Tongues are always wagging in San Francisco — and The Waggle is your straightest shot to gossip. Got a tip or some tea to spill in our weekly gossip column? Email us at [email protected].
The first week of spring in San Francisco had people touching grass in droves. As venture capitalist and former journalist Alexia Banatsos put it (opens in new tab), “If this warm SF weather continues, we can kiss AGI goodbye.” Parks were full, outdoor dining was packed, and there were so many hang gliders at Fort Funston it looked like giant moths were attacking the beach.
EPSTEIN WHO? Full disclosure: Your humble Waggle correspondent comes from a Bill Clinton-loving family. In fact, at 9 years old, I attended Clinton’s 1993 inauguration, watching the festivities from atop saxophonist Kenny G’s shoulders while my brother got a lift from Michael Bolton, for reasons that my parents have never quite explained. (This LA Times article (opens in new tab) from the time confirms that the musicians were there and my memory isn’t faulty.) That said, these days it’s a little more fraught to be seen in public with Clinton because of, you know, his well-documented ties (opens in new tab) to Jeffrey Epstein. But that didn’t stop former Mayor Willie Brown from inviting Clinton to his birthday brunch this week at Waterbar. The ex-prez dined alongside Gov. Gavin Newsom — a presumed presidential hopeful who has apparently decided that being photographed with Clinton is a risk worth taking. They ate, according to SFGate, vegan chocolate cake (opens in new tab).
LIGHTS CAMERA ACTION: Another movie is shooting in San Francisco — seems those tax incentives are working, Mayor Daniel Lurie — but what is it? Josh Palefsky (opens in new tab) over at KRON 4 (opens in new tab) went down a rabbit hole trying to find out, following a paper trail that led straight to indie studio A24, and that’s about it. Rumors have been circulating for a while that cinematographer Danny Moder (and Julia Roberts’ husband) is working on a new film set here, but he did not respond to a request for comment, and sources at A24 would not confirm anything about the shoot.
The movie was scheduled to shoot Thursday around Jackson Square and North Beach.
The Waggle has some experience with A24 films shot here. Last year, we accidentally wandered onto the set of “The Invite,” directed by and starring Olivia Wilde and featuring Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, and Edward Norton. Wilde and Rogen were filming at the BART station in Glen Park. Sadly, Wilde didn’t offer The Waggle a speaking role.
A GOOD TWITTER MOMENT: When San Francisco Compute CEO Evan Conrad was taking photos March 21 at Stinson Beach, he accidentally got a shot that looked like the cover of a romance novel: two young lovers on a picnic blanket, the green hills behind them, a basket of flowers nearby. Conrad suspected they were getting engaged. He didn’t bother them at the time but later posted the image to Twitter (remember, The Waggle does not call it X — it’s against our religion), asking if anyone who knew them could send them the picture. Two hours later, a friend connected them. The internet can still be good sometimes, folks!
A CRUSHING TWITTER MOMENT: Other times, though, the internet is still a place where dreams go to die. That was the case for new SF transplant Vikram Subbiah, who found out the hard way that he had not, in fact, run into his hero on his first day in the city. Subbiah posted a photo of himself at Chipotle next to a man in glasses whom he had mistaken for Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan. “Told him what I was building, and the guy invited me for an interview,” Subbiah wrote. But then the real Tan chimed in: “OK bro I have some news for you…” he wrote.
Don’t take it too hard, Subbiah — we’ve all had a rough day in a new city, though most of us just get lost on Muni.
Maybe it’s time for a Garry Tan lookalike contest, Wagglers?
A DELICIOUS ESTATE SALE: When interior design maven and influencer Danielle Neubauer teased a sale from Franco Estate Specialists this weekend at the home of a man who owned a “famous, iconic San Francisco venue,” The Waggle had one guess: Graziano Cerchiai, the beloved owner of Bimbo’s 365 Club in North Beach, who died in December (opens in new tab). Sure enough, the address is for the home Cerchiai shared with his wife, Diana, whose father was the original Bimbo. The glassware, artwork, and memorabilia in the house attest to a life very well lived. May we all be as loved and have so much fun, Wagglers.