Willamette Week, August 9, 2023 - Volume 49, Issue 39 - "Ka-Pow"

By Bennett Campbell Ferguson.

The Amazing, Uncanny, Inclusive Story of the World’s Best Comics Shop, Books With Pictures.

WHAT WE LEARNED FROM READING THIS WEEK’S PAPER VOL. 49, ISSUE 39

Brown Hope ’s former director of programs is suing the troubled nonprofit. 7

Gov. Tina Kotek let the Oregon Racing Commission budget become law without her signature. 7

The city neglected to water new trees in East Portland. 8

Police Chief Chuck Lovell told his officers how to improve customer service 8

The city’s new police oversight board could have 33 members 11

Multnomah County signed a no-bid contract with a former manager to lead a top-priority project. 12

Books With Pictures owner Katie Pryde fell in love with comics after she found Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman in her mother’s drawer of erotica . 15

You’re not a true Oregonian until you’ve eaten allium ice cream at North Plains’

Elephant Garlic Festival 18

Thirty years ago, Music

Millennium’s Terry Currier

literally grilled Garth Brooks CDs as a form of protest. 18

This year, the PDX Hot Sauce Expo has a Guinness Book of World Records reaper eat-off with a $1,000 grand prize. 18

The Queen of the Vans will teach you how to work on a Chrysler 318 V8 engine this weekend. 18

Getting a drink at Joe Brown’s Lounge is kind of like walking into a Jodeci video 22

In honor of McMenamins’ 40th anniversary, all of its beers will be 40% off on Aug. 14. 23

How do you survive Barbenheimer? Eat a confetti weed cookie 25

A severed hand compels Portlanders to commit heinous acts in Keith Rosson’s new novel, Fever House 26

MICHAEL RAINES

ALBERTA ROSE THEATRE

Last week, WW plumbed a new list of tax delinquencies that the Oregon Department of Revenue released on July 14 (“The Tardy Dozen,” Aug. 2). The list, the product of thenWW news editor Brent Walth hounding Sen. Betsy Johnson (D-Scappoose) into passing legislation back in 2019, contains a treasure trove of information about who hasn’t paid state taxes. For our purposes, we concentrated on the top 12 delinquents with Portland addresses, delivering a mini profile of each. Here’s what our readers had to say.

ZBIGNEW, VIA WWEEK.COM:

“Reading the specific articles, [I] continue to see those owing claiming DOR estimates are wrong. Well, doesn’t the DOR base those estimates on filings made to them with sales and income data? Maybe these folks need better accountants. And for those who have retail marijuana operations, that sales tax is payable regardless of the other losses you have from operating your business.”

REASONABLESKEPTIC, VIA WWEEK.COM: “A little jail time might convince them. Enough tiptoeing around the issue—people who don’t pay their taxes should be subjected to a prison term. That might do the trick.”

JAMES D. GREGORY, VIA FACEBOOK: “It’s been going on for years! Yet if the average person in Oregon owes back tax or even child support, they will

crawl up your ASS! In months, they will garnish wages and seize bank accounts!!”

WEST STEWART MCCALL, VIA TWITTER: “’Tis the season for shady lowlife sleazy former hotel hustlers and political losers to be indicted. Bonus points if a battering ram was used!”

IM_NOT_A_ROBOT, VIA

WWEEK.COM: “These tax cheats are thieves. They are stealing from everyone else who pays their taxes, and they are forcing more people into homelessness due to underfunded human services and public education services. They are the worst of the worst in terms of the people who call this place their home and place of business.

As far as I’m concerned, the state has been way too lenient to them in the past, and that incompetence on the state’s part has encouraged them to steal

Dr. Know

BY MARTY SMITH @martysmithxxx

Selling paddleboard permits to fund boating-access improvements seems like a luxury tax on our waterways. If the state needs the cash, why not make cyclists register their bikes and get a license plate? This could help pay for all the bike lanes and green paths. —Lost in a Sea of Fees

I must say, Lost, I’m impressed: Your hypothetical Bicycle Registration Waterway Enrichment Fund has only existed for 30 seconds and you’re already raiding it to pay for unrelated bike path development projects. You should be in politics; you’re a natural.

For those who missed it, the state in 2020 began requiring a waterway access permit ($17 a year or $30 for two years) for operators of any nonmotorized boat longer than 10 feet. This includes rowboats, kayaks and those standup paddleboards that are all the rage lately (I thought the whole point of small boats is that you’re not supposed to stand up in them, but whatever). Revenues are split between the Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program and a fund for improvements to boat-launch areas.

As luxury taxes go, it’s not exactly crippling, but it’s true that no levy on paddlecraft is going to raise anything like as much money as a universal bike registration regime could. Why

even more.”

WATCHINGASTORIA, VIA WWEEK.COM: “[Mark] Hemstreet is the Oregon version of the Trump empire. I hope the Oregon Justice Department finally stops playing cat and mouse with him. There seem to be a lot of other hotel chains that manage to pay their taxes, so his tax problems are unique to him, and not some Democrat conspiracy to ‘get’ Mark [Hemstreet]. He also isn’t making any ‘statement’—like a conscientious tax refuser—he is just a tax cheat.”

LURKY + WEAPONIZED AF, VIA WWEEK.COM: “It could be argued that these 12 delinquents may have saved our remaining two-lane roads from being converted to bike lanes. Just sayin’. SPOILER: In the future, lazy humans will still ride around in auto ‘carriages’ of some type (if not fossil fuel motorized). So we’re still going to need roads and parking spaces, etc. I know, should have alerted the geniuses down at City Hall a few years ago.”

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR must include the author's street address and phone number for verification. Letters must be 250 or fewer words. Submit to: P.O. Box 10770, Portland, OR 97296 Email: mzusman@wweek.com

don’t we implement one of those?

This trivia question hints at the answer: Long Beach, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and Davis, Calif., have all tried mandatory bike licensing, as have Seattle, Houston, Honolulu, Madison, Wis., and our very own Medford. How many of those programs are still in operation?

It’s not zero; Honolulu has managed to make it work. But in every other case, weak enforcement led to minimal participation, administrative costs far outstripped revenue, and everyone from cops to cyclists completely hated it. I’m not saying it’s impossible here, but ask yourself: Is Portland more like Honolulu, or like a bunch of West Coast cities plus Madison?

That said, rest assured that bikes aren’t getting off scot-free on the taxes and fees front. Oregon still has the bicycle excise tax, the $15 surcharge levied on new bikes since 2017. It may be pretty small beer compared to the $238 motorists pay to register a car in Multnomah County, but it leaves boaters who complain about the $15 WAP without a leg to stand (up in a small boat) on.

Questions? Send them to dr.know@wweek.com.

COPS WILL FINISH BODY-CAM TRAINING BY YEAR’S END: The Portland Police Bureau is moving quickly to roll out body-worn cameras in the wake of the compromise reached this spring among its union, the city and the U.S. Department of Justice over policies governing their use. The bureau plans to train officers in the Central Precinct and gun violence response team on use of the cameras this month, according to a “joint status report” filed in federal court on Aug. 8. The city’s training, which focuses on circumstances in which the cameras should be used, will happen “either concurrently or close in time” with training by Axon, the manufacturer, on how to use the new technology. The remaining officers will be trained on the new policy during “fall in-service training,” which will be completed before the end of the year. The training, as well as the continued rollout of the program following a 60-day pilot, is contingent on approval by the Department of Justice, which took the city to court a decade ago over the Police Bureau’s use of force against people with mental illness. The Portland Police Association and city officials long disagreed whether police should be allowed to review body-camera footage before writing a report. They came to a compromise earlier this year to “avoid the delays and uncertain outcomes of interest arbitration,” resulting in the new policy: It requires officers give a recorded account of what happened before reviewing video in cases where someone is injured or dies.

FORMER BROWN HOPE EXEC SUES: Brondalyn Coleman, the former director of programs for Brown Hope, filed a lawsuit against the racial justice nonprofit and its CEO Cameron Whitten on July 17 in Multnomah County Circuit Court. Coleman alleges Whitten directed her to fire an employee for refusing to meditate; demanded she and other employees and board members use the psychoactive drug ayahuasca; told her to sign tax documents she believed “concealed potentially unlawful activity”; and told her he intended to fire an employee who was “too white.” Coleman, who joined Brown Hope in September 2021 and earned a salary of $93,000, says when she pushed back against Whitten, who also demanded she carry an “angelite stone crystal with her at all times for religious or spiritual purposes,” her relationship with the CEO deteriorated and he fired her in January 2023. Coleman is seeking $5 million in damages. Whitten’s response: “Brown Hope has a deep love and commitment to all the people of

Portland, and that definitely includes our current and former employees. We are currently beginning a mediation and restorative justice process for anyone who has concerns.” His board chair says an outside investigation found allegations against current staff “legally unsubstantiated.” An Oregon Department of Justice investigation into Brown Hope continues.

KOTEK JABS RACING COMMISSION: Among the stack of bills that came to Gov. Tina Kotek’s desk last week: House Bill 5535, the budget bill for the Oregon Racing Commission. As WW reported in a cover story earlier this year, that commission facilitates billions of dollars in online betting on horse and dog races for almost no benefit to the state (“Track Addicts, May 17, 2023). State Rep. David Gomberg (D-Otis) has hounded the agency to comply with Senate Bill 1504, a 2022 law aimed at stopping the commission from taking bets on greyhounds from people living in states where greyhound racing is illegal. The commission has resisted full implementation of SB 1504, to Gomberg’s displeasure, and Kotek, in a rare move, allowed HB 5535 to become law without her signature. “I believe in the intent of this law [SB 1504] and will direct the Racing Commission to act within its available authority to prohibit betting on greyhound races, regardless of where they take place,” Kotek wrote in her explanation of why she didn’t sign the bill.

FIRE-PLAGUED TIRE RECYCLER LACKS DEQ

PERMIT: Castle Tire Recycling has a fire problem. In May, a three-story pile of shredded tires ignited at its shipping location on the Willamette River, just north of the Steel Bridge, spewing acrid smoke into the morning air. A few days later it reignited as heat built up deep in the pile. On Aug. 7, Castle had another fire, this one at the North Portland industrial site where it chops up the tires. So far, though, Castle has failed to take steps that might prevent the next blaze. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has fined Castle $13,600 and asked the company to either remove the pile of tires on the Willamette or get a permit to store them there before they’re shipped to Asia to be burned for fuel. Castle has done none of those things. The pile on the river is still there. Castle hasn’t sought a permit, DEQ says, and it is contesting the fine. DEQ says it has met with Castle CEO Chandos Mahon and that he intends to submit a permit application. In the meantime, the tire pile remains. Mahon didn’t respond to a request for comment.

CASTLE TIRE EXPORT TERMINAL

An abandoned warehouse in Sullivan’s Gulch isn’t abandoned after all.

ADDRESS: 2506 NE Multnomah St.

TELLING YARNS Whoops

YEAR BUILT: 1910

SQUARE FOOTAGE: 65,060

MARKET VALUE: $1,538,070

OWNER: ZEK LLC

WHY IT’S EMPTY: It just looks empty. For decades, a clothing manufacturer has used the warehouse for storage.

Westbound motorists on Interstate 84 can’t miss one of Portland’s most notorious graffiti walls: a seemingly abandoned warehouse just below the 21st Avenue bridge.

The southern wall of the two-story building is easily visible from the highway and currently coated in colorful tags. On a recent weekend, a campsite, couch and supper table had been set up amid the grassy fields encircling the building.

Although the property is secured with a rickety padlocked fence, visitors sneak in on weekends to skateboard on the roof. About a decade ago, one interloper posted on Reddit what he’d found inside: “giant rolls of yarn.” A clue.

Not all of the activity on the property is so innocuous. Police show up a few times a year, sometimes in large numbers, according to neighbor Justin Arey.

One raid led to a 2012 police brutality settlement after a cop Tasered a suspected vandal. And three teens suspected of serial arson were indicted earlier this year on charges they targeted the building. “It’s a never-ending source of problems,” Arey says. But despite appearances, Columbiaknit, a clothing manufacturer founded more than a century ago, still uses the building for storage. (Columbiaknit is not to be confused with the much larger Columbia Sportswear. The two firms were briefly entangled in a trademark dispute in the 1990s.)

Columbiaknit has quite a story. Jakob Kryszek purchased the company after he immigrated to Portland in 1952. Kryszek had spent stints at five different Nazi death camps, including Auschwitz, and was the only member of his family to survive the gas chambers, according to a biography published by the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education. He later played a pivotal role in establishing the Oregon Holocaust Memorial at Washington Park.

Kryszek expanded the clothing seller, purchasing the White Stag building downtown and the Northeast warehouse, a former timber plant, in the 1980s. He died in 2019, at the age of 100. The business is now run by one of his two children, Albert.

The firm continues to sell beanies and polos “made in the USA since 1921” out of a factory in the Brentwood-Darlington neighborhood of Southeast Portland. But the graffiti-covered warehouse was recently put on the market for $4 million. The firm’s textile business has shrunk, Albert Kryszek says. “I think we could use the money better.”

Yvette Arey, who lives across the street with her husband, Justin, has an idea for prospective buyers: “We need affordable housing,” she says. “Let’s get people off the streets.” LUCAS MANFIELD.

Every week, WW examines one mysteriously vacant property in the city of Portland, explains why it’s empty, and considers what might arrive there next. Send addresses to newstips@wweek.com.

Trees planted by the city in East Portland two years ago are dead because the city didn’t water them.

BY SOPHIE PEEL speel@wweek.com

The Portland Bureau of Transportation used federal infrastructure dollars a little more than two years ago to plant about 30 saplings in a grassy triangle in the East Portland neighborhood of Mill Park between Southeast 103rd Avenue and Cherry Blossom Drive.

The trees included Douglas firs, Japanese maples and redwoods, according to labels still affixed to the saplings. The city paid a contractor to do the planting over a yearlong period, and then to water the trees for the next calendar year, filling heavy-duty green bags around the bases of the young trees with 15 to 20 gallons of water every week.

The city ’s contract with that company ended March 31 of this year, according to PBOT spokeswoman Hannah Schafer. From that point onward, PBOT—the owner of the triangle—became responsible for maintaining the new trees.

Just one problem: The bureau acknowledges it hasn’t continued to water the trees. Now, some of the saplings will likely have to be ripped out because they are dead or dying of thirst.

“It’s a big disappointment, but not surprising,” says Ray Johnson, who lives nearby. “I can’t help but think that if these trees had been planted in a more affluent part of the city, say the West Hills, they wouldn’t have forgotten to water them.”

Schafer says watering trees is outside the bureau’s scope: “We only trim trees for visibility and clear brush. We simply are not set up for nor have the skills for tree maintenance beyond that.”

Watering skills aside, at least 25 of the trees in the triangle appeared beyond salvation last week. About a third of the ailing trees are long and spindly Japanese maples without a single leaf on any of the bone-dry branches. Other dead trees include stout and bushy Douglas firs, their needles brown and brittle.

For years, city leaders have focused tree-planting efforts in East Portland, where research by Portland State University’s Urban Studies and Planning Department shows the tree canopy is less than half of what it is on the west side of the Willamette River. Climate

DOCUMENT

CUSTOMER SERVICE

In an unusual email, Police Chief Chuck Lovell told his troops to stop badmouthing DA Mike Schmidt and the city of Portland.

researchers have warned that areas with less tree coverage mean less protection from the sweltering sun and more deaths due to climate disaster.

That warning bore out in the summer of 2021 during the deadly heat wave that killed 69 Portlanders. Four ZIP codes east of 42nd Avenue accounted for nearly a quarter of the city’s heat deaths last summer.

PSU climate researcher Vivek Shandas, who maps heat islands in Portland, told WW in 2021 that the deaths in East Portland that summer should have come as no surprise. “We had so much evidence to show this was a likely outcome,” Shandas said at the time. “Without direct mitigation of these places that are often 15, 20 degrees hotter, we’re going to continue seeing people die.”

SUBJECT: Please take a minute to read

FROM: Portland Police

Chief Chuck Lovell

TO: All Bureau

DATE: May 4, 2023

In May, Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell distributed an all-office memo, recently obtained by WW and first reported by The Oregonian, asking his officers to stop blaming prosecutors for the lack of “police action.”

Facing public outrage over slow response times and increased crime, cops have publicly pointed fingers at the Multnomah County District

Attorney’s Office, saying conditions on the street are the result of prosecutors’ reluctance to press charges.

That, Lovell said in the May 4 memo, “is completely unacceptable.”

“This undermines our relationship with criminal justice partners,” he explained, “and sends the message to the community that the system is unresponsive to their needs.”

Here’s three takeaways from Lovell’s latest effort to burnish the bureau’s image:

Portlanders are “disheartened” by police excuses.

CHASING GHOSTS

PBOT’s failure to water its 30 trees in the traffic median is the second time this year that government officials have failed to protect tree canopy. An ongoing street-widening project along a 67-block stretch of Southeast Powell Boulevard means the state is currently chopping down 570 trees lining the road, WW reported in June.

“ We care very much about adding trees where we can in our projects to help combat the heat island effect, especially in neighborhoods in East Portland where that issue is so prevalent,” Schafer says, adding that if the trees in the triangular island need to be ripped out and replaced, it likely won’t happen until next spring.

In the meantime, Schafer says, PBOT is “working with Portland Parks & Recreation’s Urban Forestry team to evaluate potential options around caring for these trees.”

Lovell says he often receives complaints from the community about police passing the buck. “Officers are telling complainants that there is absolutely nothing they can do for them, or that the problem is the result of someone else’s decisions,” Lovell writes. Blame policy, not prosecutors.

Lovell acknowledges that 911 callers are often outraged when police arrive hours later. “It is completely appropriate to explain the circumstances surrounding why a response might be delayed,” Lovell says.

Offering certain explana-

Fill It In

Kotek’s housing advisory panel proposes gutting wetland protections, outraging environmentalists.

Gov. Tina Kotek got elected last year with strong support from environmental groups. But since taking office, she’s made housing production her top priority—putting her at odds with them.

In June, Kotek teamed with Senate Republicans to try to preempt long-standing land use protections. Environmentalists blocked that bill, but they’re already facing what they see as another war—a draft proposal from a subcommittee of Kotek’s Housing Production Advisory Council that advocates scrapping state law to greenlight the development of “marginal or degraded wetlands.”

That, say many environmental leaders, would be a grave mistake.

“Oregon has been a leader in protecting its remaining wetlands,” says Quinn Read, conservation director for Portland Audubon. “This proposal would undo that legacy. We are in the midst of a housing crisis. But we don’t have to indulge these ‘either/or’ proposals that falsely imply we can either have housing or thriving wetlands and urban ecosystems.”

WHAT CHANGED? On May 25, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Sackett v. EPA that the feds could only regulate wetlands that had a “surface connection” to navigable waterways. That meant isolated wetlands cut off from flowing water could be filled. (Willamette Riverkeeper conservation director Bob Sallinger says local examples include wetlands on Sauvie Island, in the industrial Columbia Corridor and along Johnson Creek.) President Joe Biden said the decision “upends the legal framework that has protected America’s waters for decades.” On June 5, the Oregon Department of State Lands, which regulates Oregon’s wetlands, issued an unusual statement. “Sackett v. EPA has been a source of heartache and confusion for people who care about protecting wetlands,” the agency said. “Oregon has strong state laws to protect wetlands and continues to require permits for projects that remove or add materials in wetlands.” But last week, Kotek’s panel, which is developer-heavy, instead cited Sackett as an opportunity: “The state of Oregon now has a viable path for development of marginal or degraded wetlands to allow for needed housing development,”

the panel wrote. “Federal protections adopted by the DSL should now be relaxed to the maximum extent possible as an emergency measure.”

WHY DOES IT MATTER? Oregon has 1.3 million acres of wetlands, state figures show, down from 2.3 million acres in the late 1700s. As scientists have learned more about climate, they have come to appreciate the vital role wetlands play. “Wetlands provide critical habitat for fish and wildlife, reduce flooding, manage stormwater, improve water quality, protect us from extreme heat, and sequester enormous amounts of carbon,” Audubon’s Read says. “Oregon has already lost almost 1 million acres of our historic wetlands. This proposal would pave the way (literally) to wipe out even more, making Oregon less resilient to the impacts of climate change.”

WHAT’S THE CONSEQUENCE? “This proposal is a handout for developers who seek to make huge profits from developing in high-risk, flood-prone areas while also burdening communities with the added social cost of eliminating wetlands, which are tremendously important for preventing the worst impacts of flood events,” says Chelsea Stewart-Fusek, a lawyer for the Center for Biological Diversity. “Federal law provides the floor for how Oregon must treat wetlands, not the ceiling. The worst thing Oregon could do in the face of the climate change-induced, severe flooding that we’ve been seeing nationwide is to weaken its standards.”

WHAT DOES KOTEK SAY? Kotek’s spokeswoman, Elizabeth Shepard, says the draft proposal is simply that. “Currently, there are no recommendations to the full council regarding wetlands,” Shepard says. But she reiterates that Kotek is deadly serious about putting roofs over people’s heads. “Gov. Kotek set a new goal of building 36,000 housing units per year over the next decade,” Shepard adds. “There are all kinds of conversations happening to be bold on meeting this goal.”

WHAT’S NEXT? Peggy Lynch of the Oregon League of Women Voters watched Kotek’s advisory panel meeting, but just by chance. As her group’s longtime natural resource advocate, she couldn’t believe what she was hearing and sounded the alarm. Now, the panel will hear from more experts. “The League appreciates that the work group will be learning more about the role of wetlands,” Lynch said in an email. “Although we understand that the Housing Production Advisory Council holds open meetings, each of the work groups have not been noticed to the general public. The presentation on wetlands is an example of why all Oregonians should be aware of these meetings.” NIGEL JAQUISS.

tions, he says, is OK: “I also have no issues with officers explaining why they cannot take a suspect to jail, conduct a camp cleanup, or similar information sharing.”

Small gestures go a long way.

Cops need to think about public perception, Lovell explains.

“Even the smallest gesture, such as documenting their concerns on a police report for future reference, can go a long way,” he writes. “It helps them to feel heard and every small effort can make a difference in how people view us.”

LUCAS MANFIELD.

COURTESY METRO

THIRSTY LAND: The city planted trees in a grass median in the Mill Park neighborhood.

CARBON SINK: Metro’s Killin Wetlands near Banks.

“This proposal is a handout for developers.”

SOPHIE PEEL

SCAN

Tough Crowd

A plan for the new police oversight board meets a skeptical Portland City Council.

BY SOPHIE PEEL speel@wweek.com

A proposal for a new police oversight panel approved by voters almost three years ago will come before the Portland City Council on Aug. 31. Council members are already signaling it may be in trouble.

After the George Floyd protests, 82% of Portland voters in November 2020 approved the creation of a new police oversight board that could investigate, discipline and even fire police officers who engaged in misconduct. And the new panel would be funded by an amount equivalent to 5% of the Police Bureau’s budget, about $12.5 million.

The ballo t measure, spearheaded by then-Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, came at a time when Portlanders wanted greater police oversight. There was fresh impetus for change: Portland police officers regularly used excessive force against protesters downtown that summer.

And the city had a poor record historically of policing the police. The U.S. Department of Justice reprimanded the Police Bureau in 2014 for using excessive force against people with mental illness, leading to a settlement agreement under which the bureau still operates.

“This was something the community had been asking for for well over 20 years,” Hardesty says. “And the political will lined up with the people’s demand in the fall of 2020.”

But three years later, things have changed.

“There’s nothing the city is more concerned about right now than public safety,” Mayor Ted Wheeler said at a May 17 presentation by the

20-member Police Accountability Commission that’s crafting the plan for the new oversight panel. “And if people feel that we’re messing with public safety, or in any way weakening it, they will react.”

Wheeler warned the group he didn’t like some of its ideas: “I also don’t want two years from now somebody saying, ‘How could you guys not have seen this mess coming?’ if it goes the way I think it could go.” (Wheeler and his colleagues on the City Council declined to comment for this story).

Members of the City Council have shown a willingness this year to revisit ballot measures already approved by voters. They changed the allocation of money from the Portland Clean Energy Fund, and two of them took an unsuccessful swipe recently at the 2022 measure to change Portland’s form of government.

Observers think signals from Wheeler and his colleagues about police oversight are ominous.

“This is the tone you set when you’re about to gut something,” says Oregon Justice Resource Center lawyer Juan Chavez, “and I think that’s what they plan to do.”

In 2020, Portlanders and the City Council wanted fewer cops and greater scrutiny of those it had. Today, the city faces a public safety crisis.

It was in that changing environment that the 20 members of the Police Accountability Commission met 150 times in the past two years to draw up a blueprint for the new police oversight panel.

The new board will replace the current oversight panel, Independent Police Review. Critics

say IPR, which has a $3 million annual budget, is toothless.

That’s because the police chief and police commissioner—currently, Wheeler—ultimately decide whether there has been officer misconduct and, if so, determine the punishment. The Police Bureau is engaged throughout the investigatory process, and some complaints are given to the bureau to investigate internally.

Chavez says the bureau’s involvement “waters down and dilutes IPR.”

“ Who is that process then for?” Chavez asks. “It’s not for the public. It’s to the benefit of the officer.”

Commissioner Hardesty proposed Measure 26-217 to replace IPR with a better-funded, community-led board that could investigate more complaints and would also have greater authority to discipline and fire police officers found guilty of misconduct. That’s the primary difference: The new board will have the power to find guilt and impose discipline.

After the PAC wraps up its work Aug. 31, the City Council has 60 days to make changes before sending the plan to the U.S. DOJ for review (it must comply with the 2014 settlement agreement). Any part of the plan not explicitly mandated by Measure 26-217 is fair game for alteration.

Parts of the commission’s proposal appear to have rubbed the City Council the wrong way. The group proposes a 33-member board, for instance. That’s unusually large for a decision-making panel, and it’s the largest police oversight board that WW could find in any other major city in the country. (San Diego has a 25-member board.)

“It allows for a wider range of voices on the board,” says Tim Johnson, director of Willamette University’s Center for Governance & Public Policy Research, “but the tradeoff is that coordinating a large group and ensuring that it remains effective becomes more difficult.”

Another novel idea: Members could be paid up to $7,400 annually and provided free mental health care. (Members of public boards and commissions are rarely paid more than a nominal amount to cover expenses.)

evidence. That means an officer could be found guilty if more evidence than not suggests the officer engaged in misconduct.

Cops found guilty of wrongdoing by the board could appeal to a secondary panel, also made up of board members. So can citizens who lodge complaints.

Wheeler warned the commission in May that it needed to be careful about overreaching and losing public confidence.

“ When it comes to police oversight, we’ve seen specific examples where police oversight boards have exploded in spectacular style due to a loss of legitimacy,” he said.

Parts of the proposal—such as the size of the board and its level of involvement in investigations—were not explicitly laid out in the ballot measure, and are therefore subject to change. But there were provisions that can’t be changed. No police or their immediate family, for instance, are allowed on the board. Neither are former cops. Under the terms of the measure, the City Council, which appoints board members, should prioritize applicants with lived experience of police discrimination. Applicants should be racially diverse, and the board should also include members impacted by addiction and mental illness.

Of particular concern to the City Council is the board’s authority to subpoena testimony and compel the production of documents.

“I don’t have subpoena powers myself,” Commissioner Mingus Mapps remarked May 17. Wheeler wondered out loud how the Multnomah County district attorney would feel about such access to records.

“My concern is that if this is not seen as a balanced, fair approach to police accountability, it will quickly be seen by the public and by our employees as an illegitimate process,” Wheeler said. “Then we’ll have a major mess on our hands.”

PAC members assured the council they had conferred with law enforcement, including the Portland Police Association, and that officers would retain the due process rights they currently have.

In a sign that she is uncomfortable with the new oversight panel’s generous budget—5% of Police Bureau’s—Commissioner Carmen Rubio recently asked the city attorney if some of it could be allocated to cash-strapped Portland Street Response. (It can’t be; such a change would require a charter amendment, the City Attorney’s Office told Rubio.)

All five members of the City Council laid out their concerns in a June 9 letter to the PAC, urging the group to make recommendations “based on accurate information and distinguishing between statements of perception and statements of fact.” (The commission says it plans to update its plan “based off of council feedback.”)

Ten percent of the board’s overall budget, the commission recommends, should be spent on board members. That could include child and dependent care, therapy and personal security if a member feels unsafe. The board would hire a director, and the commission recommends creating a new bureau with up to 56 staff.

Determination of wrongdoing under the new plan would be in the hands of citizens—not the police officer’s bosses. The board would use the standard of proof of a preponderance of the

“ We’re dealing with the impacts of other measures that have cast long shadows,” Commissioner Rene Gonzalez said at the May meeting. “How do we assure fidelity to what voters approved, but as elected officials, when we see unintended consequences of what was approved, how do we adjust?”

Current Police Accountability Commission co-chairs Dan Handelman, Seemab Hussaini, and Charlie Michelle-Westley say they “are confident that City Council will thoughtfully evaluate our recommendations and the reasons behind them, because our recommendations will create a system that will serve all Portlanders fairly.”

FLAMED OUT: Former City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty championed the new police oversight board.

“I also don’t want two years from now somebody saying, ‘How could you guys not have seen this mess coming?’”

Sunlan Lighting

Revolving Door

Multnomah County disciplined Julie Dodge for racial “microaggressions.” She quit and the county hired her right back on a no-bid contract.

BY NIGEL JAQUISS njaquiss@wweek.com

The consultant whom Multnomah County hired to coordinate one of its highest-profile initiatives, the development of a sobering and detox center, has a checkered background—at Multnomah County.

The consultant is Julie Dodge, the county’s former interim director of behavioral health. Dodge resigned under a cloud from her high-level position at the county last year only to be rehired immediately on a no-bid consulting contract to lead a project so critical that Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson is directly overseeing it herself.

The project: the behavioral health emergency coordination network, also called BHECN. That unwieldy acronym has become shorthand for the lengthy, expensive and, so far, unsuccessful quest to replace a downtown sobering center that closed at the end of 2019. Even as the county is awash in money, it has struggled to make progress (“Surprise Intervention,” WW, July 19).

The shuttered detox center, run by the nonprofit Central City Concern for the Portland Police Bureau at 444 NE Couch St., served as a drop-off point for people experiencing extreme intoxication.

For nearly 40 years, police and a roving CHIERS van brought people there instead of jails and hospital emergency rooms. In the 1990s, the facility served as many as 20,000 people a year. Now, it serves none, which helps explain why some of the most visibly intoxicated Portlanders occupy the same urban landscape daily.

For the past three years, as methamphetamine became more powerful, the pandemic raged, and fentanyl arrived, first responders had few places to take people in crisis. They left many on the streets to suffer, contributing to urban chaos,

or brought them to ERs, an inefficient use of scarce resources.

Last year, the city of Portland solicited interest from contractors who might want to run a new version of the sobering center. When nobody responded, Multnomah County, the city’s partner in the Joint Office of Homeless Services, took over the project.

“There is a crisis on our streets, and addressing it is a top priority for Multnomah County and for me,” County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson told members of the BHECN executive committee— which includes top staff from Providence, Legacy, CareOregon, the city of Portland and leading social service nonprofits—last month.

On July 26, Vega Pederson told the committee that she personally was taking control.

“Following conversations with many of you and the Mayor’s Office, I have decided to take on the leadership of the BHECN Executive Committee,” Vega Pederson wrote. “We need to be able to move

forward into action, following our shared values of being consumer-focused, trauma-informed, grounded in equity, transparent, and building consensus.”

But Vega Pederson’s pick to lead the charge had an equity problem.

In January 2021, Multnomah County issued a press release announcing a new interim director for one of the county’s core functions: behavioral health.

“Over the past three decades, Julie Dodge has worked as a social worker, a small business owner, a consultant and an academic. What hasn’t changed is her focus: building healthy communities through evidence-based design, community strength and equity,” the county wrote. “Throughout her career Dodge has worked to improve the systems that lead to disparate outcomes for Black, Indigenous and People of Color.”

Dodge earned a bachelor’s degree in Christian education from Biola University, a master’s degree

JULIE DODGE

COURTESY OF MULTNOMAH COUNTY

Sunlan cartoons by Kay Newell “The Lightbulb Lady” Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Google

in social welfare from UCLA, and a doctorate of ministry in leadership and global perspectives from George Fox University.

When the county announced Dodge’s hiring, she said she wanted to “build a more collaborative, less siloed division that places race at the forefront of its work.” The subtext, a lingering feeling after the high-profile 2017 firing of Tricia Tillman, the county’s director of public health, was that Black employees felt they got a raw deal at the county. ThenChair Deborah Kafoury established a complaint investigation unit and pledged things would be different after Tillman’s firing.

“It’s not just words,” Dodge said when she started. “None of this is new, so let’s make it happen.”

Sullivan- Springhetti says there’s nothing inconsistent about the county imposing discipline on Dodge after a race-based complaint and then hiring her to work on a project that promotes racial equity.

Normally, county contracts above $10,000 require competitive bidding, but in Dodge’s case, the county used a “sole qualified contractor exemption” that allows no-bid contracts of up to $150,000.

Unlike some state agencies and the Oregon Legislature, the county has no revolving-door rules to prevent former employees from being rehired as consultants—it even provided Dodge with a county email address for her work on BHECN.

11AM: NATHAN EARLE

NOON: MILKY CHANCE

1PM: MOJO HOLLER

2PM: MARY FLOWER & THE BBQ BOYS

3PM: JT WISE

4PM:

What happened, as it turned out, was that at least one of Dodge’s Black subordinates didn’t think she treated him fairly. That employee, Frederick Staten, filed a complaint last year.

“I had a job change and started working directly with Julie Dodge and found it challenging, so much so that [I] needed HR in the room because I didn’t feel safe,” Staten said in an exit interview transcript WW obtained under a public records request. “I don’t use language like ‘hostile’ unless it is warranted and I am running out of reasons to think what other things they might be beside microaggressions or discrimination.”

Staten declined to comment, but county spokeswoman Julie Sullivan-Springhetti confirmed that the county’s complaint unit investigated Dodge. The result: “Discipline was imposed,” Sullivan-Springhetti says.

The county rejected WW’s request for its findings, but Dodge filled in some blanks.

“They did identify two incidents of microaggressions toward Frederick on my behalf,” Dodge says. “I accept responsibility for those. As we know with microaggressions, intent and impact are often very different.” Dodge says the conflict with Staten was an aberration and she underwent coaching from HR after the finding.

Dodg e resigned from her $167,325 county position Dec. 16. On Jan. 2, records show, the county signed Dodge to a $225-an-hour, no-bid consulting contract to develop BHECN.

“This kind of hiring is neither common, nor is it unprecedented,” Sullivan-Springhetti says of Dodge’s contract. “In a small number of cases, we have hired someone who retired, or who left the county, to work on a short-term basis or as an on-call employee if the county requires their specific body of knowledge.”

That explanation doesn’t satisfy County Commissioner Sharon Meieran, an emergency room physician who has been involved in BHECN discussions. She says Dodge’s hiring raises a number of important questions, but is emblematic of a larger problem that has resulted in no agreement among stakeholders of what BHECN is or will be after three years of talking.

“The broader issue is about the failure of leadership that got us to this point and the lack of decisive action to move any solution to address our behavioral health crisis,” she says. “Until we have a plan, we are kidding ourselves if we expect accountability.”

Vega Pederson says she was unaware Dodge had been disciplined until WW inquired, but she is satisfied county staff vetted her contract properly.

“To be clear, Julie Dodge’s work is no longer providing the level of management she used to provide as an employee—she is now contracting to provide behavioral health expertise,” Vega Pederson says. “I am providing leadership around our development of this network, as well as managing the dynamics of the executive committee with Julie Dodge consulting on policy.”

“This kind of hiring is neither common, nor is it unprecedented.”

The Amazing, Uncanny, Inclusive Story of the World’s Best Comics Shop, Books With Pictures.

INthe X-Men comics, Kitty Pryde is a superhero who walks through walls and leaps across time. Her fans include Portland transplant Katie Pryde, 41, who took the character’s name as her own—and lived up to it by leading Southeast Division Street comic book shop Books With Pictures through

a costly location change and a global pandemic.

The story of Books With Pictures is too colorful to be confined to the printed word. That’s why our Comics Issue is, appropriately, a comic strip, based on Pryde’s adventures and illustrated by visual artist (and former Books With Pictures staffer) Seaerra Miller.

With its triumph last year at the Eisner Awards, Books With Pictures has not only become one of the most famous comics shops in America, but in the world. Here’s how it happened.

—Bennett Campbell Ferguson, Assistant Arts & Culture Editor

llustrated by Seaerra Miller

GET BUSY

EAT: Dinner in the Field

Event planning company Field & Vine rearranges the farm-to-table ethos by placing the table directly at the farm. The latest dinner in its year-round series takes guests to Wilsonville’s Terra Vina Wines, which is tucked into the south side of Parrett Mountain in the Chehalem Mountain American Viticultural Area. While feasting on a seven-course, family-style meal, you can enjoy views of the Cascade Range, Mount Hood and the winery’s 16 acres of cabernet franc, chardonnay, dolcetto and pinot noir. Terra Vina Wines Vineyard, 33750 SW Ladd Hill Road, Wilsonville, 503-925-0712, alliumoregon.com. 5:30 pm Friday, Aug. 11. $135.

WATCH: Imposter/Switch #4

Who among us hasn’t fallen prey to the anxiety of self-doubt? Well, it’s time to fight back against that feeling with the fourth edition of Imposter/Switch, a playful and daring showcase where artists swap disciplines and challenge themselves to create something outside of their comfort zone. Dancers, musicians, painters, writers and others had only two weeks to prepare for this experiment in mediums, enhancing the tension and excitement for performer and viewer alike. Performance Works NorthWest, 4625 SE 67th Ave., 503-400-6691, pwnw-pdx.org. 8 pm Friday, Aug. 11. $5-$20.

GO: Elephant Garlic Festival

In Oregon, we celebrate just about anything that grows here, from hops to grapes to elephant garlic. The latter is likely among the most pungent of all the local foods that get their own festival, where you can sample the allium in everything from Parmesan cheese kettle corn to nachos to ice cream. In addition to garlic, the three-day event offers a parade, runs of varying lengths, live music, a beer and wine garden and OMSI demonstrations.

This is one of those experiences you must attend before you consider yourself a true Oregonian—just be sure to bring mints. Jessie Mays Community Hall and Park, 30975 NW Hillcrest St., North Plains, 503-319-5428, funstinks.com. Noon-11 pm Friday, 10 am-11 pm Saturday, 10 am-4 pm Sunday, Aug. 11–13. Free.

GO: Music Millennium

Celebrates 30 Years of the BarB-Q for Retail Freedom

Thirty years ago, Music Millennium owner Terry Currier made national headlines by literally grilling Garth Brooks CDs and tapes. The spectacle was a protest against record labels that began withholding advertising dollars from stores that sold used CDs—and the country star was directly targeted after he held a press conference declaring he didn’t want his new album sold in businesses that also offered secondhand music. You can celebrate the 30th anniversary of that momentous and very Old Portland-style demonstration at Currier’s latest iteration of the event, where there will be real food (not just Brooks’ CDs in hamburger buns), a full day of live performances and photos of the original barbecue. Music Millennium, 3158 E Burnside St., 503-231-8926, musicmillennium.com. 11 am-6 pm Saturday, Aug. 12. Free.

GO: World Naked Bike Ride

Make a statement at the annual World Naked Bike Ride, which highlights the vulnerability of cyclists of all types while also decrying society’s dependence on polluting modes of transportation. Don’t worry, this street takeover is both safe and legal, so please do your part and don’t drink and ride. The meeting location will be announced soon, so stay tuned and get ready to strip down and pedal up! Start location to be announced, pdxwnbr.org. 7:30 pm Saturday, Aug. 12. Free.

EAT: 6th Annual PDX Hot Sauce Expo

Portland’s ultimate spicy food throwdown returns to the OMSI Bridge Lot, where you can test your taste buds’ tolerance for pain by signing up for one of several eating competitions hosted on the aptly named “Stage of Doom.” There will be 10 challenges with frightening monikers like “Doughnuts of Death,” “Burning BBQ Pork,” and “Slaytanic Burrito”—including a Guinness Book of World Records reaper eat-off with a $1,000 grand prize, which should have contestants crying, sweating and possibly even hallucinating by the end. Or you can stick to sampling hot sauces that range from mild to downright insane like a slowly tortured guest on an episode of Hot Ones OMSI Bridge Lot, 1945 SE Water Ave., pdxhotsauceexpo. com. 10 am-6 pm Saturday-Sunday, Aug. 12-13. $10 general admission, $35 craft beer package, $100 VIP.

WATCH: Hot Wheels Monster Truck Live Glow Party

Prepare yourself for the most electrifying and oversized product placement of the year with the return of Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Glow Party to the Rose Quarter. The rigs are not only big at this show; they’re also decked out in dazzling lights, making this something akin to a rave for trucks sans all of the drugs. Though you may feel like you’re tripping once you see what’s billed as the introduction of a fireand frost-breathing, car-eating dragon called Arcticgon. Veterans Memorial Coliseum, 300 N Ramsay Way, 503-235-8771, rosequarter.com. 12:30 and 7:30 pm Saturday, 2:30 pm Sunday, Aug. 12-13. $8-$60.

LEARN: Engine Basics With Queen of the Vans

If you’ve always wanted to know more about the workings of an internal combustion engine but felt too intimidated by the

world of mechanics to do anything about it, there is a class for you. Queen of the Vans, aka Rose Brooks (Custom Vanner magazine), is teaching a class on that very subject, which is appropriate for beginners to novice gearheads. The full-day session will have participants working on a 1980s Chrysler 318 V8 engine and becoming contestants in a game show-style quiz to help reinforce the lessons. Brosseau’s Coachworks, 1135 NW Nobel Drive, Estacada, carkrush.com/collections/frontpage/ products/queen-of-the-vans-engine-building-class. 9 am-7 pm Sunday, Aug. 13. $100 deposit and $100 day of class.

WATCH: Rigoletto

Now in its 20th year, the beauty of Opera in the Park is that it gives everybody the chance to see world-class singers in a laid-back outdoor setting. And given the demand for these events—more than 57,000 have attended since 2003—it’s clear people want access to an art form that’s typically seen as an affair for a wealthy, older audience. The cultural nonprofit’s latest free, open-air performance is Verdi’s masterpiece Rigoletto. Set in Renaissance Italy, the opera follows the tragic tale of a court jester as he navigates a world shaped by power and corruption. Bring a picnic and settle in for what is also the finale of Portland Parks & Recreation’s annual Washington Park Summer Festival. Washington Park Rose Garden Amphitheater, 410 SW Kingston Ave., operaintheparkportland.org. 6 pm Sunday, Aug. 13. Free.

GRASSY KNOLL: Catch Verdi’s Rigoletto in the Washington Park Rose Garden Amphitheater this weekend.

IN KNEAD

Bagel lovers gathered Sunday, Aug. 6, at the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education to eat their way through a variety of ring-shaped breads from the city’s finest producers. Jacob & Sons Deli organized its first-ever Portland Bagel-Off, which allowed attendees to cast their votes alongside a panel of guest judges. In the end, Henry Higgins Boiled Bagels took home the people’s choice award while Bentley’s Bagels received top honors from the adjudicating committee.

Photos by Michael Raines

On Instagram: @m_h_raines

Hot Plates

WHERE TO EAT THIS WEEK.

1. WHITE PEPPER BURGER THURSDAY

7505 NE Glisan St., whitepepperpdx.com/burger-thursday. 5-9 pm

Thursday.

Most of the week, the kitchen at this 10-year-old Northeast Portland catering company is a quiet prep space by day, while some evenings its tasting room hosts weddings and corporate dinners. But on Thursday nights, White Pepper transforms into a neighborhood hangout serving burgers. We’ve sampled them all, and the standout of the bunch is the Classic Burger. The stack is everything you want a Big Mac to be but never is: two housemade patties, American cheese, iceberg lettuce, mustard and mayo with ketchup on the side. No one element stands out; it’s just a harmonious combination that makes for the perfect summer meal.

2. DOLLY OLIVE

527 SW 12th Ave., 503-719-6921, dollyolivepdx.com. 11 am-3 pm and 5-9 pm

Sunday-Thursday, 11 am-3 pm and 5-10 pm

Friday-Saturday.

This month, The Wall Street Journal declared we’re “becoming a nation of early birds,” and it’s hard to argue with that point since Portland’s nightlife has never really rebounded from the pandemic. If we are all turning in earlier these days, might as well make the most of lunch, a meal that’s never been as leisurely as brunch nor as elegant as dinner, yet you can apply both of those adjectives to the midday meal experience at downtown’s Dolly Olive. Lunch service began in May and includes items that would suit just about anyone’s tastes, from a farro salad to a slow-roasted rosemary prosciutto-and-Gruyère panini to a crispy chicken confit. You can even pretend you’re at a fancy dinner and order a salted caramel cannoli for dessert—a move we highly recommend.

3. CHAAT WALLAH

FOOD & DRINK

7157 NE Prescott St., 971-340-8635, chaatwallah.com. 3-9 pm

Monday-Friday, noon-9 pm Saturday-Sunday.

Deepak Saxena’s food cart has found a new home outside Upright Brewing’s second location in the Cully neighborhood. Chaat Wallah began operating out of 503 Distilling’s lounge inside the Iron Fireman Collective building, but that arrangement only lasted a few months. Thankfully, the business reemerged and is now offering a killer happy hour deal: $2 off of all sandwiches and $1 discounts on Upright beer from 3 to 6 pm Monday through Thursday. Now you have a tough decision to make: masala pulled pork, tandoori tuna salad or lamb smash burger?

4. CÂCHE CÂCHE

Still Poppin’

Joe Brown’s Lounge—the brand behind the famous Lloyd Center popcorn—is a welcome addition to a former hub for Portland’s Black community.

BY BRIANNA WHEELER

plates, burgers and po’boys, all served with a heaping side of reverse gentrification. Yum.

1015 SE Stark St. 5-10 pm

Wednesday-Saturday, 1-8 pm Sunday.

Câche Câche, a raw seafood bar from Kurt Huffman’s ChefStable and St. Jack chef John Denison, is Portland’s newest and neatest oceanic idyll. The new place is aptly named after the French term for “hide-and-seek” since it’s hard to find and there is no phone number or website. The search is worth it for the lobster roll alone, though, which might cause a Mainer’s eyes to grow misty. Three ounces of meat are lightly dressed with a tarragon-infused aioli and then stuffed into a cuboid cut from a crustless Dos Hermanos Pullman loaf. Everyone must order this; sharing is a bad idea.

5. HIGGINS PIGGINS

On the Oregon Historical Society terrace at 1200 SW Park Ave., 503-2229070, higginspiggins.com.

One of downtown’s most charming pandemic patios is back open for the summer season. Higgins Piggins returned to the South Park Blocks in early June, and this year’s iteration pays tribute to Venice’s backstreet locals bars known as bacari: cozy, simple inns that typically serve wine and small plates built around seasonal ingredients. At Piggins, you can expect a Pacific Northwest take, with a menu that includes artisan cheeses, charcuterie, salads and cicchetti—snacks like tea service-sized sandwiches.

Geneva’s Shear Perfection was a Northeast Portland landmark and cultural crossroads for Black Portland. When the barbershop and beauty salon closed in May 2020 as a result of COVID restrictions, it left an obvious vacuum in the neighborhood. Joe Brown’s Lounge aims to fill it.

Earlier this year, the small two-storefront building on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near Jessup Street that for 30 years housed Geneva and Paul Knauls Sr.’s iconic business got two new occupants: Joe Brown’s Carmel Corn and Joe Brown’s Lounge. (Yes, we’re talking about the same Joe Brown’s that pioneered “Oregon-Style” popcorn—coated in caramel and yellow cheese—inside a novelty snack shop at Lloyd Center.

In bringing Joe Brown’s to MLK, owner David Ferguson posits the lounge could fill the void left by Geneva’s while bringing Black entrepreneurship back to historic Old Albina. Eager both to inspect what had become of the familiar neighborhood spot and support a new Black-owned biz, we visited Joe Brown’s Lounge to sample cocktails, small

The red-, white- and blue-striped branding used by the long-standing popcorn shop does not spill over into Joe Brown’ Lounge. In fact, the 30ish-seat bar eschews the carnivalesque vibe of its neighbor in favor of a concise, new-jack-swing energy and ’90s black-and-white minimalism. It’s not quite like walking into a Jodeci video, but the intention is there.

The cocktail menu is straightforward, with minimum mixological bluster and maximum “naming a drink for the regular who always orders it” spirit, which is to say, rather than serving high-concept cocktails, Joe Brown’s specializes in two- or three-component bevvies like NeNe’s Colada Sunrise (Bacardi and mango juice, $12) or Deon’s Bourbon Brûlée (bourbon with orange, $14). Both a mango margarita and vodka lemonade ordered at the bartender’s suggestion were made with a heavy pour, so prepare accordingly. Taps were on the fritz during both of my visits, but available bottled beers included a few domestics and familiar imports.

COURTESY JO BROWN’S LOUNGE

COURTESY CACHE CACHE / RACHELLE HACMAC

The bar’s food menu, conceived and executed by head chef Marcell Goss is a homey mashup of classic soul food, Asian fusion and Cajun seafood. Standouts included all four flavors of fried chicken wings ($12)—which, if you’ve ever been disappointed by, ahem, some wing restaurants, these are the fully rendered, fall-off-the-bone supple, sauced or dry-rubbed wings you may have been questing after; thick, super-dense fried ribs ($12)—pork ribs marinated for 48 hours in a savory-sweet, Asian-inspired brine, dredged in seasoned flour and deep fried; old-school hush puppies ($6); and a po’boy (known here as a “Jo’boy”) exploding with peppery, crispy, cornmeal- and flour-crusted catfish ($17).

Build-your-own-burgers dominate Joe Brown’s menu, so obviously we had to eat at least one. The proteins include ground beef ($14), chicken breast ($15), housemade shrimp ($16) and salmon ($18) patties. Patrons then get their choice of bun: brioche, pub-style, double sliders, or even a lettuce wrap in lieu of bread. A few cheeses, sauces and standard accoutrements round out the options.

Rather than basic beef or chicken, we opted for the salmon patty, and when the chef received the order, he excused himself from the kitchen and came out to the

Buzz List

WHERE TO DRINK THIS WEEK.

1. MCMENAMINS BARLEY MILL PUB

1629 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 503-231-1492, mcmenamins.com/barley-mill-pub.

11 am-10 pm Sunday-Thursday, 11 am-11 pm Friday-Saturday.

McMenamins, the brewery that introduced countless drinkers in the Pacific Northwest to craft beer, turns 40 this year, and while the company isn’t throwing a big party, smaller celebrations are underway—particularly this month. While 1983 Lager will be on tap at multiple locations, you should go to the original McMenamins Barley Mill Pub to order a pint of this special-release birthday beer made with 2-row flaked corn malt and Tettnanger Cascade hops. And, on Aug. 14, all McMenamins draft beers will be 40% off no matter which property you visit.

TEAMAKER

dining room to ask me to reconsider my dressing choice. I’d selected the house sauce, but he suggested his lemon aioli would be a better match for the hand-formed salmon patties. He was right. Even at its nearly $20 price, the salmon burger slathered in aioli perched atop a fluffy brioche bun was well worth the ducats.

At first blush, the atmosphere at Joe Brown’s Lounge comes off as a bit stark; however, its white walls, grayscale art and ashy hardwood floors convey the conviviality of this strip mall cocktail bar. By most measures, the joint is small and relatively simple, but the collision of cultural sanctuary and culinary finesse has created something far more complex and valuable than it appears. From my perspective, Joe Brown’s Lounge has the potential to be the boozy, contemporary new-jack, Black-owned and -operated community center this neighborhood not only needs but, frankly, deserves.

EAT: Joe Brown’s Lounge, 5601 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., 503-206-5308, joebrownslounge.com. 1-10 pm Tuesday-Thursday and Sunday, 1 pm to midnight Friday-Saturday.

500 NW 23rd Ave., 503-206-7451; 110 SE Washington St., 971-254-3935; smithtea.com.

10 am-6 pm daily.

All we can say is THANK GOD that stubborn heat dome has clamped down over the South and not the Pacific Northwest. Nobody wants to relive the misery brought on by 2021’s record-breaking heat wave. There doesn’t seem to be any sign of oppressive temperatures in the forecast; however, we’re entering the hottest part of the season, which means you’ll need to find ways to cool off. Smith Teamaker has an idea: a new Summer Chill Down menu. The lineup includes five iced teas along with three seasonal flavors (blackberry, coconut swizzle and agave sunshine), an iced matcha latte, mocktails, and even two different varieties of ice cream floats. Get ’em through Aug. 31.

3. DIVISION WINEMAKING COMPANY’S WINE YARD

2005 SE 8th Ave., 503-208-2061, divisionwineco.com.

11 am-5 pm daily.

After producing wine for nine years on Southeast Division Street, Division Winemaking has left its namesake stretch of pavement for larger digs. The newly dubbed Wine Yard not only gives the team more square footage for fermentation and packaging; customers also benefit thanks to a more spacious tasting room, 2,500-square-foot courtyard, and multiple event spaces. Now that we’re officially in the dog days of summer, cool off with the 2022 Polka Dots Pétillant Naturel, a sparkling rosé that can be enjoyed any time of day (Division claims it could take the place of a morning mimosa).

4. BREAKSIDE BREWERY BEAVERTON

12675 SW 1st St., Beaverton, breakside.com. 11 am-10 pm daily.

Just when patient beer fans in Beaverton were beginning to give up hope that Breakside would ever actually open a long-planned taproom in Old Town, the company suddenly announced June 11 that the facility was ready for eager drinkers. The outpost isn’t complete, but you can now enjoy a roughly 150-seat beer garden and suds poured from Breakside’s retro Winnebeergo, which will serve as the temporary outdoor bar until a permanent one is finished. The 80-seat interior also recently opened. Order a classic like Wanderlust or the refreshing Mexican Lager (especially when temps top 90 degrees) and raise a glass to this powerhouse brand’s latest expansion.

5. JOHN’S MARKETPLACE – HALL

3700 SW Hall Blvd., Beaverton, 503-747-2739, johnsmarketplace.com. 11 am-8 pm

Sunday-Wednesday, 11 am-9 pm

Thursday-Saturday.

Formerly parched downtown Beaverton has been swimming in beer for the past few years. The area has outlets for two breweries as well as a handful of beer bars. Joining the perennial beerfest is John’s Marketplace, which opened its third location on the edge of Old Town in April. Most everyone is here for a pint paired with the well-charred, quarter-pound smash burgers, including beer nerds sporting branded swag and moms clad in Lululemon with children in tow. Join them under the beer banners in the taproom before perusing the bottle shop for something special to take home.

2. SMITH

A Smart Cookie

We tested Laurie + MaryJane’s newest sweet edible in a variety of environments. Here are the results.

BY BRIANNA WHEELER

Founded by food icon Laurie Wolf, Laurie + MaryJane edibles have been dispensary staples since before recreational cannabis became a thing in Oregon. The iconic brand’s lineup of award-winning cake bites, fudges, and a very snackable cheese cracker have been gracing the stashboxes of Pacific Northwest stoners for so long the brand has now become synonymous with Oregon craft cannabis, which is frankly an honor.

While other larger brands may use THC isolate (cheap concentrates made with caustic chemical solvents), Laurie + MaryJane uses more traditional baking recipes that include house-infused coconut oil. That results in edibles with a grassy, sungrown weed profile rather than something that tastes like it came out of a chem lab.

Since this small, family-run brand helped establish Oregon’s reputation for producing quality craft cannabis, when we heard it had a new baked good on the market, we were more than enthusiastic to give it a try. The newest drop is Big Cookie, a 100 milligram confection perfect for midtolerance sharing, or higher-tolerance astro traveling. Each cookie is a saucer-sized affair, with scoring across the face for 10 servings of 10 mg each. Despite the dose guide, these delights feel like they’re made for varsity users, rather than anxious milligram counters. They also feel crafted for cookie aficionados, giving a mature nod to the decadence of the Crumbl Cookie fad without veering into inedible novelty territory.

We auditioned four available varieties of Big Cookie during three very different experiences. Here are the results:

A Lemon Cookie at a Cabin in the Woods

What could have been a moderately stressful family retreat to

Mount Hood was instead a relaxing getaway, where I waded in a lazy bend of the Sandy River and (mom gasp!) got some deeply restorative rest—mostly on account of this cookie. On the first evening of our sojourn, I sipped herbal tea from the pantry of a Vacasa rental and ate three servings of the tart yet lemony-sweet biscuit. An hour or so later, I let the high ease me into bed. The sleep that followed was sublime.

The next afternoon, I ate another three servings before setting myself up on a river beach for several hours, intermittently dipping into the frigid water and shamelessly sunbathing while gazing blissfully at the evergreens. The body high was cushiony and languid, making for especially electrifying river dips, and the cognitive effects were all sparkle-dappled and brought on a meditative calm.

That evening, I gave the rest of the cookie to my partner to finish. They likened it to a zesty lemon Bundt cake with sugar cookie appeal. An hour later they fell asleep on the couch, so take note of your resting state before consuming, or you’ll sleep through the magic carpet ride.

Therapeutic Peanut Butter Cookies and Double Chocolate Sleep Aids

When a friend visiting from out of town asked for an edible as a sleep aid, I offered them samples of both the Peanut Butter and Double Chocolate Big Cookies. Said homie has a long history of sleep and chronic pain issues, but a longer history as a cannabis grower. A lesser-quality edible would have sent alarm bells ringing for this friend, who relies on therapeutic cannabis for daily functions. The homie reported back the next day with enthusiastic high marks. In fact, after several fitful nights, they were able to catch 14-plus hours of ultra-deep

sleep thanks to the Double Chocolate Cookie.

The next night, the Peanut Butter Cookie delivered a similar outcome, alleviating pain and easing the exhausted user into a restorative sleep. For this individual, the cookie was a panacea—an end-of-day delight that was both decadent and necessary. Call us weed snobs, but low-budget, chemically treated isolates could never.

Bonus: I saved three samples of these cookies in my freezer. When they were very firm, I crushed them along with a half-stack of graham crackers in a blender. Then I formed the crumbs into a pie crust and filled the shell with chocolate pudding and whipped cream to create a medicated, no-bake chocolate cream pie.

A Confetti Cookie for Barbenheimer

This Barbie (me) wanted to capitalize on some zen euphoria before braving the pink-attired masses to attend the Barbie movie during its premiere weekend. I ate a little more than half the Confetti—a sugar cookie freckled with rainbow jimmies—as I rode the bus south toward Lloyd Center to meet my squad for a Sunday matinee. Several bus stops and a quick train ride later, the 60 milligrams began to percolate. And it couldn’t have been better timing. Giggling gangs in shades of pink packed the lobby, locking me in purgatory. The concession team stumbled over themselves trying to serve what were clearly far more Barbie-philes than they had planned for. It was a recipe for a doll disaster, but I remained blissfully zen. As the minutes ticked by, I was sure we’d missed the commercials, then the previews, then the first 15 minutes of the film.

Was I livid? No, I was Astronaut Barbie high.

In any other instance, my rose-colored, pre-Barbie mood could have been obliterated by the chaotic theater, but nothing—not even missing the first bit of the film—could curtail my confetti vibe. The unflappable chill that kept me Barbie fresh in the lobby also lowered my inhibitions enough that, once we finally got seated, I openly wept through all the most moving parts of the film with zero shame in my hot pink game. This Barbie is both stoned and emotionally mature.

Bottom Line

Laurie + Mary Jane’s Big Cookies deliver restorative, cushy body highs and expansive, placid head highs. They made the day better in each instance we used them, but, like all things, your results may vary.

COOKIE MONSTER: Laurie + MaryJane’s Big Cookies deliver big flavors and happy highs.

WHAT TO SEE AND WHAT TO HEAR

BY DANIEL BROMFIELD @bromf3

THURSDAY, AUG. 10:

Portland Horror Story

Few things are more reassuring than a musician coming back with some of their best work after a long absence, especially more than 30 years into their career. Anyone who knows American roots music has long known Iris DeMent is one of the best singer-songwriters of her generation, but the 62-year-old’s new album, Workin’ on a World—her first album of new material in more than a decade—feels like a breakthrough with its marriage of late-capitalist anxiety and age-old, mongrel American musical traditions. Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie Ave. 7:30 pm. $40. All ages.

THURSDAY, AUG. 10:

Black ops, severed limbs and police brutality all play a role in Keith Rosson’s novel Fever House.

BY MICHELLE KICHERER IG: @MichelleKicherer

The first question I ask Portland author Keith Rosson is, “What the hell is wrong with you?” He laughs good-naturedly and says, “Yeah.”

We’re talking about the nightmarish Fever House (Random House, 448 pages, $28), Rosson’s fourth novel and fifth book, after his 2021 Shirley Jackson Award-winning short story collection Folks Songs for Trauma Surgeons. This time, Rosson set out to write an even bigger and more ambitious story than before. “It’s a big book, but it doesn’t read like one,” he says.

Perhaps only in an era as obsessed with cultural detritus as ours could David Liebe Hart become a star. For years, the musician and puppeteer could be found performing outside the Hollywood Bowl or in the depths of public access television. These days, he’s known for his work with Tim & Eric, the duo that’s made a career refracting TV and internet ephemera through their comedic lens—but even those familiar with that duo’s schtick might be unprepared for the mind-melt that’s a David Liebe Hart puppet show. Star Theater, 13 NW 6th Ave. 8 pm. $20. 21+.

SATURDAY, AUG. 12:

Common Girl headlining the Crystal Ballroom feels like some kind of breakthrough. The young post-hardcore quartet is one of the most prominent fixtures of a rising Portland scene whose contingent bands often add “girl” and “boy” after their names, as if stepping into the cape and boots of unconventional superhero personae. Here, they’re bringing a crew of Pacific Northwest buddies along— including WW Best New Band runner-up Kill Michael—for a show that anyone interested in Portland rock ought not to miss. McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside St. 8 pm. $10.99. All ages.

When Rosson’s new agent, Chad Luibl, pitched the Fever House manuscript to Random House, they had a response the very next day and, in less than a week, Rosson was offered a two-book deal. Though he hadn’t planned on writing a sequel, Rosson got to work on a follow-up, The Devil by Name (which is due out next summer).

Set in Portland, Fever House opens on a classically rainy night. Hutch Holtz, whose busted-up face and refrigerator-size frame make him the perfect debt collector, is with his partner in crime, Tim Reed.

Tim, a gangly, yellow-toothed fellow whose face has been scratched up by a meth addict named Dolph, is ready to move to the next debt collection stop, but neither tough guy is prepared for what they find: a severed hand that compels anyone within its proximity to commit heinous, violent acts.

When asked if diving so deep into gruesome material has given him nightmares, Rosson laughs. “No, actually. If anything, it’s hard to pick up the thread again if I’ve taken a couple days off on the weekend,” he says. “It’s hard to stay present when I’m not working on it, when I’m supposed to be hanging out with my kids and stuff.”

The first seed of Fever House was Hutch. Rosson had written other books featuring the character, but Hutch just didn’t work in those stories and wound up getting cut. And yet something about the guy just stuck in his creator’s brain.

“He just wouldn’t leave me alone,” Rosson says.

The second seed was Rosson’s idea of “a severed hand that had some kind of power to it. Really, it was just smushing those two together and, eventually, things just started firing.” The resulting nar-

rative involves “numbers stations, a black ops agency—just these fun, goofy, disparate things that are just so exciting to write about and read about.”

Rosson, who’s always been a punk rock dude (and formerly illustrated for bands like Green Day and Against Me!), also referenced the music industry by creating the character of Katherine Moriarty, a down-and-out musician who he says was the most complicated and difficult to write. She’s the former singer of a fictional band, The Blank Letters, and mostly lives off the band’s royalties—and in the past.

While Rosson pulled inspiration from bands like The Gits, Bikini Kill and The Breeders, The Blank Letters are an indie rock-punk hybrid born of his imagination. “It’s all kind of made up, and you just kind

of bullshit your way through,” he says.

Most of Fever House is set among fictionalized establishments but very real landscapes—and the novel acknowledges the city’s fraught relationship with police. In the book, when downtown Portland descends into bloody mayhem, cops are excited for the overtime and eager for the chance to use their new gear.

Hutch is “reminded of the protests the previous summer, when the whole city seemed intent on marching all night every night, cops in lockstep, munitions and flash-bangs being fired into the crowds…tonight has that same weird, dangerous feeling, things beneath the skin just barely tamped down,” Rosson writes.

When asked about writing scenes involving police, Rosson says, “I hope I got the thing with the protests right. And I hope that people understand the massive protections that Bonner is being offered—that cops are offered.”

He’s referring to a character named John Bonner, a cop whose brutal crime meant a department transfer, rather than any charges. “I hope this isn’t just a straight-up fuck-thepolice thing, but if it is, OK,” Rosson says, adding, “The bargaining power the police unions have to protect cops when they so egregiously fuck up is just crazy. And so I hope that that comes across.”

SEE IT: Keith Rosson appears in conversation with Sadie Hartmann at Powell’s City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 800-878-7323, powells.com. 7 pm Wednesday, Aug. 16. Free.

“I hope this isn’t just a straight-up fuck-the-police thing, but if it is, OK.”

SHOW REVIEW

HIGH VIS AT MISSISSIPPI STUDIOS

BY ROBERT HAM

At certain moments during his band’s performance at Mississippi Studios this past Saturday, High Vis vocalist Graham Sayle looked like he was on the verge of tears. He glared at the audience roiling before him, with the rest of the quintet amping up the heat behind him with a rough fusion of hardcore punk and abrasive pop, as flickers of emotion threatened to crack his otherwise steely gaze.

There certainly was a lot about the evening for him to be moved by. High Vis was closing out what was, by all accounts, a triumphal tour of North America with a sold-out show in Portland. The band was joined that night by Amusement, the fantastic new punk project fronted by John Wilkerson, whose previous group From Ashes Rise was a major influence on Sayle. And, as the singer explained to the audience, it was hard to fathom that “a bunch of dickheads from the U.K.” would be met with hundreds of fans climbing over one another to shout along with each song in a city thousands of miles from their home.

Not helping Sayle keep it together were the lyrics he had to sing. The lanky vocalist writes with such compassion and poetic fury about the plight of young people faced with few opportunities to climb free of the lower rungs of England’s class system. He talked of losing friends to violence and drugs and how this band and therapy helped him survive.

“We’re not driven by hate,” he belted out during “Trauma Bonds,” a highlight of his band’s 2022 album Blending. “We’re just slaves to fear/And are we still lucky to be here?” For at least one summer night in Portland, the answer to that question was an emphatic yes.

A Girl Idiot’s Guide to Boygenius

Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker’s performance at the Hayden Homes Amphitheater was nothing short of a religious experience.

BY SHANNON DAEHNKE

What happens when four girl idiots travel from Portland to Bend to see Boygenius? Tears. Tears happen. But the good, “I’m having a religious experience right now” kind of tears. So, if you plan to catch Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker at any point during their 2023 world tour—i.e., if you want to be enlightened—heed this advice.

1. PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THE FACT THEY MIGHT (KIND OF RUDELY) PLAY TWO OR THREE OF YOUR FAVES BACK TO BACK.

If I were in Boygenius—I can dream, OK?—I would have spaced out the most popular songs throughout the set just a teeny bit more than they did at the Bend show. I feel like that’s kind of an unwritten concert rule.

The show began offstage with the track that kicks off The Record—“Without You Without Them”—a melodic, a capella song whose lyrics read like the most thoughtful album dedication you’ve ever heard. And then, after some (read: a lot) of screaming—the boys went straight into “$20.” And then “Satanist.” Then “Emily I’m Sorry.” And then, this, in my opinion, was their biggest crime: “True Blue” followed immediately by “Cool About It.” I’m sorry but…can you give me some time to collect myself? I’m just a girl. And playing them both at sunset while a perfect pink hue fills the sky behind the stage? It was all too much.

But, now that I’m reevaluating, maybe all of their songs are just… equally as good and well-loved. Most bands have a flop or two to sprinkle in. But Boygenius just…doesn’t? Maybe that’s what happened there. So…I take it all back. It was perfect.

2. TAKE IT EASY ON THE “COCKTAIL OF THE SHOW.”

I know. It’s so ridiculously cute of them to have a “cocktail of the show” called “Me & My Paloma” after “Me & My Dog” with a sweet little photo of them on it. Like…I so get it. But take it from someone who didn’t notice the boys’ warning—“it’s a double”—until after the fact and may have had one too many during openers Illuminati Hotties and Carly Rae Jepsen (who, I can confirm, is still slaying “Call Me Maybe”) and just…chill.

3. FOR ALL MY SEROTONIN-CHALLENGED GIRLIES OUT THERE: BE WARNED THAT YOUR ANTIDEPRESSANTS MAY BETRAY YOU.

Listen, if you’re a Boygenius stan…there’s a pretty good chance you’re on some sort of antidepressant. Or you should be. I don’t make the rules. I mean, have you listened to “We’re in Love”? That kind of lyrical genius is not for the weak.

So, let’s say, super hypothetically, that your, erm, 10 mg of Lexapro just doesn’t quite allow you to have that perfectly satisfying cry to “Cool About It” that you so badly wanted and deserved. I am here to tell you that is OK. Everyone at the Hayden Homes Amphitheater was having some sort of religious experience last Sunday night…no matter how they showed it. Plus, my friend Elle cried (read: sobbed) enough for all of us who could not. So, there’s that.

4. WEAR WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU WANT.

No outfit-referencing-your-favorite-song is too corny. No outfit is too casual or too dressy. No skeleton T-shirt or red tie is too much. Everyone will be wearing Doc Martens…but that’s OK, and you can too. The energy at Boygenius was so nonjudgmental and girls-supporting-girls (and by girls I just mean any Boygenius fan).

5. YES, YOU’RE ALLOWED TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR HETEROSEXUALITY.

Another thing about a Boygenius stan, in addition to the likely SSRI prescription and the practically glued-to-their-feet Doc Martens, is that they’re probably gonna be gay. But, Boygenius does in fact accept boyfriends. They even said so themselves!

Phoebe’s “Who’s got a boyfriend?” was met with some hesitation by the crowd. But then, she assured, “Oh, come on, we love boyfriends! Don’t be afraid…raise your hands, boyfriends! We love you, this is for you.” Then they started playing “Boyfriends,” an outtake from The Record, which they debuted earlier on in the tour. “Everything else is for the lesbians,” Baker added.

But, I will say, as much as I do love my boyfriend—and the fact that Phoebe Bridgers would also probably love, or at least accept, my boyfriend—a girls’ trip to see Boygenius is healing in the same way that seeing Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is. If you don’t immediately get that, I can’t help you.

Starship Troopers (1997)

Most Paul Verhoeven movies walk a high wire: They bear the shape of straight genre stories, but loaded with 800 pounds of humor, contempt and allegory. Still, the legendary ones (Total Recall, RoboCop, Basic Instinct) remain miraculously upright, never becoming more commentary than movie.

In Starship Troopers, the plot proper is about a handsome, wealthy young jock (Casper Van Dien) who joins the international space military with his high school pals (Denise Richards, Neil Patrick Harris, Dina Meyer) to wage humanity’s war against intergalactic bugs. The film is basically a sci-fi Full Metal Jacket, skewering fascism while daring American audiences to indulge their latent thirst for authoritarian violence—and showcasing viscera so over the top that it’s simultaneously harrowing, goofy and meaningless.

It’s tough to put oneself in the mindset of 1997 reviewers who thought Starship Troopers was 100% on the level as a ra-ra, pro-war action film (even the most cursory glance at Verhoeven’s youth in the occupied Netherlands would reveal his thoughts on the Nazi imagery he plays with here). Critic Stephen Hunter once lambasted Starship Troopers as a perversion of All Quiet on the Western Front, and he’s not wrong. But bloodlust is a sickness that you can’t diagnose with sincerity alone.

Do your part, and see Starship Troopers at Cinemagic on Aug. 11, 13 or 17 as part of a monstrous mini-fest with Shin Godzilla (2016) and Pacific Rim (2013).

NOW PLAYING:

Academy: Mad Max 2 (1981), Madman (1981), Aug. 11-18. Cinemagic: Step Brothers (2008), Aug. 13. Cinema 21: Notorious (1946), Aug. 12.

Clinton: The Congress (2013), Aug. 10. Chak De! India (2007), Aug. 15.

Hollywood: Wild Style (1982), Aug. 11 and 13. Krush Groove (1985), Aug. 12. Impulse (1974), Aug. 12. Desperately Seeking Susan (1985), Aug. 14.

Editor: Bennett Campbell Ferguson Contact: bennett@wweek.com

Shifting Topography

BY CHANCE SOLEM-PFEIFER @chance_s_p

Even if his NYU film professor didn’t, Jeff Rutherford knew what Oregon could offer as a cinematic backdrop. Rutherford, a former Portlander, remembers polite skepticism when that professor reviewed a draft of the screenplay for his first short film: “Jeff, you have this thing where it says farmland in one sentence and then beach in the next…”

Nehalem Bay provided that short, 2019’s Rainbow Pie, with exactly that topographical quick change. So when it came time to make a debut feature, Rutherford wanted a setting that could similarly be relied on—not only for aura, but to help break cinematic convention with long takes and landscape interaction.

A Perfect Day for Caribou, shot in black-and-white during 2021 in Central Oregon’s Gilliam County, is a stark dialogue between estranged father Herman (Jeb Berrier) and son Nate (Charlie Plummer). After an impromptu reunion, they wander across grasslands and forests, sharing their current relationship struggles and discordant memories from before Herman abruptly exited Nate’s life.

Jon Raymond, a writer on Old Joy and five other Kelly Reichardt films, knows more than most about employing Oregon wilderness as a character. He’ll moderate a post-screening Q&A with Rutherford at Cinema 21 on Aug. 15, as A Perfect Day for Caribou comes back to Oregon and the hometown of cast members like Berrier, Wrick Jones and Dana Millican.

The film’s two leads have experience traipsing around the state. Charlie Plummer, who plays the soft-spoken, 20-something Nate, notably starred in the acclaimed horse-and-his-boy drama Lean on Pete (2017), directed by Andrew Haigh and shot in Portland and Burns. And in the aforementioned Rainbow Pie, Jeb Berrier hauled a red suitcase through Nehalem Bay, just as Herman clings to a mysterious, taped-up box from his ex-wife in Caribou Plummer and Berrier both have theater backgrounds (Berrier acted in Playboy of the Western World and 1984 at Artists Repertory Theatre). In Caribou, Rutherford sought to capitalize on those skills, shooting fastidiously blocked, seldom-cut scenes and letting the performers cook.

“When actors have seen this movie, they get really excited,” Rutherford says, “because they’re like, ‘Oh, I would want to be in something where you have time and space to do your thing.’”

You can see why. Sure, it’s a risk for the crew to pull off a five-minute scene where actors amble around each other, but Plummer and Berrier get to build their characters with pure body language and a massive canvas. Watching the duo search high and low for a missing something (not to be spoiled here) amounts to a kind of parallel play between Herman and Nate, à la toddlers lost in activity next to each other, never sure if a bond is actually forming.

When the depressed father and well-intentioned son first meet at a Condon, Ore., cemetery and attempt to converse face to face, Rutherford embraces all the protracted, hushed awkwardness of estrangement small talk.

“There’s a way to achieve that with a bunch of cuts and like going back over the shoulder and stuff, but there’s also a way to achieve it just by actually taking four minutes of real time,” he says. “I just personally like [that approach] more.”

Later, when the men venture into nature, it’s a genuine trek (more than a few actual stumbles made it into the movie). There’s even a shot where Herman and Nate hop the cemetery fence and run onto a prairie while the camera slowly zooms after their shrinking bodies for nearly 60 seconds.

“I kept referring to that as the Alice in Wonderland shot,” Rutherford says. “I liked the absurdity and weirdness that they’re moving through different worlds.”

Caribou may be a low-budget indie shot (in part) on a ranch owned by one of Rutherford’s friends. But the film’s technical ambition, enhanced by cinematographer Alfonso Herrera Salcedo (A Love Song), testifies to why it has played festivals from Locarno to Slamdance (Rutherford predicts a distribution deal is “really close”).

Maybe the state film commission should advertise: “Shoot in Oregon—where shifting topography is a special effect.”

SEE IT: A Perfect Day for Caribou, not rated, plays at Cinema 21, 616 NW 21st Ave, 503-223-4515, cinema21. com. 7:15 pm Tuesday, Aug. 15. $12.

In A Perfect Day for Caribou, a father and son lose themselves in the Central Oregon wilderness.

JULES

Like clockwork, solitary widower Milton (Ben Kingsley) makes two testimonies at his weekly city council meetings. One statement amounts to senile nonsense about the town motto (“a great place to call home”); the other is a genuine concern regarding a much-needed crosswalk. Through this dichotomy, we understand Jules’ take on Milton (whose grumbling sounds like Kingsley meets Dustin Hoffman): Yes, he’s slipping mentally, but his everyday experience shouldn’t be discounted. So when Milton believes a flying saucer has crash-landed in his azaleas, Jules presents the kind of earthbound sci-fi usually reserved for movies about children and their supernatural discoveries—only here, the heroes are a Western Pennsylvania town’s septuagenarians, including alien caretakers played by Jane Curtain (SNL) and Harriet Sansom Harris (Frasier), being instructed by their adult children to stop imagining things. Heartfelt to the end, Jules has no ambitions to ascend the alien-encounter movie canon, but by toying with the E.T. formula, it makes clear a gentle point well taken: Before life ends, the need for childlike wonder comes back around. PG-13. CHANCE SOLEM-PFEIFER. Cascade, Clackamas, Living Room.

OPPENHEIMER

At the start of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, raindrops fall; at the end, fire rages. You’ll feel it burn long after the end credits roll. Nolan has made violent movies before, but Oppenheimer is not just about physical devastation. It submerges you in the violence of a guilt-ravaged soul, leaving you feeling unsettled and unclean. With agitated charisma and vulnerability, Cillian Murphy embodies J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist whose mind birthed the atomic bomb. When we first meet him, he’s a curly-haired lad staring at a puddle, but he swiftly evolves into an excitable visionary leading a cadre of scientists into the deserts of New Mexico, where they will ultimately build and test a plutonium device (referred to as “the gadget”) on July 16, 1945. What saves the film from becoming a connect-the-dots biopic is Nolan’s ingenious chronicle of the post-World War II rivalry between Oppenheimer and Atomic Energy Commission chair Lewis Strauss (Robert Downey Jr.). The more Oppenheimer fights to put “the nuclear genie back in the bottle,” the more Strauss seethes and schemes, thrusting the movie into a maze of double-crosses that echo the exhilarating games of perception in Nolan’s 2001 breakout hit Memento Of course, the thrill can’t (and shouldn’t) last. As many as 226,000 people were killed when the U.S. bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and they haunt the film like ghosts—especially when Oppenheimer imagines a charred corpse beneath his foot. A man dreamed; people died. All a work of art can do is evoke their absence.

R. BENNETT CAMPBELL FERGUSON. Academy, Cedar Hills, Cinema 21, Cinemagic, City Center, Clackamas, Evergreen Parkway, Fox Tower, Hollywood, Laurelhurst, Lloyd Center, Mill Plain, Oak Grove, Pioneer Place, Studio One.

TALK TO ME

Talk to Me is the scariest horror movie of 2023. Walking the fine line between referential and redundant—good horror filmmakers employ motifs, but bad horror filmmakers rely on them— twin-brother duo Danny and Michael Philippou stun in their directorial debut, delivering a gripping (pun intended) plot driven by starmaking performances. Sophie Wilde shines as Mia, a grieving teenage girl reeling from her mother’s death two years earlier. Then, a paranormal party trick lifts the veil between the living and the dead—and teens recklessly abuse it for entertainment purposes (shocking!). In some ways, Talk to Me is a natural evolution beyond the Ouija board, the deadest horse of all horror tropes. In others, it’s an existential exploration that leads to a genre-defining question: Can new rules be made and/or old ones broken? Either way, there are moments when the movie makes the theater feel like a vacuum, sucking you into a vortex of heart-racing, chest-clutching, jaw-dropping terror. It’s the enthralling kind of horror that you can’t look away from. R. ALEX BARR. Bridgeport, Cedar Hills, Cinema 2, City Center, Clackamas, Evergreen Parkway, Fox Tower, Hollywood, Laurelhurst, Lloyd Center, Mill Plain, Oak Grove, Progress Ridge, Vancouver Plaza.

BARBIE

Once upon a time, Barbie dolls liberated all women from tyranny. The end… at least according to the first few minutes of Barbie, a sleek and satirical fantasia from director Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Little Women). Set in the utopian kingdom of Barbieland, the movie dramatizes the existential crises of the winkingly named Stereotypical Barbie. She’s played by Margot Robbie, who was last seen battling a rattlesnake in Damien Chazelle’s Babylon and her misadventures in Barbie are hardly

less bizarre. Plagued by flat feet, cellulite and fears of death, Barbie seeks the source of her ailments in the real world, bringing along a beamingly inadequate Ken (Ryan Gosling) with catastrophic consequences: Awed by images of Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan, Ken becomes a crusading men’s rights activist, leading a revolt against the government of Barbieland and instituting bros-first martial law. And they say originality is dead! With its absurdist wit, glitzy musical numbers, and earnest ruminations on whether matriarchy and patriarchy can coexist, Barbie is easily one of the most brazen movies released by a major studio. Yes, its tidy ending betrays its anarchic spirit—after insisting that empowerment can’t be neatly packaged in a doll box, the film seems to say, “No, wait! It can!”—but it would be churlish to deny the charm of Gerwig’s buoyant creation. In an age when genuine cinematic joy is rare, we’re all lucky to be passengers in Barbie’s hotpink plastic convertible. PG-13. BENNETT CAMPBELL FERGUSON. Academy, Bagdad, Cedar Hills, Cinema 21, City Center, Clackamas, Empirical, Evergreen Parkway, Fox Tower, Joy Cinema, Laurelhurst, Lloyd Center, Pioneer Place, St. Johns, Studio One.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA

TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM

Part of what makes Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles unique among other franchises is its malleability. Reinvention is as much a part of the Turtles’ DNA as glowing green ooze and a love of pizza—and in the case of Mutant Mayhem, the recipe is a blend of family dynamics, grandiose sci-fi and heartfelt comedy. For the first time in franchise history, the Heroes in a Half-Shell are actually voiced by teenagers: Leonardo (Nicholas Cantu), Raphael (Brady Noon), Donatello (Micah Abbey) and Michelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.) goof around and clown on each other like any other kids, and their interactions make for the movie’s strongest moments, comedically and emotionally. Things get mighty chaotic in the back half when we’re introduced to the megalomaniacal Superfly (Ice Cube) and his cadre of mutant henchmen (voiced by several recognizable names pulled from producer-writer Seth Rogen’s contact list), but it all fits with the

movie’s eager, excited vibe. There’s a love for the boundless possibilities of the TMNT world and a desire to bring as much of it to life as possible, all through the filter of a wonky, hand-drawn aesthetic that makes for some spectacular creature designs and doesn’t skimp on the martial-arts action. The quest for a perfect TMNT film remains incomplete, but Mutant Mayhem is nonetheless a fine effort: a stylish, fast-paced, eminently fun take on the material that updates the Turtles for the modern world without losing the oddball charm that has made them fixtures of pop culture since 1984. Cowabunga, dudes! PG. MORGAN SHAUNETTE. Academy, Cedar Hills, City Center, Clackamas, Eastport, Evergreen Parkway, Lake Theater, Laurelhurst, Lloyd Center, Mill Plain, Oak Grove, Pioneer Place, Studio One, Wunderland Beaverton, Wunderland Milwaukie.

THEATER CAMP

In Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman’s hysterical mockumentary Theater Camp, self-delusion drives youth theater camp AdirondACTS and the lives of its eccentric campers. After the camp’s founder, Joan Rubinsky (Amy Sedaris), falls into a coma, devoted counselors Rebecca-Diane (Gordon) and Amos (Ben Platt) return to AdirondACTS to put on a biographical musical about their matriarchal founder— while crypto-bro Troy Rubinsky (Jimmy Tatro) flounders as he attempts to keep the camp afloat in his mother’s absence. Written by Gordon, Lieberman, Platt and Noah Galvin (who plays a stage manager), the screenplay delivers sharp deadpan humor as it satirizes theater kids’ notorious self-seriousness (children in a seemingly furtive drug deal negotiate for “throat coat” tea bags and Amos calls a child using a tear stick onstage “Lance Armstrong for actors”). The actors’ egos contrast with the camp’s financial ruin and the counselors’ stale individual careers; self-delusion becomes power in surviving a profession based on attention and rejection. Most scenes were improvised with rough outlines, a method that causes the story to wander, but highlights the actors’ craft and chemistry. It’s all captured with swift camera work that drenches the audience in summer camp nostalgia, a sweet blur seemingly over just as it began. PG-13. ROSE WONG. Bridgeport, Cascade, Eastport, Fox Tower, Movies On TV, Progress Ridge.

SHORTCOMINGS

Back in 1987, Robert Townsend started a compelling conversation about representation with his groundbreaking satire Hollywood Shuffle. Over three decades later, Randall Park has something to add. While Townsend took direct aim at the ignorance of typecasting, comedic actor-turned-first-time director Park embeds his contribution in an unremarkable rom-com. The film opens on the final scene of a Crazy Rich Asians-type movie playing at an Asian American film festival, where we find Ben (Justin H. Min) sitting stoically unimpressed in a theater of cheering admirers. He unloads a caustic critique on his girlfriend, Miko (Ally Maki), who laughs off his diatribe and eventually accepts an internship requiring her to temporarily move across the country, leaving the relationship in limbo. But don’t feel too bad for Ben: He’s an unlikable misanthrope in the mold of Rob from High Fidelity, caught on the bad side of a breakup (but without the fun of fourth-wall breaks and top-five song lists). In fact, Ben is no fun at all. The screenplay (by graphic novelist Adrian Tomine) neglects to flesh out the character in any way that would have inspired us to root for him, save for his poignant conversations about representation and Asian identity (which hold more interest than the romantic storyline). Sadly, they’re not enough to save Shortcomings, which may well leave you feeling as disdainful as Ben does at the film’s beginning. R. RAY GILL JR. City Center, Living Room, Movies On TV, Vancouver Mall.

: THIS MOVIE IS EXCELLENT, ONE OF THE BEST OF THE YEAR.

: THIS MOVIE IS GOOD. WE RECOMMEND YOU WATCH IT.

: THIS MOVIE IS ENTERTAINING BUT FLAWED.

: THIS MOVIE IS A STEAMING PILE.

by Jack Kent

JONESIN’

BY MATT JONES

ARIES (March 21-April 19): In Stephen King’s novel *It*, a character named Beverly is in love with a man who projects a sense of authority but also listens well. He is strong-minded but receptive; confident but willing to be changed; self-possessed but open to influence. That's an apt description of the allies I wish for you to attract into your life in the coming months. Whether they are lovers or partners, companions or collaborators, friends or colleagues, you need and deserve the high-quality, emotionally intelligent exchanges they offer.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Seventy-year-old Taurus-born Eric Bogosian is a prolific playwright and author renowned for his hard-edged satire. The title of one of his books is *Pounding Nails in the Floor with My Forehead*. But one critic speculates he may be softening as he ages, noting that he “seems more amused than disgusted by the decaying world around him, as if his anger has been tempered by a touch of hope.” The coming weeks will be an excellent time for you to cultivate a comparable reshaping, dear Taurus. Can you tenderize what has been tough? Is it possible to find redemption or entertainment in situations that have been challenging? Are you willing to add more levity and geniality to your perspective?

too long, in shopping carts with broken wheels, in boredom, in tax returns." He says it's the same magic that prompted Joan of Arc to believe that God spoke to her and empowered her to lead an army. I wouldn't agree that it's the *same* magic. But I do advise us all to be alert for enchantment and interesting mysteries even in the most mundane affairs. I am a champion of the quest for holiness, delight, and marvels in seemingly unlikely locations. In the coming weeks, Libra, you will have a special talent for finding these revelatory joys.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Poet Rainer Maria Rilke said, "Self-transformation is precisely what life is." If that’s true, you are in luck. Of all the zodiac signs, you are the most skillful self-transformer. Moreover, you are entering a prolonged phase when your instinct and talent for self-transformation will be even more potent than usual. I plan to observe you closely in the hope of learning your tricks for changing into an ever-better version of yourself. Show us all how it's done, dear Scorpio!

ACROSS

1. Amorphous shape

5. Sound system setting

9. Malia Obama's sister

14. Clue weapon

15. Friend, in France

16. Up to

17. God with a war chariot

18. "Cheerio!"

19. Job for 24-Across

20. Emptying and refilling freezer trays, perhaps?

23. Longoria of "Desperate Housewives"

24. Game show figures

25. Headline about an exonerated kitchen appliance?

31. Kool-Aid, e.g.

32. La ___ Opera House

33. Up to now

37. "What's ___ for me?"

39. Abu Dhabi dignitaries

41. Get up

42. Aquarium fish

44. Heptathlon unit

46. Image file extension

47. Run away, but end up locking lips?

50. Blood partner?

52. Former WWE rival

53. Buyer's remorse sound?

59. Impressive layout

60. "Believe ___ Not"

61. Staff member?

63. "Filthy" riches

64. House of Havana

65. Meeting method

66. Islamic scholars

67. Literary whaler

68. A as in A.D.

DOWN

1. Maidenform product

2. "Footloose" actress Singer

3. Oil org.

4. Make an appearance

5. 1989 Prince song for a movie soundtrack

6. Key of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7, briefly

7. In ___ (as found)

8. Black, Red, and Yellow, among others

9. Call to court

10. Genealogical discovery

11. Time on a job

12. Clues

13. Math subj.

21. Alamo competitor

22. Not just any

25. Bypass

26. Creeping plant

27. Go offstage

28. Given a title

29. Bartender's garnish

©2023 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@jonesincrosswords.com) For answers to this puzzle, call: 1-900-226-2800, 99 cents per minute. Must be 18+. Or to bill to your credit card, call: 1-800-655-6548. Reference puzzle #JNZ990.

30. Symbol above the 6

34. Island nation near Tonga

35. Nile biters

36. Bylaws, briefly

38. Commercial forest area

40. Alaskan entree

43. "That too"

45. Dash gadget

48. Weird Al's first movie

49. Angola's unit of currency (the holiday ends in the double letter)

50. Discussion group

51. "Blood Wedding" playwright Federico Garcia ___

54. 12-point type

55. "Industry" state

56. Painter Bonheur

57. Any time now

58. King's Scholars institution

59. Boxing champion

Laila

62. Music genre for Fall Out Boy

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Decca is a UK-based record label that has produced the work of many major musicians, including Billie Holliday, the Rolling Stones, and Tori Amos. They made a huge mistake in 1962, though. A fledgling group named the Beatles tried to get signed to Decca. An executive at the company declined, saying, “We don’t like their sound. Groups of guitars are on their way out.” Oops. The Beatles eventually became the best-selling and most influential band of all time. I don’t think you’re at risk of making as monumental a misstep, Gemini. But please be alert to the possibility of a key opportunity coming into view. Don’t underestimate it, even if it’s different from what you imagine you want.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): I’m a Cancerian who used to be overly reactive to people's carelessness. If someone was in a bad mood and flung a rash insult at me, I might take offense too easily. If a friend misunderstood me, even with no malice intended, I may have sulked. Thankfully, over time, I have learned to be more like a honey badger, whose thick skin protects it well against stings and pricks. I bring this up because the coming weeks will be an excellent time for you to practice my approach. First step: Understand how people sometimes direct their frustration about life toward undeserving recipients. Second step: Vow to take things less personally. Third step: Give yourself regular compliments. Actually say them aloud.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Now and then, there comes a time when I acquire an uncanny knack for seeing the totality of who you really are. I tune in to everything you do that few others know about or appreciate. I behold the big picture of your best possible future. One of those magic moments has now arrived. And it's no accident that your energy matches mine. In other words, my power to consecrate you reflects your ability to bless yourself. So give yourself the ultimate gift, please.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In the 17th century, Virgo musician Johann Pachelbel composed a piece of music he called the *Canon in D*. It soon went out of style and disappeared into obscurity. But over 250 years later, a French chamber orchestra rediscovered it, and by the 1980s, it was everywhere. Ever since, *Pachelbel’s Canon* has been used in many pop songs and is a common anthem at weddings and funerals. I'm predicting a comparable revival for you, Virgo. An influence, creation, or person that has been gone for a while will re-emerge as a presence in your life. Be decisive in adopting it for your benefit.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Author Iain S. Thomas tells us, "There is magic even in gridlock, in loneliness, in too much work, in late nights gone on

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Born under the sign of Sagittarius, Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) was one of history's most influential composers of classical music. His elegant, lyrical works are still widely played today. He was also a revolutionary innovator who expanded the scope of many musical genres. One composition, *Piano Sonata No. 32*, prefigures elements of ragtime, jazz, and boogie-woogie—70 years before those styles emerged. In this spirit, I invite you to plant a seed for the future. You will soon get glimpses of creative shifts that will someday be possible. And you will have an enhanced ability to instigate the inventive momentum that generates those shifts.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Let’s be honest. Most of us—maybe all of us!—fail to grasp the world objectively. Our perceptions get filtered through our opinions and beliefs and habit minds. The events we think we see are shaped by our expectations about them. Our projections often overrule the possibility of unbiased impartiality. We are serial misinterpreters. But there’s no need to be ashamed! It’s a universal human tendency. Having said all that, however, I believe you will have a special knack, in the coming weeks, for observing reality with more clarity and open-mindedness than usual. You will have an unprecedented opportunity to see accurately and gather fresh, raw truths.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Is this a phase of your cycle when you’ll be prone to saying things like “Why do you take me for granted?” and “I'm feeling cranky” and “It's not what you said, it's the way you said it”? Or are you in a time when the following expressions are more likely to emerge from your mouth: “I have come to understand you in a totally new and interesting way” and “Life has blessed me by removing one of my unnecessary obstacles” and “I would love to learn more about the arts of cooperation and collaboration”? Here’s what I think, Aquarius: Which way you go will depend on how clearly you set your intentions. Life will respond in kind to the moods you cultivate and the specific requests you make.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Our bodies are imperfect. They are often less than 100 percent completely healthy. They don’t always do what we wish they would. Yet even when we feel less than our best, our body continually carries out millions of biochemical marvels, mostly below the level of our conscious awareness. As the creation of an evolutionary process that has unfolded for eons, our precious organism is an amazing work of art that we have every right to regard as miraculous. According to my astrological reckoning, the coming weeks are the best time this year to honor and celebrate your body. What does it need to flourish? Ask your intuition to show you.

Homework: What story do you tell yourself about your life that’s less than 20 percent true? Newsletter.FreeWillAstrology.com

"A Lack of Publicity"--two key letters are missing.