30—A Frisco Murder On a Foggy Spring Night, the Nick DeJohn Killing of 1947, Part 1
Nick DeJohn never knew when he had enough. He’d slipped out of Chicago in the nick of time, so to speak, with a stolen $250K skim in his pocket and a lot of enemies at his back. Safe in Santa Rosa, California, with his wife and children, he could have stayed quiet and...
29—Belle Cora, Notorious Gold Rush Madam Tries To Save Her Man
The city was young then, all bad whiskey, muddy boots, and men chasing gold like it was salvation itself. Meet Belle Cora, the most notorious madam west of the Mississippi. She came in hard from New Orleans with gambler Charles Cora and enough nerve to tame a town...
28—A Playlist From Hal Smith To Accompany His Interview On Lu Watters’ Yerba Buena Jazz Band
Yesterday, I published wherein I interviewed drummer and jazz historian Hal Smith. We discussed the music scene in San Francisco in the 30s and 40s and how one man, Lu Watters and his band The Yerba Buena Jazz Band, saved traditional jazz after the emergence of swing...
27—Lu Watters and his Yerba Buena Jazz Band Save Trad Jazz, An Interview With Hal Smith
In this episode, I interview drummer and jazz historian Hal Smith. We discuss the music scene in San Francisco in the 30s and 40s and how one man, Lu Watters and his band The Yerba Buena Jazz Band, saved traditional jazz after the emergence of swing music. The...
26: The Ding Dong Daddy of the D-Car Line
We are going to look at the life and times of little Francis Van Wie, the Diminutive Dutchman known also as the Ding Dong Daddy of the D-Car Line, the Car Barn Casanova, and the Trolley Toreador, and other nicknames. Francis managed to get hitched eighteen times over...
25: Bones Remmer Bribe Attempt Refused! Freddie Says No To Gambler’s Cash
In this episode, I talk about the time well-known grifter, Charles Auberguy, he of the Frisco netherworld and serial inheritance scams, contacted San Francisco Examiner columnist Freddie Francisco, ex-con and brilliant chronicler of high society foibles and underworld...
24 – Wren vs. Francisco: Does The Word “Poontang” Belong In A Family Newspaper?
In this episode, I’m diving into one of my favorite San Francisco stories—the kind that lives right at the intersection of journalism, mischief, and outright audacity. It centers on two unforgettable characters from the San Francisco Examiner: the hard-driving,...
23: Frisco Noir with Rachel Walther; “Sudden Fear” (1952) & “House On Telegraph Hill” (1951)
In this episode of Frisco: The Secret History, Knox Bronson welcomes back film writer Rachel Walther to explore two classic film noir movies set in San Francisco: Sudden Fear (1952) starring Joan Crawford and Jack Palance, and House on Telegraph Hill (1951) starring...
22: Dolly Fine Pt. 4: Dolly Comes In From The Cold & Waltzes Out Into The Night
In Part Four of the Dolly Fine story, I bring the Dolly Fine story to a close. Where we last left off, Dolly had been arrested and charged on eight felony counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The DA had her dead to rights and such was the political...