An incredible story of upheaval and change in Western Addition.
1 hour
The Painted Ladies are beautiful. But the best thing about them is the neighborhood they're in. It's called the Western Addition, and it used to be packed with thousands of beautiful old Victorian houses... until the government sent bulldozers to tear them down. As you'll learn on this Detour, the stories around here often end with that kind of intensity and upheaval. The Grateful Dead threw acid parties here. Down the block, Jim Jones built up America's most notorious cult.
But that was then. Journalist Liz Gannes lives near here now. She'll show you the scars each era left behind and introduce you to people who lived through them, including a reverend who's spent his life fighting the Western Addition's destruction, the reporter who exposed Jim Jones, and a survivor who narrowly escaped the Jonestown massacre. Western Addition isn't the prettiest neighborhood in San Francisco, but as you'll learn when you go Beyond The Painted Ladies, it's one of the most compelling.
Narrator & Writer
Liz Gannes is a reporter based in San Francisco. She covers technology trends and innovation for Re/code. Selena Gomez follows her on Twitter. She is outdoors whenever possible.
Producer
Jorge Just
Editor
Marianne McCune
Sound Design
Rob Thomure
Featured Voices
Christopher Duke; Maya Angelou; Jack Biancalana; Lance Burton, Planet Fillmore Communications; Reverend Arnold Townsend; Tony Biancalana, Live Nation; Marshall Kilduff, SF Chronicle; Laura Johnston Kohl, JonestownSurvivor.com; Karen Johnson, Marcus Books
Special Thanks
Stuart Brioza, Greg Johnson, Mooj Zadie, Cameron Reesor, Sarah Wohl, Andrew Roth
Podcast Episode Contributing Volunteers
Kris L.
Starting Locations of All Detours
