How San Francisco was almost called Don Gaspar

From Chapter XVII, How the Leather-Jackets rode north:

During all those decades of the wars, the Spanish rule in Mexico had sunk further into languor, but at last the King sent a man to stir life up. This was Jose de Galvez, Andalusian-born of the fiery south, with full shares of Spanish pride and Spanish cruelty, and a triple share of restless energy. Wherever the tight-lipped Galvez went, the land seemed to break into a sweat of energy. No careful man wished to arouse the cold glitter of his eyes, and sometimes he crossed the line of sanity, imagining himself King of Sweden or of Prussia, or even God Almighty.

Most of his energy he loosed upon the western coast. He looked at what charts and reports were available, and saw the notations of harbors with the names Viscaino had given them--San Diego and Monterey. There was also a vaguely known bay, not mentioned by Visaino, called San Francisco.

It had come by its name in 1595. A certain Sebastian Rodriguez Cermeno, commanding the galleon from Manila, made a landfall far along the California coast, and sailing southward, entered a good harbor. On November 7, he landed and took possession. The time of year was well past the day of St. Francis, but there was with the ship a Franciscan father, whose own name was also Francisco. This father "baptized" the land, doubtless by pouring water upon it symbolically as in baptizing a child, and the bay was thus named San Francisco. The galleon itself was wrecked, but Cermeno and his men got back to Mexico in a longboat.

Seven years later Viscaino reached the same bay, but as usual, displacing the names of others, he called it Don Gaspar, for the Viceroy. Nevertheless the name San Francisco remained, somewhat dubiously.

* * *

I'm enjoying mentally substituting Don Gaspar for San Francisco: the Don Gaspar Giants, "I left my heart in Don Gaspar," Rice-a-roni would be a Don Gaspar treat, "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in Don Gaspar"... You get the point.

Also, we've just received Stewart's delightfully entertaining book, in which he uses expressions like the abovementioned "the land seemed to break into a sweat of energy," in remainder, which we're selling for $7.98.

James Baldwin 1963

Take This Hammer from Brendan Nee on Vimeo.

I found this video on the SF BayView's website, a short documentary on James Baldwin's 1963 visit to San Francisco, in which he explores the Fillmore/Western Addition and Hunter's Point neighborhoods.

“There is no moral distance … between the facts of life in San Francisco and the facts of life in Birmingham. Someone’s got to tell it like it is. And that’s where it’s at.”
-James Baldwin, 1963

Oh yea, we've got 'em. . .and then some!

Infinite City is Rebecca Solnit's reinvention of the traditional atlas, examining the many layers of meaning in one place, in this case the San Francisco Bay Area. It's one of Green Apple's favorite books this holiday season, we've got plenty of hardcover copies in stock (unlike many other stores), and as an extra bonus for our wonderful customers, we have also partnered-up with MOMA to distribute 6 FREE POSTER-SIZED MAPS as they become available. Each poster is a two-sided reproduction of a map from the book, as well as selected text from Rebecca Solnit, and others. We currently have 4 different maps in the store - yours for the asking.

Aided by artists, writers, cartographers, and twenty-two gorgeous color maps, each of which illuminates the city and its surroundings as experienced by different inhabitants, Solnit takes us on a tour that will forever change the way we think about place. She explores the area thematically--connecting, for example, Eadweard Muybridge's foundation of motion-picture technology with Alfred Hitchcock's filming of Vertigo.

Across an urban grid of just seven by seven miles, she finds seemingly unlimited landmarks and treasures--butterfly habitats, queer sites, murders, World War II shipyards, blues clubs, Zen Buddhist centers. She roams the political terrain, both progressive and conservative, and details the cultural geographies of the Mission District, the culture wars of the Fillmore, the South of Market world being devoured by redevelopment, and much, much more.

Infinite City is a real gem, the sort of book that you want to give as a gift, and yet greedily keep for yourself. If that seems like the kind of problem you might run into, allow me to suggest that you get a couple of extra copies (book or posters or both) to share. Problem solved!

Hey everybody, have you heard the news?

The San Francisco Giants are The Champions of the World!

But even though this magical 2010 season has ended, the hits just keep coming at Green Apple Books. Like what, you ask? Well, just try these on for size:

Our first batch of copies of the Sports Illustrated commemorative World Series edition sold out in less that 30 minutes! I was just about to bid one up on Ebay for my personal scrapbox, but lo and behold, we got in another BIG STACK yesterday. Don’t hesitate on this round folks…I expect them to fly outta here faster that Renteria’s dinger in Game 2.

Bigger, bolder and only slightly more expensive than the S.I. edition, Giant Surprise is a wonderful collection of the moments that will live in our memories forever. So even though you’ve memorized every pitch sequence in Timmy’s 14 strikeout shutout during his post-season debut, maybe your Nephew in Spokane didn’t watch with such vigor, or your Uncle in Miami, or your Nana in Nantucket; pick up this winner from Triumph Press.

Or, if you don’t want the walls of your pad to get jealous of the coffee table, nab one of these limited edition posters from McSweeneys featuring artwork by San Francisco’s literary MVP, Dave Eggers. Dave was turned loose during Game 1 of the World Series with a sketchpad and instructions to capture the random fandom for Bay Citizen, and the results were impressive! Sadly lacking is Texas newscaster Newy Scruggs, but I guess that’s what You Tube is for. The poster itself is a giant, as well, 24” x 36”.

These special and unique items are only available in-store, and while they last. So swing by Green Apple and support your local scene – plus, if you ask nice, we just may let you touch our bunting!

Got Ink?

I just did!

Alon Shalev, author of The Accidential Activist, is also the man behind my new favorite blog, "Left Coast Voices." Earlier this week, Left Coast Voices published an interview between Alon and myself, focusing on community ties and, well. . . books! Enjoy it HERE.

Thanks for the interest Alon, and keep up the good work!

(oh yea - GO GIANTS!!!)

Winston Smith rocks!

San Francisco can lay claim to many famous residents over time, but while we all know that Jack Kerouac slept off many a late-night bender here, and that Mark Twain spent his coldest winter ever here during summer, there is one stalwart talent who has been here for decades but that you may not be familiar with - Winston Smith.

Winston, who took his name from the ill-fated protagonist in George Orwell's 1984 began working with Jello Biafra and The Dead Kennedys in the late 1970's when his iconoclastic sculpture of Christ crucified on a cross of dollar bills was used as the cover of "In God We Trust, Inc." This collaboration begot a relationship that lasts to this day, but while always sticking to his anarchistic guns, Winston has broadened his influence to include work for Spin, Playboy, Mother Jones and can even lay claim to a New Yorker cover!

Last night in a basement gallery, down a tiny alley in North Beach, Winston decided to clean out his closet and sell dozens of original collages, many of which were turned into flyers for some of the greatest punk shows ever, and most from that sweet-spot of his Alternitave Tenticles partnerships, the early 80's; trust me when I tell you that I was like a kid in a candy store!

So, maybe you've seen Winston's stuff on a Green Day record or maybe you own some of his books, but chances are you've never seen the stuff I just added to my collection. Until now! Thanks again for the great time last night, Winston (and for the killer deals) - you do San Francisco proud!

Tomorrow Morning's Paper

With San Francisco's floundering local papers amounting to little more than blankets and jacket lining for the city's ubiquitous homeless population nowadays, one might ask where does the discerning Bay Area reader turn for his/her/his2her/her2his' dose of premium journalism? Tim Redmond? Well heck, I read The Guardian today (only to discover that I missed The Legendary Stardust Cowboy playing a few days back), and of course it is what it is and always will be, but I'll tell ya' what I'm gonna' read tomorrow-

Yep. The veritable round table of shining knights that is McSweeney's will be taking to newsprint with San Francisco Panorama, and tomorrow will mark the release of their first (and last so they say, but we'll see depending on how lucrative the venture is) 320 page "21st century newspaper prototype." The publication will be featuring a diverse range of contributors from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie to Art Spiegelman to William T. Vollmann.

Now I'm going to be a bit editorial here, so apologies in advance if my thinking sounds somewhat convoluted. Personally I tend to be a little cold on McSweeney's most times. As appreciative as I am that San Francisco is home to a publishing house that strives to produce new and inventive work (and often does), the social niche that it caters to can be off putting (think "up and coming neighborhoods," street food, or maybe just skim Christian Lander's book). Because of this apparent fan base I worry that sometimes by and large what is considered "cutting edge" is pigeonholed, and that work lacking the McSweeney's aesthetic is ignored. I suppose this isn't the fault of McSweeney's per se. It's just a shame that in their attempt to expose the work of lesser known artists and authors a hierarchy of "what's good" comes to exist, and that people tend to look for a seal of approval rather than making an attempt to explore and develop their own personal landscape.

...Or maybe I'm just cynical. Regardless, I've expressed my lament. Moving on now.

Panorama is something to keep an eye out for. The fact that news of it's production is enough to turn an ugly head like mine is something in itself. Though it's moniker as a "21st century newspaper prototype" may a bit boisterous, it will most certainly provide a bit of breathing room away from the vapid smog that seems to have engulfed much of the world of modern journalism. Read more about it here on the McSweeney's site and if you like what you're seeing (Stephen King on baseball!), swing by to pick it up from us. It really does look like it's going to be awesome.

*An excerpt from Adrian Tomine's full page strip in Panorama, probably relevant to my post here today.*

101 Cookbooks

I am a big fan of food, especially really good food, made with really good ingredients. Heidi Swanson's, Super Natural Cooking, has been a favorite of mine for a few years now because she too seems to enjoy really good food, made with really good ingredients. Awhile back, a friend showed me her wonderful website (101 Cookbooks), which is full of helpful cooking tips and recipes; it is also easy to use and organized neatly. Ms. Swanson recently had a post discussing her favorite to-dos and eats throughout various San Francisco neighborhoods and she graciously noted visting Green Apple after a meal at Burma Superstar down the street. Check out her highlights of the city here: San Francisco Favorites and you've gotta try her recipe for chocolate cake!

Suicide Girls heading our way 2/27

Green Apple doesn't have a regular events series--our store is packed with bookcases and books, not chairs. But on occasion, just the right thing comes along. This is not right for everyone, but for certain folks, our upcoming event with some Suicide Girls is just the thing to start off a Friday night.

Friday, February 27: SuicideGirls at the 540 Club


SuicideGirls has gone from a "membership-only pin-up website" to encompass magazines, tours, and books; their latest book is Suicide Girls: Beauty Redefined, featuring more of their trademark pictorials and style.

No tickets are required for this event. The 540 Club is on the same block as Green Apple, at 540 Clement St. Festivities begin at 8:00 p.m. Join us and some Suicide Girls for some vaguely edgy, sexy fun.