BULLETS OR BALLOTS

This week the Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl travels back to 1936 and visits the fun places of BULLETS OR BALLOTS, a post-Prohibition era film on the rise of corruption, racketeering, and murder.  It's a short trip, but a fun one.

The crawl begins at the upscale Lee Morgan's. Entertainment awaits the well-to-do partygencia. Club owner Lee Morgan meets each night with her talented performers to go over the show and fire them up.

The owner takes a personal interest in the floor show

Morgan also mingles with the local police detectives that don't care for ex-cons crashing the party.

The uninvited should steer clear

Modest decor, four-top tables are readily available. A well-stocked bar awaits the customers. Sometimes it even stays open after hours.

A table for two will do

The bar never closes at Lee Morgan's Cocktails and Dining

Speaking of after-hours places, sometimes it's a gas to move the party to somewhere private, like the den of the local bank president. Black tie preferred, but if you know someone, you'll be welcome.

If you get invited here...let someone know

Need a place to catch up on old times? Sometimes the out of the way watering hole is the right kind of place to meet.

Going off the beaten path

Getting the munchies? The go-to place is Jerry's Place. Italian and American meals fill the menu. Simple, quiet decor. Tables for four or more. A well-stocked wine bar offers a variety of Italian vintages. 

Or maybe all you need is a cup of joe with your guy or gal. Look no further than the hotel coffee shop. 

Hotel coffee shop to end the night

If you're looking for something else to do while everyone else is crawling, there's plenty of options.

See a movie

Take in a fight

Play a little pinball

AND NOW THE STORY:

After a crusading, anti-vice newspaper editor is gunned down, a detective goes undercover to infiltrate the mob.

William Keighly directs the script penned by Seton I.  Miller and Martin  Mooney. BULLETS OR BALLOTS stars Barton MacLane, Joan Blondell, Edward G. Robinson, and Humphrey Bogart. It also features strong performances by Frank McHugh and Louise Beavers.

All in all, 4  vices out of 5.

Until next we crawl, be sure to settle your tab!

Louise Beavers

THE THIN MAN

 The unfortunate reality of the next stop along the Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl is that while there are several establishments to visit, none of them are named. They do seem quite popular. As long as we know the watering holes are there, we might as well visit.

Stop #1: The Six Martini Bar

It's Christmas Eve. What better way to spend it than explaining to the bar backs the proper shaking of a martini is to a waltz.

Dress up for this stop

The heart of the city partygencia crowds this popular club. Why not? A full orchestra plays the latest dance music for everyone to enjoy. A wall of stemware, martini glasses, and tumblers awaits anyone who bellys up to the bar. The liquor appears to be in a secure location- Volstead has only recently been repealed, after all.

Tables provide a respite from the jam-packed dance floor.  Waitstaff is prepared to serve the Fve Martini Flight: The person you're meeting is on the sixth drink of the night so you might as well catch up.

The Five Martini Flight is always available

Stop #2: A Hide Away

Have some personal business to attend to? This place has plenty of spots you and your 'friend' can feel alone. Beer by the goblet is a staple at this place. Ashtrays are complimentary.

When you want to be alone

Stop #3: Schultzie's; or, the Dancing Girls Lounge

Come on in any time of the day. You might catch a glimpse of the dancing girls practicing for that night's revue. Also, it's a good location to discuss business of any nature.

A good locale for business talk

(wink wink nudge nudge)

Stop #4: A Catered Affair

Some of the more popular places for the posh to gather is right in their own home. The Normandie Hotel is one of the more frequented places of the party-crawlers. New Year's Eve, dinner parties, nightcaps. Sometimes the party is simply where you take it.

#paprty@home

Stop #5: The Trans-Continental Train

And since you're moving your party from place to place, why not make your party mobile by taking a train to San Francisco! The club car is open late. Casual attire is preferred. Booths invite quiet conversations with friends and/or clients.

The Club Car

Afterward, sleep it off in a comfortable berth car. Pets welcomed, although it's hard to see the dog in the top bunk.

Two-thousand-five-hundred-sixty-some miles

Two-thousand-five-hundred--it's a long way to go

Two-thousand-five-hundred-sixty-some miles

The travel is easy if the drinks continue to flow

Side Trip: Henry's Pipe Shop

Finally, a place with a name. In case you need to feed that monkey on your back with another vice, Henry'sPipe Shop is on hand to offer you assistance.

Need a book of matches?

Just remember: Smoking kills

The downside of overindulging

The Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl ran a little thin this week, pun intended. It's hard to pass on The Thin Man as Nick and Nora spend so much time throwing parties and solving crimes. They kind of make you wish you could join them.

AND NOW THE STORY

An elderly millionaire inventor disappears after accusing his younger girlfriend of stealing thousands of dollars worth of bonds from him. The inventor's daughter pleads with a former private detective to find her missing father. Embezzlement, kidnapping, and murder ensue.

The Thin Man was directed by W.S. Van Dyke. Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich adapted the script from the Dashiell Hammett novel of the same name. William Powell and Myrna Loy, both truly great as Nick and Nora Charles, are in total command of their characters. Nat Pendelton gives a solid performance as the just-not-as-sharp-as-Nick police lieutenant. Maureen O'Sullivan is the concerned daughter with Henry Wadsworth as her fiance'. Premiering in 1934, it's a couple of decades from the angst and grit and fashion of the golden age for film noir. 

Powell, Van Dyke, and the writing duo of Hackett and Goodrich received well-deserved Oscar nominations. 

The Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl has come to a close for the week. Until the next trip, be sure to settle your tab!

THEY DRIVE BY NIGHT (U.S. TITLE)

This week I visit the locales of one of my favorite crime dramas, the 1940 Warner Brothers film, They Drive by Night starring George Raft, Humphrey Bogart, Ann Sheridan, Ida Lupino, and Alan Hale, Sr., just to name a few.  I'm in the company of Hollywood big shots here, so let the crawl commence. 

BARNEY'S CAFE

The movie opens with a stop at Barney's Cafe. Though the patrons joke about the food and they drink the coffee for the sugar, the counter is always packed with truckers. Not much elbow room to wolf down a hamburger before hitting the road but the service is fast with a little bit of sass.

A crowded night at Barney's

Raft, Sheridan, and Bogart

MANDEL'S CAFE

From one cafe to the next, these truckers know where to go. Mandel's Cafe is the next stop on the road trip.

Best place for a steak

Mandel's offers more than just food. Pinball machines are available to take your mind off the road. Coffee is just a nickel and the steaks are served rare. Interesting lattice arches decorate the dining room and frame the bar. Unlike Barney's, there is plenty of space between the tables. Similar to Barney's, the service is quick and sarcastic. Deals go down at Mandel's.

Relax with a game of pinball

Quick service. Quicker sarcasm

A BROTHER'S HOME

Sometimes it's good to be off the road.  Nothing hits the spot like a home-cooked meal with family and friends talking politics, advantages, and hospital bills.

Dinner at home

NIGHTCLUB

Need to lighten the mood? Head off to the neighborhood nightclub. It doesn't even need a name because everyone already knows it's there. A full orchestra provides dance music. Vines grow through the lattice work here. Geometric-patterned hanging lights create an intimate mood. An ideal place for lonely hearts to meet their soul mates without exchanging names.

That nightclub place

THE PRIVATE PARTY

The final stop of this week's crawl takes us to the boss's house for a private party. Fully staffed with cooks, butlers, maids, and other domestic engineer positions, it's always best to let the boss make the drinks, especially when he pours heavy. (Just don't let the wife catch him getting out of hand: Things can get ugly...)

The boss always pours heavy

(Not a sequel to The Postman Always Rings Twice)

Raft, Lupino, and Hale, Sr.

AND NOW THE STORY

Two brothers set out with a single truck to build an empire hauling produce. Along the way one brother finds love, one brother overcomes a tragedy. They both become embroiled in the suspicious death of their boss when one of the brothers is framed for killing their friend. 

Raoul Walsh directs a script by Jerry Wald and Richard Macauley based on the novel, The Long Haul by A.I. Bezzerides. In addition to the all-star cast mentioned earlier, the movie also showcases Gail Page, Roscoe Karns, Joyce Compton, and Marie Blake, best known as Grandmama on the original The Addams Family.

One last thing. Until I saw this movie, I was unaware of the scope of Ida Lupino's talent. I knew her only from guest appearances on TV shows like Charlie's Angels, Columbo, and The Twilight Zone. She gives an absolutely amazing performance in this movie.

The amazing Ida Lupino

That's the last stop for this week's Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl. Until next time, go settle your tab.

D.O.A.

The next leg of the Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl is a stop where my interest in film noir originated, the 1949 film, D.O.A. starring Oscar winner Edmund O'Brien (The Barefoot Contessa). 

I first saw D.O.A. as a kid watching the Bill Kennedy Movie Show on UHF Channel 50. Kennedy was a former Hollywood actor. Square-jaw, rugged looks, he had over 106 movie and TV credits that spanned over 25 years until he showed up on Detroit area televisions in the late sixties. I remember Kennedy used to drink during the course of the show and share his Hollywood stories with viewers. One time he repeatedly apologized for showing what he said was the worst movie ever made, Don't Look Now, starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie. Kennedy got so upset he threatened to walk out of the studio if he had to continue showing the movie.

Bill Kennedy

The Royal Mounted Rides Again 

(1945)

D.O.A. snagged my attention with a haunting opening theme by Dmitri Tompkin. I spent a summer afternoon glued to commercial television following the story of a C.P.A. chasing his killer.

The first pub on the cross-state crawl is Eddie's. It's never too early to visit Eddie's, especially on a hot day. Eddie's offers cold beer and air conditioning, perfect for the cop walking the beat who needs a breather.  An L-shaped bar with plenty of stools frames a well-stocked bar. A jukebox in the corner plays hip calliope music. Eddie's also offers tables. Plenty of tables.

 

Eddie's 

Cold beer and AC

Table Side Service

After a stop at Eddie's, it's off to the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. A good time to visit is Market Week, when traveling salesmen check in to party with what appears to be every female shop owner in the Golden Gate City. 

Check-in at the St. Francis

Every room appears to be a suite at the St. Francis making it the ideal place for the partygencia. A quick call to the front desk sends bottles of bourbon and scotch up to your room. 

Party in Suite 617

Let the room party be the start of the night, not the end. Move the party to the Fisherman, home of jive music as advertised over the stage on a lifesaver ring.

The Fisherman

Jive Music Nightly

A hectic, cramped bar on a busy street, the Fisherman is home to some fast-paced, loud, eclectic music enjoyed by a loyal crowd that shouts, 'Bring it!' and 'Blow, baby, blow!' The band is so frenetic the musicians sweat mid-song.

'Blow, baby, blow!'

The crowd is friendly. Regulars enthusiastically share their love of the jazz scene at the squiggly, curving bar. Tables leave little room for customers to move up to the bar to be served by Leo, the lone bartender. He has all the information on the customers. 

Blondes dig jive

No matter how fun a night you have at the Fisherman, the club isn't open 24 hours.  No one knows when the club closes but the doors unlock at six each evening.

Doors open at six

Word of caution. Strangers with scarves and hats pulled low on their brow lurk in the shadows waiting to mess with your drinks. 

Always be aware of your surroundings. 

The nice thing about a pub crawl in San Francisco is there are so many places to visit.  Day or night, there is always some place o visit on the Crawl. Party buses and car services wait to transport you from stop to stop.

Loads of stops

LSBNPC designated driver

LSBNPC Party Bus

Finding a seat might be difficult.

Maybe you'd like to take advantage of the Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl Photo Packet to commemorate your experience. 

Keepsake Memories

If you need a quieter break, all-night drug stores offer everything from sedatives, aspirin, and candy to fresh coffee and banana splits.

All-night drug stores offer relief

Banana splits with fresh ice cream

Pay no attention to the man on the floor.

A banana split is a perfect way to end the night.

AND NOW THE STORY:

Certified public accountant Frank Bigelow notarizes a sales receipt. Murder and intrigue ensue as Bigelow races to reveal who poisoned him with iridium. 

Rudolph Mate' directs a script by Russell Rouse and Clarence Greene. The film stars Edmund O'Brien as the doomed CPA Frank Bigelow. Pamela Britton plays opposite O'Brien's secretary/love interest,  Paula Gibson.  Frank Cady of Green Acres fame and veteran TV character actor Peter Leeds show up as bartenders Eddie and Leo. Neville Brand gives a chilling performance as Chester, a sadistic creep who enjoys punching a dying man in the belly.

Neville Brand as the sadistic Chester

That brings an end to this part of the crawl. Until next time, be sure to settle your tab. Also, check out my ongoing noir story at https://noircar.blogspot.com/.