Earlier today I had lunch with Bob Shane, his wife Bobby, and the Kingston Trio's web designer and former Trident employee Bruce Mushrush.   Two hours of laughing, eating, and Bob signing autographs for our waiter and the General Manager, who brought out a Kingston Trio Album/jacket for Bob to sign.  Lunch was great and don't even ask about the brownies!
     Bruce came on board the Trident experience after the original Trident closed.  The original Trident closed in 1976.  In 1978, when it reopened, Frank Werber, or the then management, hired a new kitchen staff,new floor people, and only a couple of original Trident alums.  As you might suspect, there was mixed feelings about the new re- incarnation.  Nonetheless, in a spirit of peace - love - and eternal happiness, Bruce suggested that he'd like the people of the Trident 3/post 1976 closing - to have a place here to connect and share their thoughts and memories. 
    Within a couple of years the lease for the Trident had run out, and the building was taken over by Ron and Carol McKenna, and the party was officially over.  
    If you worked at the Trident after the 1976 closing, and would like to share stories or photos email: endorfunns@aol.com and your content will be placed here (just scroll down). Or, leave a comment here.
    So, if you'd like, please be part of the dialogue!

Bob Shane of the Kingston Trio and Bruce Mushrush



Bob Shane and his wife Bobby were in town for the San Francisco Performing
Arts Library and Museum Hungri I reunion with guest of honor Enrico Banducci
and Hungry I Alumni in attendence: Orson Bean, Shelley Berman, Father Malcom
Boyd, Travis Edmonson, Tom Leher, The Kingston Trio, Mort Sahl, Ronnie Schell,
Ernie Sheldon,Glen Yarbrough and more!  
The event: Hungry I ReunionFor more information on the Kingston Trio and this event go to : Kingston Trio
or Kingston Trio Trident Link

Trident 3 Menu 

Appropiately the Trident Restaurant played out in 3 parts. Part 1: Restaurant and Jazz Club   Part 2: Late 60's Rock and Roll and 70's sexual revolution  Part 3: The Last Third (Neil Cassady reference)

Michael Toomey: Who was there for parts 2 & 3 came up with this image below of a poster for the Trident's "Final" Closing in 1980:


Dee Bell

Hi and Thanks for putting together this website on the Trident.

This was the most fabulous part of my mid to late 20s. It was a great group of folks and I was part of the Richard Lipfield’s “All American Girl” phase. We were all health conscious, natural beauties: Carol, Susanne, Kathy, Judy, Janet, Kevin, LaVerne, myself and more. Several of us, including Michael Toomey, ran in some of the San Francisco races as a Trident team. Robin Williams was just becoming famous and often came by after hours when he was in town. He would entertain us during cleanup.  He had been a busboy at the Trident and still had friends on the crew.

A favorite memory was of working “lover’s lane” (which the waitresses called the 80s) on full moon nights. The stunning beauty of the reflection of the moon on the water and all of the moon-affected happenings at these private deuce tables inspired some great stories.  And Frank Werber’s LP jukebox was a stroke of genius.  I was the record librarian and given the task of re-filing the 20 LPs that were removed from this color-coded, LP-record-playing jukebox.  KJAZ radio announcer, Dick Conte was given a free meal once a week to come in and pull a new set each week based on the colors of each slot.  Red coded records were hot rock and roll and were put on to shorten dining time when the wait was long, Green coded records were jazz LPs that enhanced lingering over champagne and cheese.  Yellow was the transition color. A certain number of each of these color-coded albums were put into the play box and then the managers could dial up about 3-10 records at a time that would play through.  The dial was like a telephone face. It was great system and truly manipulated the crowd to ease the flow of traffic.

One of the side stories that ended up as liner notes on my first recording was written by Jesse Hamlin of The San Francisco Chronicle. He wrote on the liner notes of the Concord Jazz Recording (CJ206) “Let There Be Love” with Dee Bell, Stan Getz and Eddie Duran:

“Eddie Duran, the superb San Francisco guitarist was working a gig at the old Trident restaurant in Sausalito a few years ago when he heard a waitress’s sweet voice singing “Happy Birthday” to a friend. Her name was Dee Bell.

Impressed, he asked her if she wanted to sit in with him sometime.  Dee had recently left her home in Indiana with two suitcases and the desire to sing professionally.  She said yes, and before long was sitting in a couple of nights a week at the Trident-after she’d finished waiting on tables.

“There was freshness to her voice that I liked,” says Eddie. “She sang a song without taking too many liberties.  No gimmicks. No acrobatics. And she really sang the lyrics.”

So began the musical rapport that led to this recording.  Dee’s debut and Eddie’s first album as a producer and arranger.  It is an auspicious beginning.

Dee’s voice is pure and tender, at times haunting.  Her approach to the material is straightforward and unpretentious.  She takes you inside the lyrics, and you can almost hear her smile...”......and more.

This story has been retold in countless radio interviews, as it piqued the interest of most radio DJs.  It was the most fun employment I have ever had and I will never forget Dennis, Richard, Marshall, Clark, Michael, Eduard, Lisa, Gloria, Roberta and all of the others, too many to name.

Thanks again for keeping the Trident memory alive!

Best regards,
Dee Bell



Dee and bus person....