-talking lawyer and longtime Tenderloin housing activist, wants to build a museum in the neighborhood to share these untold stories.
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Uptown Tenderloin Momentum Continues
By Randy Shaw‚ BeyondChron, Jun. 17‚ 2010
Uptown Tenderloin Historic District poster c) Academy of Art University
The revival of San Francisco's historic Uptown Tenderloin neighborhood continued this week with four developments designed to boost the area's positive identity. First, banners are now flying highlighting the neighborhood's over 400 historic buildings and the Uptown Tenderloin's longtime status as the "heart of the city." Second, a large poster is being distributed to businesses across the city identifying the area as a place where people should come to "Walk, Dine, Enjoy." Third, a graphic presentation has been installed at the Cadillac Hotel announcing the "Future Site of the Uptown Tenderloin Museum." And last but not least, the Uptown Tenderloin has a new website that will keep people updated on activities of interest in the neighborhood.
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San Francisco Detours Into Reality Tourism
By Jesse McKinley, New York Times, April 11, 2010
SAN FRANCISCO - Visitors know all too well this pretty city's sights, what with the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman's Wharf and the clang-clang-clangy cable cars.
But now San Francisco's civic boosters have decided they want to add a highly unlikely stop to the tourist itinerary: the Uptown Tenderloin, the ragged, druggy and determinedly dingy domain of the city's most down and out.
And what is the appeal?
"We offer a kind of grittiness you can’t find much anymore," said Randy Shaw, a longtime San Francisco housing advocate and a driving force behind the idea of Tenderloin tourism. "And what is grittier than the Tenderloin?"
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Tenderloin Allure on the Rise:
Newsom Announces Historic Preservation Initiative
By Luke Thomas, Fog City Journal, March 12, 2010
The lure and allure of San Francisco's oft-neglected Tenderloin District got another boost Wednesday when Mayor Gavin Newsom announced funding for an historic preservation initiative.
The initiative, which includes $15 thousand to fund the design, purchase and installation of historic building plaques, is aimed at revitalizing and restoring the Tenderloin's historic identity.
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Mona Caron's New Mural, Windows Into the Tenderloin
By Hugh D'Andrade, Laughing Squid, March 2, 2010
I once rode the J-Church in San Francisco with my friend, the muralist Mona Caron. When you ride that train, there's a brief moment where you can see the tail end of Mona's first public artwork, the Duboce Bikeway Mural, and as she and I passed we chatted about that project - how she did it, where the funding came from, etc. When the other passengers overheard our conversation, realizing she was the artist behind this epic work, the entire car spontaneously burst into applause.
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Restaurant Review
Golden Era
572 O'Farrell
By Paul Reidinger,
SF Bay Guardian
When you step into Golden Era, you pass through a narrow door and descend a few steps, as if into a subterranean world of disrepute. But you land on a landing, instead of at a bar crowded with sooty Mafia dons, as you might have expected, and from the landing you descend another brief staircase to the dining room, which opens out expansively around you. The experience is a little like the one long offered at Postrio, Wolfgang Puck's (now closed) restaurant near Union Square.
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Theater Review
Giant Bones
Exit Theater
156 Eddy Street
By Stuart Bousel, sfist
It was pointed out to us that the seating at Exit Theater down in the Tenderloin is reminiscent of one of those Medieval Times restaurants, where suburban crowds are treated to Applebee's quality dishes while being entertained by jousting, juggling, and bawdy wenches of "olde." Never having indulged in one of these places (it's on the list), this writer simply had to take the observer's word for it. However, considering the play we were watching in preview, it was an interesting observation. Based on Oakland writer Peter S. Beagle's 1997 collection of short stories of the same name, Giant Bones, the latest work by prolific local playwright/director Stuart Bousel, weaves together four tales set in a medieval-like fantasy world of remarkable depth and texture.
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