Dave Knows Portland

Archives for July 2011

Back Fence PDX (21-July-2011)

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Back Fence PDXThe Back Fence PDX story telling show returns to the Mission Theater (1624 NW Glisan) this Thursday, July 21, 2011.

Story telling show? How’s that work?:

Our Back Fence Storytelling event is the kissing cousin to San Francisco’s Porchlight Storytelling Series. It is an evening with seven people telling true, unmemorized ten-minute stories based on the month’s theme. The stories must not have been performed publicly prior to their Back Fence PDX telling.

Heather and have had a great time at all the Back Fence PDX productions we’ve been to. For one thing free cupcakes from Saint Cupcake make the rounds at intermissions. The story tellers are always courageous and their stories are often amusing, always entertaining, and sometimes gut wrenching or cringe inducing – you really don’t know what to expect!

The theme of this particular show is CAMP – a portion of the proceeds will benefit Rock ‘n’ Roll Camp For Girls. The lineup includes:

DAYVID FIGLER – Occasional Consulting Lawyer on the Nancy Grace show

KERRY COHEN – Psychotherapist + Author of Loose Girl

LUCINDA JANE HOLSCHER – 12-Year-Old from Rock ‘N’ Roll Camp for Girls

JIMMY RADOSTA – Mortified Favorite + Andy Rooney Fan

BOB McCOY – Forest Park Park Ranger + Lapsed Quaker

DALE CHUMBLEY – Realtor + 3rd Generation Vancouverite

But that’s not all!

And the MOMENT IN THE SHOW you’ve come to LOVE!!!! Our super exciting LIGHTNING ROUND!! FIVE randomly drawn audience members will have a chance to strut their narrative stuff by doing their best to tell an entire CAMP story in just ONE MINUTE!

Reserve your tickets now for $15, and bring cash (for everyone’s convenience) to the show to claim them! Reserved tickets are guaranteed until 15 minutes before the show. A few non-reserved tickets will be available at the door. The show is 21 and over only. Doors will open at 6:30pm for food and drink and chair claiming, and the show starts at 7:30pm.

Portland’s Chinatown – the Gambling, the Girls, the Opium (19-July-2011)

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Kick Ass Oregon History presents Portland's ChinatownPortland’s Chinatown – the Gambling, the Girls, the Opium will be presented by historian Doug Kenck-Crispin and artist Jim Hill on Tuesday, July 19, 2011 at the Jack London Bar – the new bar in the basement of The Rialto (529 SW 4th).

From The Jack London Bar facebook page:

A night of fun, music, storytelling and art. Jim Hill will create sweet illustrations during the event (for sale at end of night). Tuesday’s topic: The history of Portland’s Chinatown. Get ready for some tawdry tales folks!

This free event starts at 7:30pm. Doors open at 7pm.

Doug Kenck-Crispin is a graduate student studying Public History and Pacific Northwest History at PSU. With Andy Lindberg, who is currently working as an actor in New York City, Doug produces the Kick Ass Oregon History podcasts, dedicated to covering just the good stuff: Sex, Drugs, Rock and Roll and Earth Shattering, Devastating Destruction.

Ultimately, our goal is to take Oregon History out of the hallowed halls of the academy, get folks excited and enthused about this shared history, and get them out into the state, digging it and experiencing it. Get them to embrace it, and get their boots muddy in the process. It’s all OUR History; nobody owns it.

Visit ORHistory.com and stay tuned to @Oregon_History on Twitter for further details on the podcasts and events.

Kick Ass Oregon History: Chinatown Special Edition Part 3

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Update: Don’t miss the Kick Ass Oregon History presentation Portland’s Chinatown – the Gambling, the Girls, the Opium at The Jack London Bar (529 SW 4th – in the basement of the Rialto) on Tuesday, July 19, 2011 at 7:30pm!

Kick Ass Oregon History: Chinatown Special EditionKick Ass Oregon History is the latest series of podcasts from the enthusiastic historians behind ORHistory.com.

Part 3 (out of 4) of the Chinatown Special Edition has just dropped!

Chinatown Special Edition Part 3, In which we learn that, in Portland’s Chinatown, if you want to kiss a Wookie, that can be arranged.

Chinatown Special Edition Part 2, In which we learn that the possibility of successfully navigating Chinatown is approximately 3,720 to 1.

Listen to part 1 here:
Chinatown Special Edition Part 1, In which we learn that Portland’s Historic Chinatown was once a hive of scum and villainy.

The previous episodes:

The brains behind this project are the crack hustlers of Oregon History Doug Kenck-Crispin and Andy Lindberg. Doug is a graduate student studying Public History and Pacific Northwest History at PSU, and Andy, though a Portland native, is currently working as an actor in New York City. Doug does most of the research and writing for the podcasts with input from Andy, who voices the broadcasts with a thespian’s flair.

With the Kick Ass Oregon History podcast they plan to cover just the good stuff: Sex, Drugs, Rock and Roll and Earth Shattering, Devastating Destruction.

Ultimately, our goal is to take Oregon History out of the hallowed halls of the academy, get folks excited and enthused about this shared history, and get them out into the state, digging it and experiencing it. Get them to embrace it, and get their boots muddy in the process. It’s all OUR History; nobody owns it.

Visit ORHistory.com and stay tuned to @Oregon_History on Twitter for further details on specific episodes and the series.

July 17, 1926: Hollywood Theatre Grand Opening

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Advertisement for Grand Opening of the Hollywood Theater (Morning Oregonian, 17-July-1926)Northeast Portland’s Hollywood Theatre opened with great fanfare on Saturday, July 17, 1926 (Morning Oregonian, 17-July-1926). The last venue built for both vaudeville acts and movies in Portland, the silent film More Pay-Less Work was shown on opening day, with eight piece orchestra and $40,000 Wurlitzer accompaniment.

Standing stately in a Byzantine way at the corner of NE Broadway and Sandy in the Hollywood Neighborhood (which took its name from the theater), the Hollywood Theatre today is run as a not-for-profit organization with a mission to entertain, inspire, educate and connect the community through the art of film while preserving a historic Portland landmark.

Further reading