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THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JUNE 17, 2021
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IN ONE EAR • ELLEDA WILSON
‘AND THEN, NOTHING’
O
n June 7, the 36th anniversary of the release of the
iconic fi lm “The Goonies,” DreadCentral.com inter-
viewed Corey Feldman, who thinks the long-awaited
Goonies 2 sequel is essentially dead in the water.
“It’s one of those powers-that-be things. Every time I
thought, ‘OK, it’s really gonna happen,’ I’ve been let down
and had my heart broken.”
He had been especially hopeful about a sequel happen-
ing during the pandemic, because of the online Zoom cast
reunions generating so much interest.
“And Chris Columbus (who wrote the original movie
script) himself even said …, ‘Guys, I’m so inspired, I’m
actually writing again. Like, I’m gonna do this. We’re
doing this.’ And then, nothing.
“… When I found out my dear friend Richard Donner
had signed on to do ‘Lethal Weapon 5’ as his swan song,
well that pretty much sewed up the rumor mill right there.”
Donner, the director of “The Goonies,” is now 91.
“It’s done. We can’t make (Goonies 2) without (Don-
ner). And (he’s) off shooting guns with the Lethal Weapon
people.
“And that is the shame of it,” he added. “… It doesn’t
matter how many gray hairs everybody’s got on their faces,
the love is still there. And the family feeling is still there.
“And, I know that secretly, each of us weeps at night
wishing that there was that magical (Goonies 2) script
landing on our doorstep the next day. But unfortunately,
and sadly, it still has not arrived.”
WUNDERGROUND
SAVING HISTORY
n 1883 and 1922 Astoria had two major fi res that
destroyed Astoria’s infrastructure,” Don Kelly of the
Northwest Artifact Recovery Team wrote. “To clean up
this debris, some of it was pushed into the Columbia River
to clear the area to rebuild …
“As I was metal detecting along the banks, and into a
fi eld which was once under water, I dug up an old crusty
piece of iron with initials inscribed upon it. It was destroyed
and somewhat mangled, but I needed to know more!
“Once researching this piece, I found it to be from an
old Dodge Brothers car circa 1915. I would almost bet
this is one of those vehicles that on Dec. 8, 1922, burned
up and was destroyed in that 1922 fi re.”
The photo of the fi re aftermath is courtesy of the Clat-
sop County Historical Society.
John and Horace Dodge, despite their automotive
skills and business acumen, weren’t desk-bound business-
men. They were known for being quick-tempered, even
with each other. Business-wise, they often clashed with
Henry Ford during their 15-year relationship.
In July 1914, they formed the Dodge Brothers Motor
Car Co. The fi rst Dodge Brothers car rolled out of their
factory in November 1914; they are pictured, sitting in it.
Only 249 were produced that year, but in 1915, 45,000
cars were sold, and the model was considered a great suc-
cess. By 1920, Dodge Brothers were second place in the
automotive industry, but, unfortunately, that was the same
year both brothers died.
The emblem Don found is unusual, indeed, as the early
DB entwined initials theme is octagonal-shaped, not circu-
lar, as most were.
“Gotta love dirt fi shin’,” he added, “and saving his-
tory!” (bit.ly/DodgeBro, dodgemotorcar.com)
‘I
CAPE COD JONAH
e often see humpback whales swimming and feeding
in the Columbia River, but we mostly view them at a
distance. However, a Cape Cod, Massachusetts, man had a
close encounter of the worst kind.
Michael Packard, 56, a commercial lobster diver, was
diving recently, when “all of a sudden, I felt this huge shove
and the next thing I knew it was completely black,” he told
the Cape Cod Times. He had been swallowed accidentally
by a feeding humpback.
“I was completely inside …” Packard explained. “I
thought to myself, ‘there’s no way I’m getting out of here.
I’m done, I’m dead.’ All I could think of was my boys —
they’re 12 and 15 years old.”
He was wearing scuba gear, so he began moving around
to see what would happen, and the whale responded by shak-
ing its head, fi nally surfacing and spitting Packard out. He
thinks he was stuck inside for 30 to 40 seconds.
A crew member on Packard’s boat quickly picked him up
and rushed him to shore, where he was whisked to a hospital.
Thankfully, he only had soft tissue injuries. He is pictured in
a family photo, courtesy of the Cape Cod Times.
Incidentally, he’s also survived a small plane crash in a
Costa Rica jungle.
“Thank god it wasn’t a white shark,” his relieved sister,
Cynthia Packard, said. “He sees them all the time out there.”
W
FATHER’S DAY’S MOTHER
TAKING OFFENSE
n 1909, Sonora Smart Dodd, of Spokane, Washington,
wondered why fathers didn’t have an offi cial day honor-
ing them.
She especially wanted to recognize her own father, Wil-
liam Jackson Smart, a Civil War veteran and widower,
who raised six children all by himself. She and her father
are pictured.
She drummed up support for the idea around the state to
celebrate Father’s Day on June 5, her father’s birthday. Tim-
ing issues ruled that date out, so the fi rst statewide Father’s
Day in Washington was held June 19, 1910.
In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson offi cially recog-
nized Father’s Day. He pushed a button in Washington, D.C.,
and, using telegraph signals, unfurled a fl ag in Spokane.
In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge encouraged all of
the states to observe the day; and President Lyndon John-
son signed a presidential proclamation declaring the third
Sunday of June as Father’s Day in 1966.
But it wasn’t until 1972 that President Richard Nixon
proclaimed the day honoring fathers a permanent national
holiday.
Happily, Sonora lived long enough to see her dream
come true, and to become offi cially recognized herself, as
the “Mother of Father’s Day.” (fathersdaycelebration.com,
bit.ly/day4father)
I
t last week’s Saturday (Astoria) Art Walk the buzz
downtown was about the underground,” Jeff Daly
wrote. He is the maestro behind the Astoria Underground
Tour at 1125 Marine Drive.
“First words spoken from many were, ‘I know those
doors,’ looking at the twin doors with sandblasted sail-
ing ships from the Seafarer Restaurant — also remem-
bered in a major scene from the movie ‘Kindergarten Cop‘
— that are now the entrance to the Astoria Wunderground
Experience.
“And, it was for the dogs that many came. Hot dogs, or
more accurately a Coney Island dog, was handed to you as
you begin the fi rst time view of this downtown two bedroom
Airbnb, soon to be a West Coast classic.”
Yes, you heard it right, Astoria’s underground now has its
very own Airbnb, which also has a kitchen and a steam bath.
“The interior has many surprises which kept everyone on
their feet, not venturing too close to the remnants of a shang-
hai tunnel, to viewing the underground porthole aquarium.
The lodging was designed to accompany the Astoria Under-
ground Tour.”
As local historian John Goodenberger wrote about the
tour, “Jeff Daly fi lled a distinct void in Clatsop County’s cul-
tural tourism …” And now he’s made it even better.
A
DO ONE THING
E
ight-armed rerun: Gio DeGarimore, owner of
Giovanni’s Fish Market in Morro Bay, California, is
also a diver, and knows fi rst-hand how intelligent octo-
puses are. Therefore, he took a “moral position” and
decided not to sell any octopus products.
So when a local fi sherman had a 70-pound octopus for
sale, Gio bought the critter, put him in a tank at the market
and named him Fred, who is pictured, courtesy of the mar-
ket’s Facebook page.
“It might not change the world, but I’m going to do one
thing,” Gio declared, “and if it only makes me and Fred
happy, that’s OK, too …”
Gio’s intention was to release Fred into the open ocean
— which he did, a few days later. (In One Ear, 6/15/2018)
n case you’ve been expe-
riencing
sleepless
nights worrying about
the political correct-
ness of the state
song, “Oregon, My
Oregon,” which
was adopted in
1927, you can rest
easy.
T he
Oregon
Legislature
has
approved a reso-
lution to revise the
song to “remove racist
language” and “make
the lyrics more inclu-
sive, ” a ccording to KEZI.
com
Amy Shapiro, of Beaverton, proposed the changes.
T he words she found off ensive have been replaced with
her own, which emphasize “Oregon’s natural beauty and
rolling rivers.” She describes her alterations as “small but
profound.”
Happily, the music that goes with the song, by Henry
Bernard Murtagh, has not off ended anyone — at least
not yet, anyway — and will stay the same.
The original lyrics, written by J. A. Buchanan, of
Astoria, won a poetry contest held by the Society of Ore-
gon Composers in 1920.
A well-known man about town, Buchanan was a law-
yer and municipal judge for many years. He also served
as a state representative and founded the Astoria Kiwanis.
A published writer, his work appeared in Sunset and Field
and Stream magazines.
Buchanan is buried at Ocean View Cemetery in War-
renton, where his lyrics will remain, as written, literally
engraved in stone. Since he died in 1935, his opinion of the
alterations being made to his song is moot.
The resolution to approve Shapiro’s corrected lyrics
is now headed to Gov. Kate Brown’s desk, awaiting her
signature.
I
A POSITIVE IMPRESSION
MUN listener Levi Lippold, development director
Susan Peterson (pictured) and board member Todd
Lippold have been out picking up trash on highways,” a
press release from KMUN reported.
“Combining a passion for KMUN and having a healthy
environment, the small but enthusiastic crew have been out
with their safety vests and yellow bags, cleaning up along the
fi rst 2 miles of (U.S.) Highway 26, and for 2 miles north of
the Del Re y Beach turnoff on (U.S.) Highway 101.”
At each of those locations, you’ll see a sign saying
KMUN has adopted that section of the highway. Susan is
shown, accompanied by a truck full of trash after a couple of
hours along Highway 101.
“It’s fun, good exercise and exciting to take a little owner-
ship of a couple of stretches of highways that we can put the
station’s name on and maintain for our community,” Todd said.
“Maybe, when people see the signs, or us out there clean-
ing, it will make a positive impression about keeping our
environment natural, clean and beautiful.”
‘K