From Tales of the City (particularly, episode 1)

31:17—One of Mrs. Madrigal’s guests is playing Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die Rag.

o The song choice serves as characterization for Mrs. Madrigal’s friends, and

thus also, indirectly herself.

o Written in 1967 by Country Joe McDonald for the American psychedelic rock

band, Country Joe and the Fish, “The Fish Cheer” is one of the most

recognizable anti-Vietnam protest songs, employing dark humor and satire

within traditional ragtime. (Wikipedia)

o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBdeCxJmcAo (Beeblebrox)

o The use of drugs (in the scene), preference of music, current decade, and

implied anti-war (or at least anti-Vietnam) sentiments support the image of

Mrs. Madrigal and her friends being hippies.

42:11—The camera focuses on a match box from Washington Square Bar and Grill

where Beauchamp had gone earlier with Mary Ann.

o Washbag, as it was widely called, coincidentally opened in 1973—the same

year as The Endup.

o Exemplified by Beauchamp, the landmark restaurant was a favorite gathering

for the social elite (and politicians), as well as writers and musicians.

(Wikipedia)

42:53—Beauchamp references the Transamerica Pyramid, which is later seen in the

background at 46:41.

o At 853 feet high, the Transamerica Pyramid is San Francisco’s tallest

building.

o It was opened to its first tenants in 1972; however, it is closed to the public,

for security reasons. (Transamerica Corporation)

1:18:33—Michael enters the dance club The Endup. Around the same time, Hot

Chocolate’s hit You Sexy Thing (1975) starts playing.

o “The EndUp was originally an entirely gay dance club, catering mainly to

Asian-Americans and their admirers.” (Wikipedia)

o You Sexy Thing made it onto the U.K.’s top ten list three decades in a row

(70s, 80s, and 90s), and would have made first place the year of its release, if

not for Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody suddenly jumping up from ninth place.

(Wikipedia)

o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIN36NweL6I (fritz5139)

Extended Research

In 1975, Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody made A Night at the Opera their first platinum

album, and established them as “one of the most popular bands in pop and rock

history.” (Kokozej)

o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ9rUzIMcZQ (Queen Official)

San Francisco Heritage was founded in the early 1970s in response to the large-scale

demolition of Victorian houses (among many other historic buildings) that

accompanied a massive downtown building boom. SF Heritage has played a key role

in preserving the character of San Francisco by rescuing such buildings through

petitions, raising awareness, building maintenance and restoration (maybe?), and

contributing advice to construction planning. (San Francisco Heritage)

1970s San Francisco served as the filming location for a number of cop shows, such

as Dirty Harry (1971).

o A huge hit and arguably Clint Eastwood’s signature role (Wikipedia), Dirty

Harry was also highly political: 1) it brought attention to victim’s rights

(IMDb); 2) it referenced the contemporary court trials of Escobedo v. Illinois

and Miranda v. Arizona (IMDb); 3) and it has been critiqued as possibly being

misogynistic, racist, and/or fascist. (Wikipedia) (IMDb) (Curnow)

BibliographyBeeblebrox, Leyla. "Country Joe McDonald - "Feel Like I'm Fixing To Die"." 20 February 2007.

YouTube. Video clip. 5 April 2016.

Curnow, James. "Dirty Harry: The quiet apologies of Clint Eastwood." 12 September 2012.

Curnblog. Document. 6 April 2016.

fritz5139. "Hot Chocolate - You sexy thing 1975." 21 August 2009. YouTube. Video clip. 6 April

2016.

IMDb. "Dirty Harry (1971) Trivia." 2016. IMDb. Postings. 6 April 2016.

Kokozej, Daria. "Bohemian Rhapsody." 2013. Freddie Mercury and Queen. Document. 6 April

2016.

Queen Official. "Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody (Official Video)." 1 August 2008. YouTube.

Video Clip. 6 April 2016.

San Francisco Heritage. "A History of Heritage." 2016 (implied). San Francisco Heritage.

Document. 6 April 2016.

Tales of the City. Dirs. Alastair Reid and Pierre Gang. Perf. Olympia Dukakis, Donal Moffat and

et al. 1993. Online video.

Transamerica Corporation. "Pyramid Facts." 2016. Transamerica Pyramid Center. 5 April 2016.

Wikipedia. "Dirty Harry." 1 March 2016. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Document. 6 April

2016.

—. "The "Fish" Cheer/I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die Rag." 10 March 2016. Wikipedia, the Free

Encyclopedia . Document. 5 April 2016.

—. "The Endup." 21 November 2015. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Document. 5 April

2016.

—. "Washington Square Bar and Grill." 23 March 2014. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.

Document. 5 April 2016.

—. "You Sexy Thing." 1 April 2016. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Document. 5 April

2016.