Fhelsing's Fotothing

taking a walk along the waterfront in San Francisco, California
Sunday, December 16, 2007

This is one of the street signs for "Herb Caen Way...", which was named in honor of the San Francisco newpaper columnist who was much read and much loved for more than 50 years.

The street sign features the drawing that appeared at the top of his columns. He described his columns as being "three-dot journalism" and I think that helps makes them a lot of fun to read.

Here's a sample from a column that appeared in 1958:

BUSINESS AS USUAL: Despite the four items that could kill any night club -- recession, Lent, rain, income tax -- the Mary Kaye Trio is jamming Fack's II every night, which is only right; Maryvelous, Kayelossal, Triomphant . . . Roberta Ruebush, a waitress at Lotta's Fountain in the Palace, bought a pedometer at Abercrombie & Fitch -- and now she and her sister slaves take turns wearing it; champ to date: Waitress Phyllis Sjursen, who clocked 11 miles on her 7 1/2-hr. shift . . . Look magazine, preparing a picture spread on S.F.'s Beat Generation (oh, no, not AGAIN!), hosted a party in a No. Beach house for 50 Beatniks*, and by the time word got around the sour grapevine, over 250 bearded cats and kits were on hand, slopping up Mike Cowles' free booze. They're only Beat, y'know, when it comes to work . . . Norm Corlett, Spreckels-Russell sales mgr., thinks the new Bayshore Freeway is terrific: "It gets me to the traffic jams so much FASTER.''

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* Herb Caen is credited with coming up with the word "beatnik." He also popularized the word "hippie" during the Summer of Love.