The Harold and Maude Project

last updated 4/27/2013

This site documents my attempt, over the first several months of 2013, to visit all the filming locations of the movie "Harold and Maude", with the assistance of my friends Terry, Mike, and Gordon.

First of all, if you've never seen "Harold and Maude", just stop reading this, and go watch the movie. Right now. Put it at the top of your Netflix queue. Find a friend who owns it and borrow their copy. You'll appreciate this site much more after seeing the movie. And this site contains bunches of spoilers. But most importantly, WTF! YOU'VE NEVER SEEN "HAROLD AND MAUDE"! Fix that. (And if you really can't wait, you can watch an illegally-uploaded copy here on youtube.com.)

Okay, why "Harold and Maude"? Pretty simply, of my few dozen favorite movies, it's one of only two that were filmed in the San Francisco Bay Area, where I'm living. (The other one is Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo", which may well be my next such project.)

The project was fascinating, combining Internet research and real-world detective work. Tracking down each location ... especially the ones that required the most sleuthing ... was always a spine-tingling experience.

I've created a page for each location in the movie, in the order in which that location first appears. Each page includes a recap of what happens in that part of the movie, a quote from the movie, a description of how to find that location, photos from the movie interposed with photos of the location today, and a fun fact. There are still many locations that remain unknown, so this list may grow in the future:

Harold's house

The church where Harold first speaks to Maude

The cemetery where Maude steals Harold's hearse

Maude's house

Glaucus' studio

Golden Gate Military Cemetery

Maude parks on a sidewalk after spotting a tree that needs saving

Pulled over by a toll plaza motorcycle cop

Discussion with Uncle Victor, Part 1

Discussion with Uncle Victor, Part 2

Maude's Tarzan yell

Sitting by the bay

The Santa Cruz boardwalk

The hospital where Maude is taken to the ER

The cliff where Harold drives his car over the edge

Appendix A: List of still-unvisited scenes

Appendix B: Research Sites and Other Links