The World of Suzie Wong - William Holden (1960) - Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter, Hong Kong

After Suzie goes missing, Lomax spends some time visiting various locations searching for her. One of those is the wall along the west side of Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter with a view over to Gloucester Road behind.

Back in 1960 you can see that the Far East Motors Limited occupied the space behind, they used to be 26 Nathan Road during the 20's and 30's but expanded here later in life. Of course in 1960 the breakwater which Holden was on (and which joined Kellet Island to Hong Kong) was a bit further east than where it is today - largely because the exact spot Holden is on now hosts the HK-side entrance to the cross-harbour tunnel. This part of Gloucester Road is now taken up by various buildings Top Glory Tower and the Sino Plaza. Here is a Streetview of what the background looks like now.

The World of Suzie Wong - William Holden (1960) - Telegraph Bay, Hong Kong

Here's one that totally flummoxed me until the nice chaps at Gwulo proffered a resolution. It shows Holden and Kwan wandering around a lovely piece of HK coastal countryside just after Lomax (Holden) has found out about Suzie's baby.

This was Telegraph Bay. Perhaps the name doesn't mean very much these days as it seems to be more commonly known by the name of a horrible development there that goes by the more modern moniker of Cyberport. I jest not. What was an idyllic rural part of the island (with a view over to Lamma Island in the background) has become one of HK's biggest developmental jokes.

The headland that you can see in the distance in the first screen cap now holds a rather large development known as Bel-Air on the Peak. Another wholly inappropriately named expensive apartment complex.

Bel-Air on the Peak 

(no, it's neither in Bel-Air nor on The Peak)

Why was this place called Telegraph Bay? Simple, it was the site where some early telegraph cables entered the water. The Chinese name is Dai Hau Wan (大口灣 - big mouth bay)

The World of Suzie Wong - William Holden (1960) - Li Chit Street & Johnston Road, Hong Kong

There's one scene in the film when Holden crosses a road in the pouring rain as a tram trundles by. The interesting thing about this location is that although all the older buildings have been replaced (and a tram stop being erected right where that tram is) it's still recognisable. Holden has just come out of Li Chit Street and is now crossing Johnston Road towards the Methodist Church HQ (which can be seen as a brown wall on the last screen cap).

Even the Methodist Church building has been replaced by a newer but similarly-coloured edifice but one relic from this time still exists (or at least it did when I went past it earlier today along that very same tram track) and that is the electrical box that we can see in the foreground of the latter 3 pictures.

I suspect the reason it is still there is perhaps because it is a HK Tramway junction box and there are several similar ones to be found along the side of the tracks at various points (saw some on Kings Road in North Point as well). Now, given that a couple of years ago HK Tramways was taken over by the French company, Veolia, who have promised some major investment, it wouldn't surprise me to see some of these old boxes start to disappear. It's a shame but there you go.

I visited the same location just recently (Sep 2015) and can confirm the old box is still there - for the time being at least.

As you can see it's a bit rusty but has so far withstood the test of time, Here's to another 60 years.

The World of Suzie Wong - William Holden (1960) - Square Street, Hong Kong

A fleeting glimpse of the road(s) around the Man Mo Temple as Holden gets driven home by the daughter of the banks boss. The Square Street and Ladder Street intersection is still recognisable today even though the old buildings have long been replaced by not-quite-as-old-but getting-there buildings.

The thing that has changed is the number of people here. These days the place is deserted, but judging from the film (and there are just too many people there for them to all be extras) it was a hive of activity in the late '50's.

The World of Suzie Wong - William Holden (1960) - Aberdeen Harbour, Hong Kong

Once again, not the first time and certainly not the last, Aberdeen is the focal point for a scene from a foreign-produced film set in Hong Kong. This was the second time a film here had involved William Holden (he made a trip to the Tai Pak restaurant with Jennifer Jones during Love is a Many-Splendored Thing in 1955).

This time Holden, playing Lomax, accompanies the Kwan (Suzie) to the Tai Pak floating restaurant. It looks a little different to the version of the Tai Pak that is currently still installed in Aberdeen and that's because this one seems to be the original. This is the version that was moved over to Castle Peak Bay sometime after this film was made (circa 1960) before falling victim to the transformation of Castle Peak into Tuen Mun New Town which saw much of the bay reclaimed for housing.

Notice the other restaurants that were around at the time: Sea palace and the Yue Lee Tai - the latter one lesser known, perhaps because it wasn't quite so aesthetically flamboyant. Neither are around anymore although if you read my other blog you will know some remnants linger on. I've heard unconfirmed reports that the Sea Palace was sold and towed to the Philippines or Australia (but probably neither).  The Tai Pak (at least a later version) remains and was integrated into Jumbo Kingdom some time ago.

Anyway, this isn't the only point of interest that we have from this trip because there is also a brief glimpse of another historic place around Aberdeen that still exists - the old Police Station on the hill.

It's the long building on the hillside just to the left of Nancy Kwan's head. These days it's used as a youth centre ("The Warehouse") and of course it is now completely obscured by high-rises along the waterfront.

Another thing to note about the above screen grab is the small hillock sticking out of Holden's right shoulder. This of course is the small headland that housed, and still houses, The Aberdeen Holy Spirit Seminary - a place worthy of it's own blog post at some point down the road. The hill on the right of the shot is actually Brick Hill and is better known these days for having the Ocean Park cable car running up the side of it.

Soldier of Fortune - Clark Gable (1955) - Queen's Road East, Hong Kong

Whilst being driven by Hank's chauffeur up to his house, we get to see the car being driven along the 1955 version of Queens Road East. It's identifiable by the small road on the right which is actually Wanchai Gap Road - a slim thoroughfare that hits a steep incline and takes you up to Bowen Road, Stubbs Road and beyond.

Here are the screencaps, the first two showing the entrance to Wanchai Gap Road, the last one showing the area of Queen's Road East a bit further along towards where Stone Nullah Lane and Kennedy St join on the right. Note the "Asahi" advert on the side wall.

Just out of frame on the top picture is one of only two or three buildings that remain from this time: the old Wanchai Post office. I've taken the liberty of taking a modern day shot from Streetview for comparison, but this one shows the Post Office today. It's no longer a post office of course but is used by the Govt Environmental Protection Dept (not doing their jobs properly if you ask me).

Soldier of Fortune - Clark Gable (1955) - Des Voeux Road, Hong Kong

There's another great section of this film where Susan Hayward's stand-in (Dale Logue) rides a rickshaw around town in a vain search for her missing husband.

At one point we see her on a stretch of the Des Voeux Road which is almost as recognisable today even though all the buildings along it have changed - Hong Kong can be a bit weird like that. One feature that helps us place this shot is the building in the far background which is the old Wing On building. Wing On still occupies the same site today, albeit with a slightly more modern building.

The second recognisable part is the intersection of Des Voeux Road and Wing Lok Street which joins at a tangent to the left of the curved building in the background. The Streetview grab below shows pretty much the same angle as the film - the gold-windowed building (above the jaywalking pedestrian) being the modern day replacement of the curved one in the 1955 picture.

The bottom screen grab shows a closer view of the aforementioned Wing On building that can be seen in the background of the top picture. It is a good example of how film makers mess with geography because this second shot occurs almost immediately after the top shot even though Hayward's character can be seen moving away from it in the top shot.

Soldier of Fortune - Clark Gable (1955) - KCR Train Terminus, Kowloon

A shot from the opening credits of Soldier of Fortune. The angle indicates this shot was taken from the roof of either the YMCA  or the Peninsula Hotel. It was a sad day when the Colonial Administration took the decision to knockdown the train terminus building in 1978.

It's not just the clock tower that can still be seen today, but also the small white tower that once supported the time ball in the grounds of the Marine Police HQ.

Soldier of Fortune - Clark Gable (1955) - Queen's Building, HK Island

Here is another shot from the intro taken from the harbour right in front of Queen's Building - once again showing the large COOK'S sign on the harbour-side of the building.

It's not just the old buildings that I find fascinating, but also the almost complete lack of development on the hillside at the back. It's difficult to see anything through the hundreds of high-rises these days. There are a few other things to spot though including the old HSBC building, the old Bank of China building, The Hong Kong Club (far left), what looks like the pitched roof of Blake Pier in the foreground and the former LegCo building (aka Supreme Court) behind it.

Soldier of Fortune - Clark Gable (1955) - Connaught Road, HK Island

There are lots of scene-setting shots in Soldier of Fortune that reveal a great deal of what HK was like in 1955. The following is from an extended view along - a then harbourfront - Connaught Road including one of the old police platforms used by traffic constables for directing traffic.

Being on the waterfront, as it was, Connaught Road is unrecognisable today and I've included a streetview grab below so you can see what the same stretch of road looks like today. Look carefully on the film grabs and in the distance you will see what was Queen's Building on the corner of Statue Square (just to the right of the police platform). Of course this was replaced by the Mandarin Oriental about 10 years later. This view is impossible now.