It's one of the most dramatic capers in San Francisco history, and San Francisco has no idea it's going on. The media agrees to clam up so the bad guys won't know the cops are on the case. Related: Patty Hearst
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1954: The Moskovitz Kidnapping

On hiatus as of March 2020 because of the coronavirus crisis. Get unlimited access to the Chronicle. | A daily celebration of the news — and the news media — of years gone by. King Kaufman takes you on a quick tour of the Bay Area and the world as it used to be, which often colors the world of your century.

History

Society & Culture

News

Politics

With the San Francisco Chronicle focusing its editorial resources on the coronavirus pandemic and its effects, Not Your Century is going on hiatus. Listen to Fifth & Mission and become a member at SFChronicle.com to stay up to date on the crisis.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2020: Not Your Century Goes on Hiatus

The 23-year-old religious and spiritual leader of Tibet gets an invitation from the occupying Chinese to come to a dance performance. Without bodyguards. Sensing a trap, he flees on foot over the Himalayas to India, where he remains in exile.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1959: The Dalai Lama Escapes

He's a giant of silent comedies, in more ways than one. Hollywood's first million-dollar star is a baby-faced man-mountain with the grace of a dancer. But a sensational rape and manslaughter case has derailed his life and career.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1922: Fatty Arbuckle's Third Trial

A century before the COVID-19 coronavirus, the United States, like all combatants in the Great War, wants to keep the exploding flu crisis quiet to protect morale and prevent the enemy from seeing weakness. Sound familiar? | (Correction: An earlier version of this episode contained an error. Some 675,000 AIDS deaths occurred in the United States.)
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1918: The Flu Pandemic

As an 18-year-old, Tracy Sims was the leader of civil rights protests that forced San Francisco hotels to end hiring discrimination. Now Tamam Tracy Moncur, the retired schoolteacher remembers a time when "the whole country was on fire for civil rights." | See also: 1964: Civil Rights at the Palace Hotel
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1954: The Moskovitz Kidnapping

Download our free app to listen on your phone