ENTERTAINMENT
Saturday, October 22, 2016
East Oregonian
Page 3C
FILM REVIEW: “TOWER”
A mass shooting before anyone knew what that was
By WILL WEISSERT
Associated Press
USTIN, Texas — Neal
Spelce was scrounging
for news to ill his Austin
station’s noon radio broadcast
when he heard this announcement
on the police scanner: “We have a
report of a shot being ired at the
University of Texas.”
That message, on Aug. 1, 1966,
didn’t even begin to capture the
magnitude of the tragedy about to
rock the sleepy college town.
Charles Whitman, an architec-
tural engineering major and U.S.
Marine sniper, had climbed the
campus clock tower and launched
a killing rampage considered one
of the irst “mass shootings” in
modern American history.
A new documentary ilm,
“Tower,” captures the sense of
confusion and carnage that perme-
ates many major acts of violence.
But it also illustrates how extremely
rare such events were back then
— a stark contrast to more recent
massacres that have become almost
chillingly common.
Director Keith Maitland
tells the story using animation
spliced with news photographs
and footage, radio clips and
testimonials provided chiely by
eight survivors. Among them is
Spelce, then news director for
KTBC-TV, who soon after that
initial report was in a station
vehicle, broadcasting on radio as
he drove toward the sniper.
A
AP ile photo
In this Aug. 1, 1966, ile photo, smoke rises from the sniper’s gun
as he ired from the tower of the University of Texas administra-
tion building in Austin, Texas, on crowds below.
“It was really an unbelievable
scene, unlike anything anyone had
ever seen before and you didn’t
have any frame of reference,”
Spelce, then 30, said in a phone
interview. “It wasn’t like today.
There was no police tape marking
anything off. No authority saying
‘Stand back.’ We were able to go
straight onto the campus.”
The documentary has begun
opening in theaters nationally,
ive decades after an attack in
which Whitman, then 25, killed 13
people and wounded nearly three
dozen others. He had killed his
wife and mother prior to heading
to the tower, one victim died a
week later and medical examiners
eventually attributed a 17th death
to Whitman in 2001.
Rather than focusing on the
sniper, though, the documentary
explores what it was like on the
ground during the mayhem. Men,
women and a newspaper delivery
boy were shot without warning,
before they even knew to be afraid
— and some survived. Some
scrambled for any cover they
PENDLETON — A live ilm
score performance to the classic
silent ilm “Nosferatu” will be
presented by the Pendleton High
School orchestra.
The score, composed
by Oregon East Symphony
conductor Beau Benson, has
been performed locally for the
past two years to rave reviews.
This Dracula story is always
especially popular this time
of year, said Emily Muller
Callender, PHS orchestra
director.
The performance is Saturday,
Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. in the school’s
auditorium, 1800 N.W. Carden
Ave. Pendleton. A reception
will follow the show. The
performance is not recommended
for children under 5.
The cost is $10. Money raised
from the event will help send
the orchestra to the Newport
Symphony Orchestra Festival.
For more information, contact
Callender at emily.callender@
pendleton.k12.or.us.
Inland chorale sets
two concerts
Under the direction of R. Lee
Friese, the Inland Northwest
Chorale will perform a pair of
free upcoming concerts.
The programs will include
“Ain’a That Good News!” by
William L. Dawson, “A Gaelic
Blessing” by John Rutter, “All
My Trials” by Norman Luboff
and “Worthy to be Praised” by
Byron J. Smith.
The performances are
Saturday, Oct. 29 at 4 p.m. at
the First Church of God, 712
S.W. 27th St., Pendleton; and
Sunday, Oct. 30 at 4 p.m. at the
Seventh-day Adventist Church,
1244 N. Elizabeth St., Milton-
Freewater. Donations are gladly
accepted. Receptions will follow
each show.
Formed in 1999, ensembles
of the Inland Northwest
Musicians provide free live
performances throughout rural
Eastern Oregon and southeast
Washington. The organization’s
mission is to provide an
atmosphere to support musicians
in developing their talent —
auditions aren’t required.
For more information,
contact 541-289-4696, inwm@
machmedia.net or visit www.
inlandnorthwestmusicians.com.
Kindle corrects date
of solo show
ECHO — A calendar mix-up
resulted in the wrong date for the
upcoming performance by J.D.
Kindle.
To catch the intimate solo
show featuring the frontman
of James Dean Kindle & the
Eastern Oregon Playboys, be
sure to head to Echo Ridge
Cellars Saturday, Oct. 29 from
6-9 p.m., 551 N. Thielsen St.
The venue is located on the left
at the bottom of the hill coming
into Echo.
For more information, call
541-376-8100.
around 11:48 a.m., as the attack
began, and when he was killed
about 90 minutes later is unknown.
Claire Wilson James had just
inished an anthropology test
when she and her boyfriend, Tom
Eckman, began walking through
campus to put a nickel in the
meter where their Volkswagen was
parked. The 18-year-old was eight
months pregnant and describes in
the ilm being shot and feeling her
baby stop moving — then lying
on the blistering pavement beside
Eckman’s body.
Bystanders carried James to
safety eventually, knowing they
too could be shot at any instant.
Another of the documentary’s
stars, John “Artly” Fox, said at
Austin’s South by Southwest
Film Festival in March that the
rescuers igured they had a 75
percent chance of survival since
the tower’s observation deck was
four-sided. While Whitman was
iring from all four, he couldn’t be
more than one place at once.
James spent seven weeks
in intensive care. She resumed
classes the following January
and said she never felt “horror or
trauma” returning to campus —
but eventually left school anyway.
“It seems like you’re with the
love of your life and I’m going
to have a baby in another month
or so, and then, all of a sudden,
everything’s gone,” James, who
now lives in Texarkana, Texas, said
in a phone interview. “I just felt a
lot of loneliness.”
WHAT TO DO
BRIEFLY
PHS orchestra to
present ‘Nosferatu’
could ind in the nearly 100-degree
heat. Police and ordinary Texans
would eventually rush to get their
own guns and ire back, in vain, at
Whitman from the ground.
The sniper’s face doesn’t
appear in animation; only his legs
are shown after he’s killed by
police and a store manager who
made their way to the top of the
clock tower. Whitman’s name isn’t
mentioned until more than hour
into the ilm.
“I felt like really every other
newspaper article, magazine
article, the one bad TV movie and
other kinds of basic-cable, true-
crime investigations were always
about the sniper and trying to
unravel his motivations,” Maitland
said, panning a 1975 Kurt Russell
made-for-TV offering called “The
Deadly Tower.”
“We would never know the
answers to those questions,” he
added. “But what was answerable
was what it was like to survive.”
When the shooting started, a
TV station near to the clock tower
rolled a camera close — some
say it was onto a balcony, others
remember it as by an open
window. The footage, which Mait-
land said hadn’t been previously
accessed since the 1970s, appears
in the documentary and provides
the much of the visceral, seem-
ingly endless sounds of booming
gunire throughout it. Authorities
would later say Whitman had 700
rounds of ammunition, though
how many times he ired between
(fabric art). Runs through Oct. 30.
Festivals
“Circuit Chautauquas:
Educating Dayton and
America”
Umatilla County Potato
Show
Echo Oktoberfest
•Saturday, Oct. 22; 2-10 p.m.
•Echo Ridge Cellars, 551
N. Thielson St., and other Echo
venues
Free/many children’s activi-
ties, $15/3 coupons for activities
(4, if purchased in advance).
Coupons can be used for food,
brew, haunted house, corn
maze and other activities. $5/
additional coupons. Live enter-
tainment featuring Rowdy Fix
Band at 6:45 p.m.
Fall Release Weekend
•Nov. 4-6
•Various wineries in Mil-
ton-Freewater, Walla Walla region
Some events free. Cellar
doors are open and new releas-
es are available for tasting. Cele-
brate the end of harvest season
with special pours, winemaker
dinners, live music and more.
Halloween Parties
Comic Book Halloween
Party
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 8 p.m.
•Wildhorse Sports Bar, off
I-84 Exit 216, Mission.
No cover. A wildly ghoul-
ish night, including killer drink
specials and prize giveaways.
Show up in a comic book char-
acter costume to be eligible for
cash prizes. No masks. And, live
music from Rock Bot will shake
things up.
Monster’s Ball
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 9 p.m.
No cover.
•Mac’s Bar & Grill, 1400
S.W. Dorion Ave., Pendleton
No cover. 21 and older. Priz-
es for costumes, including a lux-
ury cruise for two. Live DJ mix-
ing party songs, drink specials
and dancing. No masks.
Halloween Party
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 9 p.m.
•Midway Tavern, 1750 N.
First St., Hermiston
No cover. 21 and older. A
ghoulish good time, including
costume contest
Halloween Party/
Coyote Ugly dancing
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 8 p.m.
•Sub Zero Restaurant &
Lounge, 100 W. Highway 730,
Irrigon
Free if arrive by 8 p.m.; oth-
erwise $4 cover. Costume con-
test, dancing, rafles, including a
lat screen TV.
DJ music
•Wednesday-Saturdays; 10
a.m.-5 p.m.
•Dayton Historic Depot, 222
E. Commercial St., Dayton, WA
Admission by donation. Exhibit
explores the history of traveling
shows and assemblies popular in
the late 19th and early 20th centu-
ry. Runs through early November.
•Saturday, Oct. 22; 9 a.m.-4
p.m.
•Memorial Hall, 210 E. Main
St., Weston
Free admission. Features
the Friends of Weston Library
annual book sale and showcas-
es the talents of area residents.
A potato dish lunch is available
for purchase.
Evening Bell will perform an all-ages show Oct. 29
at Great Paciic Wine & Coffee Co., Pendleton.
Psychedelic roots band to color GP
PENDLETON — Described as a psychedelic roots
and rock ‘n’ roll band, Evening Bell will perform an
all-ages show in Pendleton.
The Seattle-based group features vocals that soar
on that high lonesome road between city lights and
prairie skies. In addition, they have a rhythm section
reminiscent of The Wrecking Crew in their more
psychedelic moments. And the lilting cry of pedal steel
guitar completes the sound.
You can hear the sounds for yourself Saturday, Oct.
29 from 7:30-10 p.m. at Great Paciic Wine & Coffee
Co., 403 S. Main St., Pendleton. There is no admission
charge.
For more information, call 541-276-1350. For more
about the band, visit www.eveningbellmusic.com.
Art & Museums
“Asunder: a reconstruc-
tion of space and place”
•Monday-Thursdays, 9:30
a.m.-1:30 p.m.
•Betty Feves Memorial Gal-
lery, BMCC, 2411 N.W. Carden
Ave., Pendleton.
Free. Features Portland art-
ist Katie Steinberg, who creates
small architectural structures
that reference familiar environ-
ments while creating entirely
new and ictional worlds. Gal-
lery also open by appointment
by calling 541-278-5952. Runs
through Oct. 27.
Jean Ann Mitchell
•Monday-Saturdays;
9
a.m.-6 p.m.
•Wenaha Gallery, 219 E.
Main St., Dayton, Wash.
Free. Features the work
of wildlower artist Jean Ann
Mitchell of Milton-Freewater.
Runs through Oct. 22.
“New Paintings and
Small Works”
•Tuesday-Fridays, 10 a.m.-
4 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4
p.m.
•Pendleton Center for the
Arts, 214 N. Main St.
Free. Exhibit features art-
work of Hermiston painter Ar-
len Clark. Runs through Oct.
29.
Jackson Sundown and
Happy Canyon: A Century
Later
•Monday-Saturdays;
10
a.m.-5 p.m.
•Tamástslikt Cultural Insti-
tute, near Wildhorse Resort &
Casino.
Regular admission, $10/
adults, $9/senior citizens, $6/
youths, free/5 and under or
$25/family of four. The exhibit
highlights Jackson Sundown’s
championship run in saddle
bronc and the history of Happy
Canyon Indian Pageant and
Wild West Show. Runs through
Oct. 29.
Sandra Spencer
•Monday-Thursdays;
11
a.m-7 p.m.,
•Friday-Saturdays; 10 a.m.-5
p.m.
•Hermiston Public Library,
235 E. Gladys Ave.
Free. Artwork of Sandra
Spencer, who won the grand
prize at the 2016 Eastern Ore-
gon Arts Festival, is on display in
October.
Arts Portal Exhibit
•Saturday & Sundays; noon-
5 p.m.
•Arts Portal Gallery, 508 N.
Main St., Milton-Freewater
Free. Exhibit features the
works of David Partridge (oil
paintings) and Nancy Kessler
•Saturdays, 8 p.m.
•The Pheasant, 149 E. Main
St., Hermiston
Whiskey Wednesday
Game Night
•Wednesdays; 3-7 p.m.
•The Pheasant, 149 E. Main
St., Hermiston
No cover. Xbox 360, Ninten-
do Wii, PlayStation 3 and Nin-
tendo 64.
Digital Karaoke
Music
Contributed photo
Night life
Cowboy Poetry
Dinner & Dance
•Saturday, Oct. 22, 3 p.m.
•Elgin Opera House, 104 N.
Eighth St.
•Saturday, Oct. 22; 5 p.m.
•Stampede Hall, Elgin
$22/show, $15/dinner, $7/
dance, $40/combo ticket. The
afternoon event features cowboy
poetry. Evening event features a
social hour, dinner and dancing.
Colleen Heauser
•Saturday, Oct. 22; 8 p.m. No
cover
•Wildhorse Sports Bar, Wild-
horse Resort & Casino, off I-84
Exit 216, Mission.
Basile & Wambeke
•Friday, Oct. 28; 6-9 p.m. No
cover.
•Nookies/Hermiston Brewing
Co., 125 N. First St., Hermiston
J.D. Kindle
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 6-9 p.m.
No cover
•Echo Ridge Cellars, 551 N.
Thielsen St., Echo
Evening Bell
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 7:30-10
p.m.
•Great Paciic Wine & Coffee
Co., 403 S. Main St., Pendleton
No cover. All ages.
Rock Bot
•Friday, Oct. 28; Saturday,
Oct. 29; 8 p.m.
•Wildhorse Sports Bar, Wild-
horse Resort & Casino, off I-84
Exit 216, Mission.
No cover. Live Karaoke-Ja-
maroke
Inland Northwest Chorale
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 4 p.m.
•First Church of God, 712
S.W. 27th St., Pendleton
•Sunday, Oct. 30; 4 p.m.
•Seventh-day
Adventist
Church, 1244 N. Elizabeth St.,
Milton-Freewater
Free, donations accepted.
Features “Ain’a That Good News!”
“A Gaelic Blessing” and more.
“Worth the Wait”
•Sunday, Nov. 6; 7:30 p.m.
•Vert Auditorium, 480 S.W.
Dorion Ave., Pendleton
$20/adults,
$15/students,
seniors, $45/family. Oregon
East Symphony concert. The
program includes Rebekah
Schaub as featured soloist on
Richard Strauss’ “Horn Concer-
to No. 1.”
•Thursdays and Fridays, 8
p.m.
•The Pheasant, 149 E. Main
St., Hermiston
Mac’s Trivia Night
•Thursdays, 8 p.m. No cov-
er
•Mac’s Bar & Grill, 1400
S.W. Dorion Ave., Pendleton
21 and older. East. Drink.
Think. Teams of 2-8 compete in
trivia contest with other teams.
Live host and prizes.
Wine tasting
•Fridays, 4-8 p.m.
•Sno Road Winery, 111 W.
Main St., Echo.
Open Mic
•First/third Friday each
month, 8 p.m.-midnight
•The Packard Tavern, 118
S.E. Court Ave., Pendleton
Karaoke
•Fridays 8 p.m. (9 p.m. if
game on)
•Riverside Sports Bar, 1501
Sixth St., Umatilla
Theater & ilm
“Hammerstein!”
•Saturday, 7:15 p.m.; Sun-
day, 2 p.m.
•Bob Clapp Theatre, BMCC,
2411 N.W. Carden Ave., Pend-
leton.
$10. Musical revue featur-
ing the life and work of Oscar
Hammerstein II, which was cre-
ated by BMCC music instructor
Margaret Mayer. Beneits the
BMCC Foundation for student
scholarships.
“America’s Greatest
Game Shows Live on
Stage”
•Saturday, Oct. 29; 3 p.m. &
6 p.m.
•Wildhorse Resort & Casi-
no, off I-84 Exit 216, Mission.
www.wildhorseresort.com
Must play to win tickets at
Wildhorse. Audience members
have a chance to go on-stage
for a chance to win cast and
free play. CHiPs star Erik Estra-
da is the live host.
Murder on Sno Mountain
•Saturday, Nov. 5; 7 p.m.
•Sno Road Winery, 111 W.
Main St., Echo
$35/couple. A murder mys-
tery party. For tickets, contact
info@snoroadwinery.com
or
541-376-0421.
Maryhill offers plenty to ‘check’ out at season’s end
East Oregonian
The public still has a chance to
view some special exhibits during
the inal month of the season at
Maryhill Museum of Art.
•The George E. Muehleck Jr.
Gallery of International Chess
Sets includes a new installation
featuring 90 of the museum’s
unique chess sets from around
the world. In addition, there are
special chess-related works of art.
•A Kaleidoscope of Color:
American Indian Trade Blankets.
The display features pre-1925
blankets from the Pendleton
Woolen Mills and other historic
manufacturers, including Buell
Manufacturing Company, J. Capps
& Sons, Racine Woolen Mills and
the Oregon City Woolen Mills.
A new instal-
lation featur-
ing 90 unique
chess sets and
chess-related
works of art
is on exhibit
though Nov.
15 at Maryhill
Museum of Art,
located near
Goldendale,
Washington.
Staff photo by
Tammy Malgesini
•Animal Kingdom. The exhibit
includes animal-centric works,
such as pastoral paintings and
equestrian scenes, along with
exotic birds, sheep and man’s best
friend, the domesticated canine.
•American Art Pottery from
the Fred L. Mitchell Collection.
It highlights ceramics from a
variety of makers, including
Roseville, Rookwood and Weller
companies established in the
American Midwest during the
height of the American Art
Pottery movement.
•Sam Hill and the Columbia
River Highway. The exhibit
features black and white prints
showing construction and early
scenic views of the Columbia
River Gorge.
Maryhill Museum of Art is
located off Highway 97 near Gold-
endale, Washington. To get there,
take Exit 104 off Interstate 84. It’s
open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
through Nov. 15.
Regular admission is $9 for
adults, $8 for seniors, $3 for youth
age 7-18 and free for children
6 and under. Free family passes
can be checked out at many area
libraries.
For more information, call
509-773-3733 or visit www.mary-
hillmuseum.org.
