I just want to share a few scenes from the memorial yesterday for Claude the alligator. It was the kind of event that reminds me why I love San Francisco: some two thousand gathered to celebrate the oddest of oddballs — an albino alligator. In a city that always been a haven for people who don’t fit in, Claude was beloved for his very differentness. “He was just so captivating,” one woman in a Claude t-shirt told me. And he was.
Alia and Anthony. Alia remembered visiting Claude when she was a kid; “It was always an excitement to go see Claude— is he going to move for me.? And then he’d move his claw or hand. and it would like ‘aaah- he’s so cool!’‘
People of all ages wanted one of the plush Claudes. (Price: $20, $28 or $100 depending on size.) The line for the Academy of Science's merch booth was endless.
Susie said the event reminded her of funeral the city threw for Emperor Norton and his dog in 1880. She threw together this outfit from her “San Francisco costume closet.”
Most kids at the art station were coloring Claude in a rainbow of shades — purple, blue, red, green. This artist stayed true to life.
The Boudin bakery used 70 pounds of dough to make this sourdough Claude.
And, of course, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence\
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