Out of this World

Throughout the Pacific, "Top of the Mark" is a nostalgic name. On a hill above a New Guinea airfield the thatch-roofed Officers Club was named "Top of the Mark." On atolls and in jungles, dusty tents and tubular Quonset huts bore the same name. The original is in San Francisco, an elegant saloon atop the city-topping Mark Hopkins Hotel. When fog winnows against the great windowpanes, the circular bar and soft lounges seem out of this world. For soldiers and sailors, its atmosphere is just right for the gaiety of homecoming, the murmuring of farewell.

On a clear afternoon you can see the wide sweep of the Bay, from the Marin hills to the ship-clogged docks of the Embarcadero, watch great grey convoys moving out the Golden Gate. At night city lights gleam far below, the first fighting men have seen in many months.

The Top of the Mark catered to as many as 30,000 uniformed men a month. Last week it was closed to them. It was put out of bounds by official order of home-stationed Army & Navy officials. Reason: in the dim light bartenders had sold drinks to servicemen under 21.

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