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Total SF

Total SF

A San Francisco culture podcast featuring celebrity guests, non-celebrity guests, personalities from the San Francisco Chronicle and a celebration of Bay Area life. Hosted by culture critic Peter Hartlaub and columnist Heather Knight and recorded on the streets, hilltops, parks and landmarks of San Francisco. The pair's focus on the whimsy and wonder of San Francisco began in 2018 when they rode every bus, train, cable car and street car in the city in one day. They believe in highlighting the eccentric characters, independent bookstores, burger joints and bars that make the bay so great.

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sfchronicle.com/podcasts

Episodes

14 things you must do in S.F. in 2022

With overcast weather and omicron raging, hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight look forward to better days, and make a list of 16 things you should do in San Francisco in 2022. Among the suggestions is the most underrated place in S.F. to watch the sunset, the most entertaining Muni line, a new must-ride ferry route, the best section to watch a Giants game and ... the dissection of a cow eyeball? Total SF has an audio tour in Golden Gate Park! Learn more and sign up at sfchronicle.com/audiotours Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2022-01-07
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A perfect day in San Francisco (Best of 2021)

Total SF hosts Heather Knight and Peter Hartlaub break down their perfect day in San Francisco in this flashback episode, , creating an hour-by-hour list of things to do and places to go in the city, without telling each other until the podcast started rolling. It gets competitive, as Knight picks a more historical and cultural route, while Hartlaub chooses to get inebriated in the morning and eat sandwiches. But it's collectively a celebration of the city, with tips for your next off day in good weather. Some common ground includes the historic F-line street cars, a walk through Golden Gate Park, visits to independent bookstores and big finish on the roof of a drag club in SOMA. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2022-01-01
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Good times with "curmudgeon" Quentin Kopp (Best of 2021)

Quentin Kopp is a former San Francisco supervisor, state senator and judge ? but he's known to local journalists as the most prolific angry letter-writer in the city. In this flashback episode from July 21, 2021, Total SF co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight visit the self-professed "curmudgeon" to talk about his life, his letter-writing process, what he really thinks of them ... and to wish him a happy 93rd birthday! After making peace, with no apologies, Kopp lets us know his advice for living a long and active life. (It involves more letters to The Chronicle.) Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-12-29
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Can the Tree Twins save San Francisco?

Married couple Michael Morris and David Sweeney started putting on festive light-up tree costumes for a TV-20 "Dance Party" episode seven years ago. They got such a great reaction, they upped the costume details, upped the glitter and heels and upped their holiday spirit ? surprising different neighborhoods in San Francisco throughout the holiday season as the Tree Twins. After Heather Knight spent a fun evening in North Beach with the twins, Total SF hosts Knight and Peter Hartlaub join Morris and Sweeney in their home, to talk about costume-making, what San Francisco neighborhoods are the best and worst for a tree visit ? and why the city needs spontaneous joy more than ever. Total SF has an audio tour in Golden Gate Park! Learn more and sign up at sfchronicle.com/audiotours Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-12-22
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Newman. Redford. Hanks ... and Ruthe Stein

After interviewing celebrities (mostly) for the San Francisco Chronicle for the past 50 years, Ruthe Stein has written a memoir of her experiences ? "Sitting Down with the Stars: Interviews with 100 Hollywood Legends." Stein sits down with Total SF host Peter Hartlaub to talk about why she asks the uncomfortable questions, who are the nicest and most difficult stars and how she developed her own interest in Hollywood gossip. Hartlaub also asks Stein (his former editor) one tough question from the book: to defend her take that Jerry Lewis was kind of hot. "Sitting Down with the Stars" is available on Grizzly Peak Press. Total SF has an audio tour in Golden Gate Park! Learn more and sign up at sfchronicle.com/audiotours Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-12-17
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Muni driver on his "Shang-Chi" viral moment

Mc "Mack" Allen spent most of the pandemic with his dream of becoming a Muni driver put on hold. But he's driving buses now ? part of the new class of Muni drivers ? and his tweet thread about the "Shang-Chi" movie bus chase went viral, with a shout-out from Shang-Chi actor Simu Liu himself. Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight rode the 44 O'Shaugnessy with Allen, then sat down to talk to him about becoming a bus driver, his first ride on a bus and why he thinks driving a bus will bring him ever closer to San Francisco. Total SF has an audio tour in Golden Gate Park! Learn more and sign up at sfchronicle.com/audiotours Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-12-10
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Secrets of Golden Gate Park!

Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight head to Golden Gate Park to announce their new audio tour of the park, "Secrets of Golden Gate Park: gunfire, graft and a 90-year-old fish." In this episode Knight explains why the park is distinctly San Francisco, Hartlaub shares some history and they introduce the new tour, which operates on the VoiceMap app and uses GPS technology to give a seamless audio tour through the outdoors. The 2.6-mile hike, on the 49 Mile Makeover route created by Knight and Hartlaub, visits the Conservatory of Flowers, AIDS Memorial Grove, Stow Lake, California Academy of Sciences and lesser known spots including the former Sweeny Observatory and Monarch Grove. It's fun and affordable ? and Chronicle subscribers get a big discount. Learn more and sign up at sfchronicle.com/audiotours Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-12-03
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A boatload of S.F. history with Gary Kamiya

Gary Kamiya, who penned the ultimate San Francisco history book "Cool Gray City of Love," is giving nautical history tours. Total SF hosts Heather Knight and Peter Hartlaub take a boat trip through the Bay with Kamiya, learning about Juana Briones and other under-appreciated early city heroes, Then they record on his patio in North Beach ? talking about his first memories of San Francisco, why El Farolito is nothing like Carl's Jr., and why San Franciscans are generally wrong when they say the city has let them down. (But we should listen carefully to them anyway.) More information at www.garykamiya.com. He also talks about his involvement as host in the new documentary "Moving San Francisco." Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-11-24
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Secrets of the Cliff House!

The future of the Cliff House restaurant space is in limbo, but it remains a destination, after the Cliff House Museum moved into the gift shop and set up an exhibit showing the history of entertainment on San Francisco's northwest corner. Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight sit down with Western Neighborhoods Project executive director Nicole Meldahl to talk about the recent auction that contributes heavily to the museum collection. Hartlaub, Knight and Meldahl also discuss the potential future of the Cliff House. The Cliff House Museum is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Sunday through early April, and is free to the public. More information here. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-11-19
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The best views in San Francisco, ranked

Total SF co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight pick their all-time favorite views in San Francisco, including Mt. Davidson, the Bernal Heights rock and two different views from modes of public transit. Hartlaub and Knight made their picks during a recording in Glen Park Canyon after going on this year's Peak 2 Peak hike through San Francisco, an annual benefit for members of Walk SF in its 17th year. Walk SF has reopened Peak 2 Peak ticketing for a week ? join Walk SF and register here. And share your own favorite views in San Francisco using the hashtag #TotalSF and tagging @PeterHartlaub and @hknightsf on Twitter. The Total SF Book Club event is set for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at the Koret Auditorium at the SFPL main branch, with a virtual option. Register for free here. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-11-12
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Colma?s dead tell us their tales

For Total SF's first Halloween episode, hosts Heather Knight and Peter Hartlaub meet with Terry Hamburg, director of the Cypress Lawn Heritage Foundation, for a tour of some of the Colma-based memorial park's most memorable graves. They visit Chronicle founders Charles and Michael de Young to get some of The Chronicle's gun-toting history, and talk about a decapitated cemetery resident and Hells Angels funerals. Plus, they pay respects to Willie McCovey and Lefty O'Doul. (Who really needs to be in the Hall of Fame.) Hamburg says people are welcome to stroll through the Cypress Lawn cemeteries, which encouraged visitors ? including pets ? to visit their open space during the pandemic. The Total SF Book Club event is set for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at the Koret Auditorium at the SFPL main branch, with a virtual option. Register for free here. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-10-29
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Secrets of the Painted Ladies!

George Horsfall lives in one of the Painted Ladies homes in San Francisco, and he's not just happy to live in the tourist landmark ? he wants to share it with the world. Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight get a full tour from Horsfall of his blue Victorian on the edge of Alamo Square, made famous by uncountable movie appearances, tourist souvenirs and the opening credits of "Full House." He explains that it's a surprisingly quiet life, and that the tourists are mostly wonderful. After being the recipient of the small "pay it forward" moment years ago, he's decided to give tours of the home, which can be secured by checking out his Instagram @bluepaintedladyhousetour. The Total SF Book Club event is set for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at the Koret Auditorium at the SFPL main branch, with a virtual option. Register for free here. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-10-22
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Why we swam in the San Francisco Bay

Hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight dive in the San Francisco Bay with "Why We Swim" author Bonnie Tsui, as a warm-up for their Total SF Book Club event on November 17 at the San Francisco Public Library. Tsui talks about an Icelandic legend who survived a frigid multi-hour swim, why San Francisco is a great swimming city and how newcomers can get started ? and maybe work up to their own Bay swim. Hartlaub and Knight also recap their very cold but invigorating swim, including a cameo from former author Daniel Handler. The Total SF Book Club event is set for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at the Koret Auditorium at the SFPL main branch, with a virtual option. Register for free here. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-10-15
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Cellos, JFK Drive and the car-free future

Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight drive into a nearly empty museum concourse parking garage to make a point: that there's plenty of room for cars to park in Golden Gate Park, and John F. Kennedy Drive should remain car-free. They talk about Knight's recent scoop about a potential car-free solution, and Hartlaub's upcoming history column featuring controversy surrounding the first cars in Golden Gate Park in the early 1900s. Stick around for our interview with the 15-year-old cello prodigy who was taking advantage of the nearly-empty garage acoustics and playing classical music during our recording. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-10-08
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Books on a bike in the Tenderloin District

Alicia Tapia combines books and biking with the Bibliobicicleta, a rolling library that was funded by a Kickstarter and has brought joy and reading to San Francisco. Tapia meets Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight in the Tenderloin, where her bibliobicicleta has found new purpose, parking on the Safe Passage parklet on Turk Street and providing books for children and adults in the neighborhood. Tapia talks about how she started the Bibliobicicleta, why she doesn't need to expand it into a larger franchise and why the Tenderloin feels safer for her than many other places in the city. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-10-01
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Finding treasure at S.F.'s SCRAP center

Total SF visits SCRAP, the hidden arts and crafts wonderland in the Bayview District of San Francisco. Hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight tour the non-profit and meet staffers and volunteers (including formerly homeless artist Wayne Foote) who have seen first-hand how discovering art can positively impact children and communities. After touring the facility, Hartlaub and Knight try to beat the clock in an Iron Chef-style collage challenge. Don't miss SCRAP's upcoming "RePurposeful" art show at the Randall Museum, with an October 1 gala and exhibit that lasts through December. Tickets and more information at www.scrap-sf.org Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-09-24
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Street performers: The underrated heartbeat of S.F.

While the cable cars made headlines, another heartbeat of the city has also returned ? the San Francisco street performer. Total SF co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight hop an F-line from the Powell Street cable car turnaround to Pier 39, to visit some of the city's most successful street artists. We hear from: Marc Coleman, the bard of the Ferry Building; Oakland Originalz dancer and stunt performer Javon Mabon; and and Larry "Bucketman" Hunt, who has been playing drums and eating fire in San Francisco since 1979. (And had a cameo in "The Pursuit of Happyness.") We get some history, and in the end learn the secret superpower of the San Francisco street performer. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-09-17
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A perfect day in San Francisco

Total SF hosts Heather Knight and Peter Hartlaub break down their perfect day in San Francisco, creating an hour-by-hour list of things to do and places to go in the city, without telling each other until the podcast started rolling. It gets competitive, as Knight picks a more historical and cultural route, while Hartlaub chooses to get inebriated in the morning and eat sandwiches. But it's collectively a celebration of the city, with tips for your next off day in good weather. Some common ground includes the historic F-line street cars, a walk through Golden Gate Park, visits to independent bookstores and big finish on the roof of a drag club in SOMA. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-09-10
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True stories from the Chronicle's funniest writer

Steve Rubenstein, the longest tenured reporter at The Chronicle, joins Total SF co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight to talk about what the San Francisco Chronicle newsroom was like in 1976, give a review of the newly remodeled newsroom and explain why he loved every day of his 45-year journalism career (with a short leave to become a substitute public school teacher). Rubenstein also has good Herb Caen and Joe Rosenthal stories, and explains why he'd rather interview the president of the United States' chef than the actual president. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-09-03
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Secrets of Sutro Tower!

Sutro Tower may be the most beloved landmark among San Francisco residents, and now we all have a PhD in the Sutro's history and present. Sutro spokesman Dave Hyams joins co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight to talk about what exactly Sutro does in 2021, the constant maintenance and some wild trivia. Did you know that there's so much concrete underneath Sutro Tower that the center of gravity is below ground? And no mayor has ever been to the top. (Be the first London Breed!) Also in this episode, we give a Total SF Book Club update, and replay Daniel Handler's very funny S.F.-centric accordion version of "Should I Stay or Should I Go" Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-08-27
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A final trip back to the Circle Star Theatre

The Circle Star Theatre is hard to describe now that it's gone, with it's odd rotating stage and parade of music and comedy acts in the late Decembers of their careers. (Sinatra! Ella Fitzgerald! Richard Pryor!) But the quirky San Carlos freeway-side venue is beloved by those who experienced it from 1964 to 1993. "The Murders That Made Us" author Bob Calhoun joins Total SF host Peter Hartlaub to delve into the history of the Circle Star, highlighting some of it's strangest moments as they pay tribute to the strangest (and maybe best) place to see Kool and the Gang, With Total SF archive tributes from Greg Proops and Renel Brooks-Moon. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-08-20
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Ready for more 'People Behaving Badly'?

Reporter Stanley Roberts, who created the popular "People Behaving Badly" segment on KRON, wants to come back to San Francisco. Hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight catch up with Roberts, who moved to Phoenix in 2018, but saw his TV job trimmed because of COVID-19 related cutbacks. He's hoping to come back to the Bay Area as a reporter ... or maybe a politician? Roberts talks about his early years as a reporter, why he left the Bay Area, and what he misses the most. (Apparently Arizona puts lettuce in its burritos!) Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-08-13
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San Francisco's beloved libraries are back

City librarian Michael Lambert discusses how librarians stepped up as disaster service workers during the COVID-pandemic, but are reopening all branches but one this month. Lambert, a former competitive skateboarder, also showed off tricks outside the Park branch library. | Get full digital access to the Chronicle: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-08-06
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Into the lion's den with "curmudgeon" Quentin Kopp

Quentin Kopp is a former San Francisco supervisor, state senator and judge ? but he's known to local journalists as the most prolific angry letter-writer. in the city Total SF co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight visit the self-professed "curmudgeon" to talk about his life, his letter-writing process, what he really thinks of them ... and to wish him a happy 93rd birthday! After making peace, with no apologies, Kopp lets us know his advice for living a long and active life. (It involves more letters to The Chronicle.) Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-07-30
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Page Street tribute and the return of S.F.

Co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight record on the Page Street Slow Street, and draft their favorite things that are back since San Francisco reopened. After expressing opinions about the removal of Page Street's artwork, Hartlaub and Knight pay tribute to cable cars, Musee Mecanique and a new Oasis SF drag show. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-07-23
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"Online piano bar for hippies," with David Gans

Singer/songwriter David Gans has played 450 (nearly) consecutive Facebook Live streams since the pandemic began, and continues to play for the community he's built - even as in-person shows resume. Total SF host Peter Hartlaub watched one of Gans' streams and then interviewed Gans in his Oakland backyard ? talking about his life in orbit of the Grateful Dead, how livestreams have helped his playing, and how his livestream community fueled the most artistically rewarding time of his 50-year career. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is from a David Gans Facebook stream - his originals "Summer By the Bay" and "Your Movie," with covers of "Wharf Rat" and "The Weight." More info on David Gans, his music and touring schedule at www.dgans.com. Cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-07-16
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Never leaving San Francisco, with Daniel Handler

"A Series of Unfortunate Events" author Daniel Handler AKA Lemony Snicket joins Total SF to talk bookstores, swimming in the Bay and why he's tripling down on San Francisco when others are leaving. Total SF hosts Heather Knight and Peter Hartlaub interview Handler in the Philosophy Nook of Green Apple Books, one of Handler's favorites. Handler contributes to the next Total SF Book Club title, "The End of the Golden Gate." Sign up for the Tuesday, Aug. 24 event with Handler and Gary Kamiya here. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-07-09
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Adam Savage is ready for crowds again

TV host and maker Adam Savage has been holed up in his Mission District "cave" workshop for much of the pandemic. But he's ready for crowds again, planning the Aug. 28-29 SiliCon convention, which will be one of the first Bay Area events with large crowds since the shelter in place started last March. Savage returns to Total SF to speak with co-host Peter Hartlaub about the Mission District and the future of San Francisco, his own convention beginnings, and what he plans to bring to the SiliCon convention. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-06-25
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Secrets of Angel Island!

Angel Island State Park is our pick for the official post-pandemic paradise of Total SF, with its biking trails, includible views, old buildings and ... did we mention the views? Hosts Heather Knight and Peter Hartlaub are joined by retired ranger and historian John Martini, who offers some Angel Island history and makes a case for the park being very underused and underrated. Hartlaub and Knight also announce their next movie night, an IN PERSON screening of "San Andreas" at the Balboa Theatre in San Francisco. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-06-18
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SF's spiritual spaces, with Bishop Megan Rohrer

Bishop-elect Megan Rohrer returns to Total SF to share some of their favorite spiritual spaces in San Francisco ? places where people can feel centered and reflect and revive. Hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight meet Rohrer in Grace Lutheran Church, and talk about their new job, which will make Rohrer the first transgender bishop of any major denomination religion in U.S. history. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-06-11
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Crosstown Trail: The epic hike SF needs right now

The Crosstown Trail is the hike San Francisco needs right now, traversing the city on a 17-mile diagonal and daring the walker or biker to fall in love with the city again. Hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight interview one of the Crosstown Trail's chief advocates and creators, Bob Siegel. But first Hartlaub and Knight recap the 30-Day Small Business Challenge that just ended, and announce their new Total SF Book Club title. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-06-04
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Renel Brooks-Moon has more to say

Giants PA announcer Renel Brooks-Moon has been a pandemic MVP on social media, continuing to cheer on the Giants and the city of San Francisco, while also speaking her truth about Black Lives Matter and the death of George Floyd, and baseball's response. She joins hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight in McLaren Park to talk about announcing to an stadium with no fans, her favorite small businesses in Visitacion Valley and her thoughts about the future of S.F. after the pandemic. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-05-28
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The little Boat Tram that could ... save San Francisco

The beloved Boat Tram streetcar line is back after a pandemic hiatus and hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight are reporting on the first voyage of the beloved transit icon. Interviews include S.F. Mayor London Breed, Muni director Jeffrey Tumlin and Boat Tram operator Melvin Clark, who was inspired by Rice-O-Roni commercials to cross the country and join Muni. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-05-21
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Hunter and Alexis Pence go to bat for San Francisco

After Hunter Pence retired from the Giants last year, Hunter and Lexi Pence decided to stay in San Francisco, exploring the city with fresh eyes and tripling down on their support of indie coffee houses and charity for the community. On May 22-23, 2021, they'll host their first coffee pop-up at Basebalism near Oracle Park. Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight talk with the Pences about coffee, baseball and how much they've felt at home in S.F. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-05-19
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No Safeway? No Amazon? No problem!

Hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight record in Chinatown's Portsmouth Square to give an update on the halfway point of the 30-Day Small Business Challenge. The Total SF co-hosts discuss the rules of the challenge, some areas where they *might* have broken the rules and how taking the challenge might change behavior (and help local businesses) beyond the 30-day mark. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-05-14
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The murders that made San Francisco

"The Murders that Made Us" author Bob Calhoun joins Total SF host Peter Hartlaub on the patio of Red's Java House to talk about Gold Rush-era hoodlums, serial killers, cult leaders and other historic Bay Area criminals ? and how they shaped the region. The book is true crime, but it's also a thoughtful (and often darkly funny) exploration of San Francisco Bay Area history. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-05-07
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Moscone Center is the new Disneyland

As the so called "master of disaster" for S.F. Department of Emergency Management, executive director Mary Ellen Carroll had been preparing for an earthquake. But she got a pandemic, and found a home base in Moscone Center, which has become a place of joy for San Francisco residents getting their vaccines. Carroll gives hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight a tour of the facility, and then sits down for an interview about preparedness, Anthony Fauci cardboard cutouts and why San Franciscans can be proud of what they've done for each other. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-04-30
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Chronicle sports editor Christina Kahrl blazes a new trail

New San Francisco Chronicle sports editor Christina Kahrl was the first out transgender sports reporter, and takes over leadership of The Chronicle's Sporting Green at an important time for athletics, as sports becomes more intertwined with politics and social justice. Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight meet Kahrl near her new home in Oakland, and also talk about her Oakland A's fandom, sports analytics and her past as a drag queen in the years before she came out. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-04-23
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Mayor London Breed: Shop locally ? now!

San Francisco Mayor London Breed joins Total SF to introduce the Small Business 30-Day Challenge, where San Francisco residents are urged to avoid chain stores and shop local for an entire month. Total SF co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight make the pledge as well, and talk to Breed about her favorite small businesses as a child in San Francisco, her comeback after a roller skating fall and some thoughts about a post-pandemic future for San Francisco. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-04-14
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Car-free JFK Drive is not segregationist, with David Miles Jr.

Golden Gate Park activist David Miles Jr. has been roller skating in the park since 1979, and he's stunned by the accusations from two supervisors that car-free JFK Drive is segregationist and "recreational redlining." Co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight record in the park with Miles, and talk about park history, diversity on car-free streets and S.F. mayor London Breed's skating lows and highs. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-04-09
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Tom Ammiano: "Kiss My Gay Ass"

Tom Ammiano was ahead of his time as a San Francisco supervisor, Assemblyman and the first openly gay member of the SF Board of Education. But he still has stories to tell ? about working as a teacher in Vietnam during the war, struggling as a gay comic and his not-always-friendly rivalry with Dianne Feinstein. Total SF co-host Peter Hartlaub flies solo this week, listening to good stories and San Francisco history on location in Ammiano's backyard. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Follow Total SF adventures at www.sfchronicle.com/totalsf Tom Ammiano's book "Kiss My Gay Ass" is available at www.kissmygayass.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-04-02
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A total San Francisco book club! w/ "Home Baked" author Alia Volz

Total SF hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight introduce the Total SF Book Club, interviewing "Home Baked" author Alia Volz. The San Francisco memoir, featuring Volz growing up around her cannabis brownie-dealing parents, is the first book in the new club in partnership with the San Francisco Public Library and Green Apple Books. Volz joins Hartlaub and Knight for a conversation across the street from the Mission District warehouse where her parents used to bake hundreds of brownies a day for recreational and later medical drug use. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks and cable car bell ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-03-26
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Ultrarunner Luke Wicker, and a tribute to Mt. Davidson | Total SF

Ultrarunner Luke Wicker joins the Total SF crew to talk about how he conquered every San Francisco peak in one 65-mile day, and pay tribute by recording on the top of Mt. Davidson, Wicker's favorite peak, Co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight also talk bathrooms, post-ultrarun meals and find out why Wicker ran 76 peaks in one day (with 10,000 feet of elevation climb!) and why the UK native is leaving S.F., but has nothing but love on the way out. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks and 8-time cable car bell-ringing champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-03-19
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JFK Drive car-free forever, and Slow Streets draft | Total SF

The Total SF team makes a case for keeping JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park car-free forever, and conducts a Slow Streets draft, picking which of the SFMTA reduced traffic street should stay forever - and who should be the mayor of each street. Co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight also update on the Oasis SF telethon from the D'Arcy Drollinger episode, and offer some thoughts about the decision to return cars to Twin Peaks. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-03-12
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Craig Brewer, "Coming 2 America" director raised in Vallejo | Total SF

Craig Brewer, whose love for filmmaking started in Vallejo, talks about falling in love with movies, old school video rental shops and his new film "Coming 2 America." Brewer, who also directed "Hustle & Flow" and "Dolemite is My Name," has directed Eddie Murphy's last two films, and explains what it's like being on a set filled with legends. "Coming 2 America" is out on Amazon Prime Video March 5, 2021. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-03-05
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Drag performer D'Arcy Drollinger fights to save the Oasis | Total SF

In a special bonus Total SF, D'Arcy Drollinger talks about being a drag performer and small business owner, and the fight to save the Oasis nightclub with an old school telethon. Co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight join Drollinger on the roof of the nightclub at 11th and Folsom streets to learn about the struggles of one nightclub owner ? who is trying to raise $100,000 on Saturday, March 6, to stave off closure. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community" and cable car bell-ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-03-03
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Cable car tribute (and how the Chronicle almost killed them) | Total SF

With cable cars gone from San Francisco indefinitely, co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight pay tribute to the landmark transit, with wild history (including the time The Chronicle tried to kill the cable cars) and thoughts about cable cars going future. In the second half of the episode, they replay an interview with cable call bell-ringing champ Byron Cobb, who gives a bell-ringing demonstration. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community," and cable car bell ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-02-26
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Slow Streets tribute, and Amos Goldbaum interview | Total SF

Artist Amos Goldbaum talks about his new mural on the Sanchez Slow Street, as co-hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight make their first in-person podcast recording in a year. Hartlaub and Knight also pay tribute to Slow Streets, and talk about the recent Richmond District Slow Streets Art Hunt. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community," and cable car bell ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-02-19
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Dr. Bob Wachter on COVID, communicating and why he loves SF | Total SF

Dr. Bob Wachter, UCSF Medical Center chair of the Department of Medicine, joins hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight to talk about how he got to San Francisco, his emergence as a go-to on Twitter for COVID information and his new gig as a fill-in host for Andy Slavitt's "In the Bubble" podcast. Wachter also talks about being a communicator, how San Francisco might be viewed when the crisis is over and submits to Heather's lightning round - revealing his favorite San Francisco movie and burrito. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community," and cable car bell ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-02-12
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"Always Be My Maybe" tribute, with Vanessa Hua | Total SF

""A River of Stars" and "Deceit and Other Possibilities" author Vanessa Hua joins hosts Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight to pay tribute to "Always Be My Maybe," the 2019 Netflix movie starring Ali Wong and Randall Park. "Always Be My Maybe" is also the next Total SF virtual movie night, starting at 7 p.m. on Saturday Feb. 13. Also, support the Richmond District and its small businesses with the hashtag #ILoveTheRichmond. Produced by Peter Hartlaub. Music is "The Tide Will Rise" by the Sunset Shipwrecks off their album "Community," and cable car bell ringing by 8-time champion Byron Cobb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2021-02-05
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