Mission Mission

Not sure if you’ve seen this already, but let this stand as testament to how much cyclists care about their bicycles and just how far they’ll go to recover their rides.  Check out the whole thing either here or below:

Two things about this:

1) When our protagonist attempts to make a citizen arrest, he doesn’t tackle the guy as an overzealous I may have done in that situation.  He keeps his cool and keeps documenting.

2) I’m totally wearing my lucky hat tomorrow.  And I’m never ever wearing a black shirt with green stripes.

Also, don’t forget to write down your bike’s serial number, which is the only way you can really prove that you’re its rightful owner.  And not on your wrist!  Save that for show stamps and slap bracelets!

(Thanks Jin!)

Previously:

• BART bike parking is not secure
• Shitty bike thieves caught on camera, identification help needed
• Where was your bike stolen?
• Bike stolen along with rack it was locked to INSIDE a building

Check out this music video that the youth media producers at BAYCAT (where I work) made this summer, shot in Dolores Park. These native San Franciscan producers (10-13 years old) wrote and produced the song with amazing Bay Area producer Trackademicks and shot the video with DP Laura Valladao. The video is part of the 24th installment of their youth-produced show, Zoom In. The theme for this one is “Only in SF”.

You might have heard that they had all of their laptops stolen a couple weeks ago, along with a lot of their work. We have an Indigogo campaign going to replace their equipment, and have been really touched with the support. They came back together and re-did the lost work, look for more of it rolling out over the net few weeks on the BAYCAT YouTube channel.

Reader David Gallagher of the Western Neighborhoods Project sent us these 1985 videos of a young Mr. Lucky interviewing some inebriated patrons of  Original McCarthy’s, which you may now know as Cha Cha Cha. Original McCarthy’s opened on Mission street in June of 1933.

[part 1] [part 2] [part 3]

Nothing too exciting in the videos, but it’s an interesting snapshot of the era. Before the Mission was known as a Mexican neighborhood, it was largely populated by German and Irish immigrants until the ’60s. McCarthy’s was one of the last original Irish bars in the Mission. Even at the time of filming this, McCarthy himself remarks, “I’m close to 70. It’s about time to clock out.”

The interviewer, Mr. Lucky, still croons around town with his retro-jazz group the Cocktail Party. You can catch him at the Lucky Horseshoe in early August.

[thanks David!]

Our pal Chris Garcia, soon to be ex-local comedian, stars in this new short as the titular bass instructor giving an . . . interesting lesson to a young musician. Really nice chemistry between these two. Shot in Secret Studios.

Chris is leaving us to move to some other place in California that supposedly has a better film scene, or whatever. His final show up here before moving is July 23rd at The Punchline. I’ve seen him live a couple times, check him out if you haven’t.

Our pal Mills captured this video last night, of a MUNI driver fearlessly steering around a neighborhood fireworks show. The video also features dogs barking, Mills screaming, and a healthy amount of pyrotechnics. Woo America!

Remember when we saw man-sized ketchup and ranch bottles duking it out in the new Dolores Park playground last month? Well I’m not sure how we missed this, but the full-length commercial that they turned out to be filming came out a month ago and it shows these condiments duking it out all over San Francisco. Here it is:

Not sure who to call the winner. Looks like at least dogs prefer ketchup.

By the way, I know we just posted a commercial, but don’t think we’re on the take. It’s just a funny commercial.

That being said, I can tell you from personal, unbiased experience that Hidden Valley® brand ranch dressing truly is the world’s finest condiment for fries, steaks, and sushi. In fact, independent studies have shown that it can increase the intelligence in newborn babies if rubbed on the belly daily during pregnancy. Why don’t you live a little and make your dinner tonight a ranch-drizzled dinner? Hidden Valley® makes everything taste better™.

At Saturday’s Believer/Tumblr event at the Makeout Room, there were more than a couple of stories about encountering crazy people on the streets of SF. Turtle-enthusiast/multiple-dog-owner Mills Baker read this entertaining piece about an aspiring religious musical songwriter and future mother of quintuplets:

Now that I think about it, everyone I know who lives in or has visited the city has a favorite crazy person story. I guess that’s one good thing that came from the Reagan administration.

Perhaps you’ve heard of DESCENDENTS, who are only one of the most influential punk rock bands ever.  Apparently, they’re also one of the most under-documented bands around, and two filmakers aimed to change that 2 years ago with a feature-length documentary!  40 interviews later, they’re almost ready to release FILMAGE: The Story of DESCENDENTS/ALL.

Check out the trailer above to get a taste for what’s in store, and stay posted on any updates to this rad project here.

Or do they prefer “chef”?  Either way, it’s probably best not to call them a retard, even if you’re a tough gangster dude, because you never know when they may secrete blades from their tattoos and slice up your whole party.  Do yourself a favor and watch this rad video from the folks over at Sunday Paper.

(Thanks Laurie! Via Mission Local)

Previously:

• Faces of Lung Shan
• Danny Bowien shows Martha Stewart how he slaps his noodle

Protip to bands:  One great way to get folks around here to notice your music is to film a great video with a bunch of scenes from San Francisco and, in particular, the Mission (such as my favorite pedestrian overpass, for instance).  Bonus points if the song is actually kind of good!

On that note, enjoy some dreamy melodies from local band Evil Eyes while you enjoy the beautiful weather on your unexpected day off!

Link.