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The City is a supposedly well-populated municipality where many key events have taken place throughout the Baudelaire orphans' melancholic journey in A Series of Unfortunate Events, most notably in The Bad Beginning, The Ersatz Elevator, The Grim Grotto and The Penultimate Peril.

Location[]

The City's name is possibly shown in an illustration for The Penultimate Peril when a man is shown with a fedora holding a letter saying, "J.S, Hotel D______ (presumably Denouement), New Cara_____ray, Column________."

Hoteldenouementstationary

Hotel Denouement Stationary (number listed below logo)

There is much evidence that the city is based San Francisco, California. On an official photo given of Hotel Denouement stationery, the number listed below the logo is 800-632-1709, which is the phone number for a San Francisco traveling and hotel booking agency, implying that the phone city may be- or may be near- San Francisco, California.[1]

The usage of the word "districts" to describe The City's neighborhoods is in keeping with such a practice in San Francisco, such as the real life Financial District.

The City is serviced by an advanced public transport network of cable cars, (also called trolleys) which play a major role in the storyline. The San Francisco Municipal Railway famously operates such a network.

Many photos in The Unauthorized Autobiography appear to be taken in and around the San Francisco Bay Area, most notably a photo of a young boy who is being observed for V.F.D. recruitment. The picture is taken from Vista Point, Marin County, and has the Golden Gate Bridge visible in the background.

In the television series, the City Police use 1965 Ford Custom 500s as their police car of choice. The Custom 500 series was also a favorite of the real-life San Francisco Police. Furthermore, the livery of the television series cars, featuring a black-and-white paint job, a seven-pointed star on the front doors and capitalized "Emergency 911" printed on the front quarter panels, is very similar to the livery of actual SFPD vehicles. This is most visible at the 34:20 mark in The Hostile Hospital: Part Two.

Lemony Snicket himself is from San Francisco.

2004 Film Divergent Canon[]

In the film, it is claimed that the city might be Boston, Massachusetts, as seen on the letter sent by Bertrand and Beatrice in the ending.

Netflix Series Divergent Canon[]

LandOfDistrictsMap

Land of Districts Map.

According to a map, the unnamed City is set in an area called the Land of Districts.

Some promotional material suggests the City is called "Coastal Park Town" and is in America.[2] This would make sense considering the nearby bodies of water on the map. However, there is a chance that this is simply where the headquarters of Mulctuary Money Management is, if there is one.

There is also evidence in the Netflix series that the City is in or near Florida since a memo in Part One of the Hostile Hospital mentions Miami,[3] but this is simply a weather report, and since the Hall of Records archives even the least pertinent information to the hospitals’s functions, this could have little bearing on the actual setting.

In the television series, the City Police use 1965 Ford Custom 500s as their police car of choice. The Custom 500 series was also a favorite of the real-life San Francisco Police. Furthermore, the livery of the television series cars, featuring a black-and-white paint job, a seven-pointed star on the front doors and capitalized "Emergency 911" printed on the front quarter panels, is very similar to the livery of actual SFPD vehicles. This is most visible at the 34:20 mark in The Hostile Hospital: Part Two.

Description[]

In the Netflix adaptation, it is shown that the City is in the shape of an eye, the insignia of V.F.D. There are also VFD tunnels located beneath the city connecting those involved in the organization.

The city is portrayed as gloomy, polluted, gray and inhabited by bizarre individuals, many connected to V.F.D.[4][5]

The city is half a day's drive away from Stain'd-by-the-Sea.[6]

Locales[]

The Baudelaire Mansion, 667 Dark Avenue, Count Olaf's house, Justice Strauss's HouseCafé Salmonella, and Hotel Denouement are found in the city. Briny Beach is also near the city.

There are a number of business districts present, including the fish district and stationery district. Café Salmonella is located in the fish district, which looks, smells, feels, sounds, and if you were to lick the streets, it probably tastes like fish.[7] Mulctuary Money Management, the bank where Arthur Poe works, is located in the banking district of the city.

In Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography, the Royal Gardens, a public garden, was burned down and only clumps of dirt remained.

Locations[]

Residents[]

People who live or have lived at some point in the city. The following persons include:

Districts[]

Appearances[]



Gallery[]

Books[]

Film[]

TV Series[]

Sources[]

Contained By = * * America

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