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5Q4: Peter Hartlaub

Peter Hartlaub has been with the San Francisco Chronicle for 25 years. He spent 17 of those years reviewing movies, and now holds the current title of Culture Critic, which allows him to tell history stories as well as local tales, including more than a few about Alameda, where he’s lived since 2017. Our turkeys, burritos, and the harrowing bike path through the Posey Tube have all been showcased by Hartlaub, who in addition to having for what is many a dream job (after all, he writes for a living), coaches girls basketball, is a mad runner, and lifelong 49ers fan. His newsletter, Total SF (subscribe here), also frequently features Alameda. In addition to being a fantastic writer, Peter is a dad and a hubby—his wife Kelly has worked at Alameda High since 1999. And now, he’s answered the Alameda Post’s five questions so we can all get to know him better via 5Q4: Peter Hartlaub.

Alameda Post - Peter Hartlaub wears a bicycle helmet and backpack aboard Woodstock
Peter Hartlaub aboard Woodstock, the Oakland Alameda Water Shuttle. Photo courtesy Peter Hartlaub.
At what moment did you discover that you wanted to be an artist?

Seeing film critics Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel review movies on the PBS show, “Sneak Previews,” was huge. I was eight or nine years old, and it made me realize someone might pay me to write and talk about the things I love.

But the big moment came in 1981 when Ronald Reagan was shot. I was in fifth grade and my teacher put me in front of a radio and asked me to provide updates to the other classrooms. At a time in my life when I was very insecure, I felt important and useful. I recognized that “journalism” feeling made me feel whole and I’ve spent my career chasing it.



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Peter and his wife, Kelly. Photos courtesy Peter Hartlaub.
Who was the most influential person who helped you achieve your goal?

I nearly flunked out my first year at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo. I had undiagnosed ADHD. I was a creative writer but had organization and focus problems, and my grammar and sentence structure were years behind.

At my lowest point I met a retired New York newspaper editor named Herb Kamm who had settled in the area, gotten bored, and started volunteering at the college. He spent many hours taking a red pen and working with me to clean up the technical problems holding me back. There was a 50-year age difference but he became one of my best friends. I owe him my career.

Alameda Post - two men sit in large black armchairs onstage and hold microphones.
Jon Stewart and San Francisco Chronicle’s Peter Hartlaub during Clusterfest on June 3, 2018 in San Francisco, California. Photo by Jeff Kravitz / FilmMagic.
Tell us about the best—or a best—experience you had as a journalist?

I interviewed “The Daily Show” host Jon Stewart in 2019 at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in front of 8,000 people during a comedy festival. I was terrified and was so sure I’d fail I didn’t let any family members come. Stewart was wonderful, the crowd was amazing, and it was one of my best interviews. There’s no recording but that’s almost better. In my head it was a perfect hour.

Conversely, tell us about a pretty bad experience?

I had a horrible interview with Jerry Seinfeld on the Bee Movie press tour in 2007. It was a little five-minute video interview, and he gave me a very hard time. There were a dozen people watching, including two camera operators. Pure humiliation. The worst part: I had a 20-minute print interview with him an hour later. That one went fine, but the wait before meeting him again was excruciating.

I also falsely reported that beloved weatherman and “Dialing for Dollars” host Pat McCormick had died, and local news stations picked it up. He had faked his death to his son and it was mostly not my fault, but still a really, really, really bad day.

Alameda Post - two men in bicycle gear pose in front of the tunnel
In front of the tube. Photo courtesy Peter Hartlaub.
Any advice to folks out there hoping to pursue a life in the arts?

Chase the things that make you happy, not what brings you fame. Most of my regrets are related to the latter. And once I focused on being true to myself and pushing back when people nudged me into areas where I felt uncomfortable or wrong, better opportunities opened up for me.

Gene Kahane is the founder of the Foodbank Players, a lifelong teacher, and former Poet Laureate for the City of Alameda. Reach him at [email protected]. His writing is collected at AlamedaPost.com/Gene-Kahane.

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