Kick Ass Oregon History is the latest series of podcasts from the enthusiastic historians behind ORHistory.com.
Volume 3 #1 dropped Friday – Vortex 1:
The incredible tale of how Republican Oregon Governor Tom McCall averted violence and doom by holding a state-sponsored Hippie Rock Festival at McIver Park in rural Clackamas County during the summer of 1970.
In partnership with the Oregon Historical Society, and their exhibit “Oregon Rocks: A History of Popular Music in Oregon,” on exhibit August 25, 2011 – January 15, 2012.
Featuring an interview with Vortex 1 historian Matt Love.
The brains behind this Kick Ass 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. Catch up on missed episodes at the Kick Ass Oregon History archives.
In 1970 I drove 3 members of a band I was managing at the time from San Francisco to McIver State Park to play at the Vortex Festival. It was just like Woodstock on a smaller version. All the bands were relatively unknowns to the Portland audience except for maybe Chrome Cyrcus and Portland Zoo. Most were SF groups trying to get some attention like Osceola, Gold, Fox, Ice and several others. The audience was very hip and lots of naked people walking around – that was startling. The place was also acid infused and pot everywhere so every band sounded like the Rolling Stones.
It went of for several days and proved to have completed what the organizers wanted which was to keep the hippies out of Portland while the Republicans and American Legion held a parade and gathering. The Governor of Oregon was behind Vortex 1 so he gets the credit for it even taking place….
At the end each band member was paid in pears and acid instead of money. Each member received a shopping bag full of pears and then was allowed to reach into a tin can full of orange sunshine to grab a handful.