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The streets of San Francisco
helped director Peter Yates revolutionize cinema with the original, the
mother of all car chases in the 1968 action film Bullitt.
Highlights are magic flip-flops between Russian Hill and Potrero Hill, as
well as some wild hills on Taylor Street and frequent appearances by the
same green VW Beetle. As played by Steve McQueen, Bullitt was a tough cop
before Dirty Harry. Assigned to protect a witness, Bullitt soon realizes
things are not as they appear in this story of political corruption also
starring Robert Vaughn, Robert Duvall, and Jacqueline Bisset. Bullitt is
a stylish classic that has held up nicely. Well, except for a scene in which
five men stand around a huge fax machine that has an acoustic coupler and
carbon paper! Nearly a full minute of screen time goes by as the cops wait
in silence for the incoming fax! Surely this was cutting edge police communications
equipment in 1968. The license number on Bullitt's green Mustang is JJZ
109. Bullit's was a moss green '67 fastback. Keep your eyes peeled;
there are a couple of cars matching Bullit's around town. Det. Lt. Frank
Bullitt lived at 1153 Taylor Street and used
the corner market across the street at Clay and Taylor. The Robert
Vaughn character lived at 2700 Vallejo Street.
Bisset and McQueen dine out at the Coffee Cantata restaurant, 2026
Union Street.
In the film's opening sequence,
the Bush Street exit of the garage in the 450 Sutter Medical Building
represents a fictional location in Chicago. The east side of the building
at 645 Bush Street along the Chelsea Street alley remains scarred from
cars hitting the wall during the filming of this scene.
Detail I
Detail II
Detail III
Detail IV: 450 Sutter Street
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