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| Embarcadero - San Francisco |
“Isn't it nice that people who prefer Los Angeles to San Francisco live there?”
Recently, during a weekend get-a-way to San Francisco, while strolling along the Embarcadero, we ran across this street sign and Lori spontaneously said, “Take a picture of that sign and send it to Russ - he will know who that is for sure.” My response, “Ok, who is Herb Caen?”
“I remember reading his daily syndicated column living in Los Angeles,” said Lori. “He was a California icon.” A quick Google search, turns out, Caen was journalist for the San Francisco Chronicle. He wrote, just shy of 1,000 words a day from 1938-1997 about; local events, social and political happenings, and offbeat narratives that made him a household name throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. A special Pulitzer Prize called him the "voice and conscience" of San Francisco.
Huh - I never would have known.
“All of this gets written, two-fingered, on an old Royal typewriter,” Mr. Caen says in a 1993 interview by Jane Gross of the New York Times. Now I see the connection. Translate this to today’s technology, I conjure an image of my good friend Russell Shor pounding his imaginary typewriter - or is it his iPhone? Not metal, but a touch-screen, that takes a beating as he prepares his weekly Industry Analysis Reports.
"People came from miles around," to see the only remaining typewriter in the Chronicle building. The youngest gawkers, Mr. Caen said, have never seen carbon paper, a vestige of the pre-computer newsroom. You use it to make dupes, he tells them. What are dupes? they ask.
Today, newspapers have been replaced by digital data, and ones' audience has grown exponentially with the internet; blog posts, electronic newsletters, e-mail, text messages, and social media sites. However, I’ve always admired the consummate journalist. How they can take a subject and within a few minutes paint vivid pictures with words. And, with just a little editing, can draw you into their world of fact, fiction, and the unexpected recesses of the imagination. What an incredible talent.
Russ is connected - a smartphone in each hand, work in his right and personal in his left, pounding the digital pavement, communicating with friends and contacts around the world. Admittedly, his appeal seems to lie in the endless bonhomie he projects. We may be enjoying a hike at Daly Ranch, or lunch, or having our morning coffee, I catch him texting and ask, “Who are you chatting with?” It’s usually a friend from London, South Africa, or India. Something Caen would never do as an old time journalist pounding the streets of San Francisco for stories.
Personally, I love having our consummate reporter and tech user in Carlsbad. You might say, this is my humble way of nominating him for the Pulitzer Prize or its equivalent recognition in the jewelry industry. To paraphrase Herb Caen, Isn't it nice that people who prefer anywhere on earth to San Diego live there?”
Recently, during a weekend get-a-way to San Francisco, while strolling along the Embarcadero, we ran across this street sign and Lori spontaneously said, “Take a picture of that sign and send it to Russ - he will know who that is for sure.” My response, “Ok, who is Herb Caen?”
“I remember reading his daily syndicated column living in Los Angeles,” said Lori. “He was a California icon.” A quick Google search, turns out, Caen was journalist for the San Francisco Chronicle. He wrote, just shy of 1,000 words a day from 1938-1997 about; local events, social and political happenings, and offbeat narratives that made him a household name throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. A special Pulitzer Prize called him the "voice and conscience" of San Francisco.
Huh - I never would have known.
“All of this gets written, two-fingered, on an old Royal typewriter,” Mr. Caen says in a 1993 interview by Jane Gross of the New York Times. Now I see the connection. Translate this to today’s technology, I conjure an image of my good friend Russell Shor pounding his imaginary typewriter - or is it his iPhone? Not metal, but a touch-screen, that takes a beating as he prepares his weekly Industry Analysis Reports.
"People came from miles around," to see the only remaining typewriter in the Chronicle building. The youngest gawkers, Mr. Caen said, have never seen carbon paper, a vestige of the pre-computer newsroom. You use it to make dupes, he tells them. What are dupes? they ask.
Today, newspapers have been replaced by digital data, and ones' audience has grown exponentially with the internet; blog posts, electronic newsletters, e-mail, text messages, and social media sites. However, I’ve always admired the consummate journalist. How they can take a subject and within a few minutes paint vivid pictures with words. And, with just a little editing, can draw you into their world of fact, fiction, and the unexpected recesses of the imagination. What an incredible talent.
Russ is connected - a smartphone in each hand, work in his right and personal in his left, pounding the digital pavement, communicating with friends and contacts around the world. Admittedly, his appeal seems to lie in the endless bonhomie he projects. We may be enjoying a hike at Daly Ranch, or lunch, or having our morning coffee, I catch him texting and ask, “Who are you chatting with?” It’s usually a friend from London, South Africa, or India. Something Caen would never do as an old time journalist pounding the streets of San Francisco for stories.
Personally, I love having our consummate reporter and tech user in Carlsbad. You might say, this is my humble way of nominating him for the Pulitzer Prize or its equivalent recognition in the jewelry industry. To paraphrase Herb Caen, Isn't it nice that people who prefer anywhere on earth to San Diego live there?”
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