Dave Knows Portland

Stumptown Stories Presents: Postmodernism and Shanghaiing in PDX (8 September 2015)

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The Portland Building in August 1982. Photo by Steve Morgan.
“Portland Building 1982” by Steve Morgan at English Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

The latest Stumptown Stories show covers a couple terrible things about Portland: Postmodernism and Shanghaiing in PDX, at 7 PM on Tuesday, September 8, 2015 at Jack London bar (basement of the Rialto, SW 4th and Alder).

The speakers:

Joe Streckert (Interesting Times, Portland Mercury) will delve into why this town has one of the most-hated buildings of all time, the Portland Building. Streckert will outline how the chaotic circumstances of how the building came to be, what postmodernism even is, and the future of Portland’s eponymous municipal services building.

Finn J.D. John (Offbeat Oregon, Wicked Portland) will get into Portland’s history with Shanghaiing. No, this is not going to be about tunnels. Those are a myth. John will delve into the real history of Larry Sullivan, a man who organized local Shanghaiers into a force to be reckoned with in old Portland.

Stumptown Stories, batshit crazy stories from the murkiest, weirdest, and nuttiest corners of Portland history, takes place the second Tuesday of every month at Jack London bar (basement of the Rialto, SW 4th and Alder).

Admission is usually (including this month) free. Doors open at 7 PM, 21 and over only.

Portland Labor Day Weekend Amusements (2015)

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Labor day weekend!

Saturday and Sunday

Romanian Folk and Food Festival

Romanian fest 2015ROMANIAN COMMUNITY CELEBRATES ITS HERITAGE AND CULTURE IN ITS GENUINE WAY

BBQ, traditional foods, pastries, beer, wine, live music, dance, kids activities, and much more!

The fest takes place at Saint Marys Romanian Orthodox Church (135th and SE Stark)

Labor Day (Monday 7 September 2015)

2015 Labor Day Picnics

Union YesThe largest gathering by far takes place at in Southeast Portland. Sponsored by the Northwest Oregon Labor Council, the picnic attracts members from multiple unions who enjoy barbecue, music, games, carnival rides, raffle drawings, vendor booths, and time to visit with local politicians. Gov. Kate Brown has confirmed that she will be in attendance.

The picnic runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Political speeches take place at 1 p.m.

Ongoing

Chapman Vaux’s Swift Watch 2015

Swirling SwiftsIn September thousands of Vaux’s Swifts coalesce into a giant undulating swirl in Northwest Portland near Chapman School after spending the day eating bug. Around sunset the swirl gets more compact, like a ground pepper tornado, and begins disappearing, measure by measure, down the school’s huge old chimney. On the lawn below hundreds of mesmerized and picnic-sated Portlanders stare into the sky from the comfort of lawn chairs and blankets while their oblivious children roll down the grassy hill screaming. Cheers erupt from the crowd when the slippery swifts dodge the opportunistic Peregrine falcons, boos when the predators get lucky.

Portland Film Festival

Portland Film Festival 2015The festival focuses on the people, ideas, technology, skills and artistry behind filmmaking and provides both entertaining and educational opportunities to the public. The festival is anchored with outdoor screenings, offering its filmmakers one of the largest audiences available on the West Coast.

The festival is spread across seven theater and education venues including some of the oldest historic theaters in Oregon

Movies in the Park

Movies in Parks

Friday, September 4

Saturday, September 5

Sunday, September 6

Oregon Symphony Waterfront Concert and Fireworks (3 or 4 September 2015)

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Fireworks
“Lacroix display WFC2010” by Fieldington at English Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

Join the Oregon Symphony on Thursday, 3 September 2015 (rain date: Friday, 4 September) for the
Oregon Symphony in the Neighborhoods Waterfront Concert – an afternoon musical festival and concert – at Tom McCall Waterfront Park.

The afternoon music festival runs from 1 PM to 6:30 PM where you’ll have an opportunity to see and listen to the OSU Steel Drum Choir, Irish Fiddler Kevin Burke, Hillsboro School District Mariachi Band ‘Una Voz,’ Stephanie Schneiderman and Tony Furtado, and other performers.

The Oregon Symphony concert starts at 7 PM and wraps up about 9:30 PM. The traditional grand finale is a performance of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture with an elaborate fireworks show, which includes shots from military cannons from the Oregon Army National Guard 218th Field Artillery.

Visit the Oregon Symphony website for more information, including the full schedule, symphony program, and a list of arts partners participating.

The concert is free! No tickets needed. Bring a picnic and low chairs or blankets for the lawn seating.

Fireworks photo credit: “Lacroix display WFC2010” by Fieldington at English Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons.

One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest – 40th Anniversary Screening (3 September 2015)

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One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

The Portland Film Festival presents One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest – 40th Anniversary Screening Thursday, 3 September 2015, at the Clinton Street Theater (2522 SE Clinton).

Celebrate the 40th Film Anniversary of the Oregon classic, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” by Oregon author Ken Kesey with a special talk by resident Historian Doug Kenck-Crispin—he will introduce the film with some happy, huggy stories about the Oregon State Hospital.

The films producer gave us permission to screen a special edition of the film classic. Don’t miss this opportunity to see it on the big screen!

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is a 1975 American drama film directed by Miloš Forman, based on the 1962 novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey, and starring Jack Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, and Will Sampson. The supporting cast features William Redfield, Brad Dourif, Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd, and Scatman Crothers.

The film was the second to win all five major Academy Awards (Best Picture, Actor in Lead Role, Actress in Lead Role, Director, and Screenplay) following It Happened One Night in 1934, an accomplishment not repeated until 1991 by The Silence of the Lambs.

Now considered to be one of the greatest films ever made, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is No. 33 on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years… 100 Movies list. In 1993, it was deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.

Presentation starts at 8 PM. Tickets start at only $10 and can be bought in advance.

The Portland Film Festival: The Storytellers’ Festival & Conference runs September 1 through 7. Portland Film Festival is a non-profit dedicated to nurturing filmmakers and audiences, and to celebrating the power of a good story. The focus of the annual festival is on the people, ideas, technology, skills and artistry behind filmmaking and provides both entertaining and educational opportunities to the public.

Portland Weekend Amusements (28-30 August 2015)

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The fantastic Festa Italiana, Movies in the Park, Drive-in at Zidell Yards, and Support Black Restaurant Days – all weekend!

All Weekend

Drive-In at Zidell Yards

North By NorthwestNorthwest Film Center and Zidell present Drive-In at Zidell Yards each evening Thursday through Monday, August 27 through 31, 2015 at Zidell Yards (3030 SW Moody Avenue) under the Ross Island bridge

The movies:

  • Thursday (27 August 2015): Clueless
  • Friday (28 August 2015): An American Werewolf in London
  • Saturday (29 August 2015): Jurassic Park
  • Sunday (30 August 2015): North by Northwest
  • Monday (31 August 2015): Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure

Festa Italiana 2015

Festa Italiana

The 24th annual Festa Italiana tranforms Pioneer Courthouse Square into an Italian piazza Thursday through Saturday, August 27 through 29, 2015.
Arrive early to grab a table in the beer and wine garden (in my experience the beer and wine prices are very reasonable) where you’ll have an excellent view of the stage. Entertainment runs the gamut from marionettes, ballet, and opera to Sinatra tributes and of course (of course!) plenty of accordions!

Saturday-Sunday

Support Black Restaurant Days, Portland, OR!!!!

Inspired by an article about Black Restaurant Day in the San Francisco Chronicle, Portlander Bertha Pearl launched a Facebook event to bring Black Restaurant Day to Portland. The event’s page has amassed a huge list of black-owned restaurants in Portland that would otherwise not exist, and according to Pearl, August 29-30 will be Portland Black Restaurant Day.

Ongoing

Movies in the Park

Movies in Parks

Friday, August 28

Saturday, August 29