Portland Tours

Tour: The Hollywood Theatre (limit 10 per tour)
Wednesday 11.28 – 11:30am
Thursday 11.29 – 12:30pm
Thursday 11.29 – 1:30pm

The Hollywood Theatre opened in 1926 – the last Portland venue built as both a vaudeville house and a movie theatre.  It was a “palace of luxury, comfort and entertainment unsurpassed by any theatre on the Coast.”  In 1983 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places but, like many of the old movie palaces, by the late 80’s it was in disrepair and most of the classic film formats were lost.   1997 a non-profit purchased the Hollywood and today, thanks to ongoing restoration efforts and support from the local community, the Hollywood has a national reputation for programming, innovative educational programs, and providing fiscal support for local filmmakers.

This 30 minute tour is a chance to peek behind the curtain with Dan Halsted – sometimes referred to as the Kung Fu Master of the Hollywood Theatre – and talk to him about the Hollywood, it’s history, and maybe his legendary 35mm kung fu film collection, too.  You can get to the Hollywood Theatre on light rail, taxi, or ride-share.

__________________________

Tour:  John Reed’s Portland Walking Tour (limit 15)
Thursday 11.29 – 12:00pm – 2:00pm

Want a some local Portland culture?  REDS, the film directed and starring Warren Beatty,  centers on the life and career of Portland native John Reed, the journalist and writer who chronicled the Russian Revolution in his book Ten Days That Shook the World.

Following the morning’s session “Preserving the Unedited Reds Witness Interviews,” this tour is a compact look at sites related to events portrayed in REDS, and addresses what is known and what is imaginative conjecture on Warren Beatty’s part. Beatty’s portrait of John Reed was impressively researched, and although not one inch of REDS was shot in Portland, we can point out sites where Reed scholars believe specific events, portrayed in REDS, took place.  Tour will leave from Hotel lobby.

The tour is organized by the Oregon Cartoon Institute which has also created a map of John Reed’s Portland.  In addition, the Wilson Room (rare books) in Multnomah County Library, open limited hours on Nov. 27-28, Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, will have John Reed related items on display. The Wilson Room is across the street from another site on the map – Louise Bryant’s writing studio (still standing).