Officer Bob Geary used ventriloquism as a creative form of community policing. He rode in his marked police unit with his ventriloquist figure, Brendan O'Smarty. Together, they provided a bit of comic relief for weary citizens around his assigned patrols for the San Francisco Police Department. Many people suddenly shed their prejudice of police officers as hard-nosed, insulated Robocops, and realized that they might actually have a sense of humor due to Bob's creative form of community policing.

When he retired from the department, a Wells Faro stagecoach with four horses parked in front of the station, drove him on his last tour of North Beach - that was his beat for so long - accompanied by his partner and alter-ego, Brendan O'Smarty.

Mayor Willie Brown, Jr. Declared his retirement day as "Office Geary Day" in San Francisco. Brendan O'Smarty shared in the tribute.