4A • June 5, 2015 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com
A fi lm’s love song to Cannon Beach
M
ore words have been writ-
ten about “Goonies” than
all the works of Godard
or Antonioni, LOL, and this week
there are going to be a lot more. It’s
the 30th anniversary — the 30th
Anniversary Celebration for the
“Goonies” — and the coast will
be host to fans and buffs to meet
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tion grounds and share the fun. For
those who grew up with it, in the
words of one 33-year-old Cannon
Beach resident, “I watched it so
many times I wore out the VHS
tape.”
Alas, I was in the age group that
fell between the “Goonies” cracks.
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30 years later. On Memorial Day
weekend I powered up the laptop
DVD with the goal of understand-
ing the “Goonies” phenomenon.
Beware! There is a LOT of scream-
ing and long scenes too complicated
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names like Chunk and Mouth and
Data. But you’d be cheating your-
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survived three decades because of a
more archetypal appeal. I like best
what Roger Ebert wrote at the time
of its release: “‘Goonies,’ walks a
thin line between the cheerful and
the gruesome, and the very scenes
the adults might object to are the
ones the kids will like the best.”
In this year’s March Atlantic
Monthly (yes, “Goonies” recog-
Cannon Shots
inspiration and the excitement they
felt when they were young enough
to fall hook, line and sinker for a
magical adventure story.
How that story came to possess
magic was because of the superior
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By
producer Steven Spielberg, director
R.J.
Richard Donner, and scriptwriter
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Chris Columbus, along with the
exuberant performances of its cast.
And the anchor for all of us on
the North Coast is the locations.
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For all the fi lm’s
and Cannon Beach. According to
silliness, the Rock
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website, the truck rally takes place
is real, solid, and
near Haystack Rock; Brand rides
off ers a pathway
Data’s sister’s bike at the entrance
road to Ecola Park, and along this
into the time-
same long road is where the four
space continuum.
boys ride their bikes.
Long, long ago in a place far
away, the CBS documentary se-
nized by Atlantic Monthly!) Garin ries “The 20th Century” immortal-
Parnia wrote: “Generations of ized “the Rock,” a stern, imposing
Americans can still remember a close-up of the Rock of Gibraltar.
time when parents and their kids “Get a piece of the rock” was the
could go to the multiplex and enjoy message. The“Goonies” made
RULJLQDO \RXWKRULHQWHG ¿OPV WKDW Haystack Rock its artful symbol, a
weren’t either animated, part of a precursor of the worlds that George
billion-dollar superhero franchise, Lucas and Pixar were only able
or adaptations of overwrought to construct using animation or
young adult novels.”
computer technologies. For all the
The analysis is right on. The au- ¿OP¶V VLOOLQHVV WKH 5RFN LV UHDO
dience Pirnia describes is returning solid, and offers a pathway into the
to Astoria and Cannon Beach three time-space continuum. For those
decades later to celebrate the lost who live and visit here, it is also
remembrance of their youth, the part of our backyard.
Images taken in
Cannon Beach
during the produc-
tion of the movie
“Th e Goonies” over
a period of several
months in 1984.
SUBMITTED PHOTOS
There are literally dozens of ac-
tivities here and in Astoria; for a
complete list go to goondocks.org.
In Cannon Beach, on Sunday, June
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Run/Walk startts at the Tolovana
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be shown Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at
the Coaster Theatre Playhouse,
and Patrick Lines, a retired Oregon
State ranger who was on the set
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at Ecola State Park the entire week-
end.
Remember: Goonies never say
die!
5HÀHFWLRQV ELAINE TRUCKE
Th e Oregon Coast in 1941: Rumors, fear and war
The Cannon Beach Histo-
ry Center & Museum’s latest
exhibit World War II on the
Oregon Coast explores a se-
ries of historic events, shared
stories and artifacts. What it
is missing are several stories
that occurred in Oregon and
pretty close by that not many
recall or even know about.
One of our favorite sto-
ries came from the Oregon
Military Museum and was
contributed to by several
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erans. Many have heard of
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role during World War II, but
prior to leaving the states this
National Guard group was
deployed to defend the Ore-
gon and Washington coast-
line against possible Japa-
nese landing. The story they
shared was of the SS Mauna
Ala, a Matson line freighter
that was delivering Christ-
mas supplies to the troops
stationed at Pearl Harbor. The
ship carried 60,000 Christ-
mas trees, 10,000 turkeys,
3,000 chickens, tins of Al-
mond Roca and more.
Unfortunately, while en
route, Pearl Harbor was at-
tacked and the ship rerouted
back to Oregon. After the
shocking attack on the Naval
Station at Pearl Harbor, Ore-
gon and much of the western
coastline had enacted black-
outs and radio silence, and of
course, the captain of the SS
Mauna Ala was unaware that
these policies were in place.
The ship was also under ra-
dio silence for fear of giving
away their location to an en-
emy vessel.
The mouth of the Colum-
bia River bar is considered to
be one of the most dangerous
in the world, even under the
best circumstances. A dark
night in December without
navigational aids didn’t make
for an easy entry, so the SS
Mauna Ala ran aground.
Thankfully, the entire crew
survived thanks to the Coast
Guard from the Point Adams
station. According to the U.S.
Coast Guard, the Point Ad-
ams Station was in operation
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continued in 1967, although
some documents indicate it
may have ceased operation as
early as 1963. It was located
in Hammond, Oregon.
In an oral history interview
conducted by the Oregon
Military Museum, veteran
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“When war was declared,
training was interrupted; that
night the unit headed for the
Longview Bridge on the
Columbia River. They were
there for a few days when
they received a panic message
from Seaside — a ship was
unloading men on the beach.”
In another interview
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they heard of an emergen-
cy at Camp Clatsop (Camp
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was called by the Regimental
C.O. for E and F Companies.
The Regimental C.O. told
them a convoy was coming
down from the Gulf of Alas-
ka — a suspected invasion.
Clatsop Beach was the most
likely site for this. So they all
went out carrying a full load
of ammunition.”
Like other Americans,
those who lived on the Ore-
gon coast were shocked by
ELAINE TRUCKE
the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbor. The fear that the
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next target was very real for
all who lived here. “We all
know,” the Tillamook Head-
light-Herald wrote on Christ-
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defense.”
With this in mind, men
went to the beaches to defend
the Oregon shores. Instead of
Japanese troops they found
something a little more be-
nign.
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instead of troops off-loading
on the beach, they found “the
‘men’ unloading were actual-
ly Christmas trees.”
With fully loaded weap-
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membered, “They were on
post all night but there was
not an invasion. A ship ran
aground, a Christmas ship
headed for Hawaii that had to
turn back. Its cargo of Christ-
mas trees started rolling in
and some got shot at.” He
added, “A case of steaks also
washed ashore, as well as a
case of Almond Roca candy.”
In the light of day, the
“paratroopers” morphed in
several thousand trees, tur-
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Th e SS Mauna Ala, formerly known as the USS Canibas, was steamer ship that was con-
structed in 1918. It was active until it ran aground at the mouth of the Columbia River
Bar in 1941.
key and chicken carcasses,
cases of steak, and tins of
Almond Roca. The military
declared the contents of the
SS Mauna Ala “open sal-
vage.” The food and trees
were gathered up by those
stationed at Fort Stevens
and Camp Clatsop and were
cooked up for all to enjoy.
Some of those stationed
there were even able to send
pounds of food, candy, and
other items that washed up
home. News spread pret-
ty quickly, as this kind of
news is apt to do, and soon
beachcombers were milling
around the beaches collect-
ing Christmas goodies.
I’m sure a sense of re-
lief came over those that
watched Christmas trees
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haps that relief even turned
into laughter, for what could
have been a very serious
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Th e Hotel Bill (pictured) and the Warren Hotel were used
as barracks during World War II.
threat, had become festive
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of the SS Mauna Ala saved
and an invasion turned into
something entirely benign,
one hopes that those who
picked up the butter, salt,
steaks, turkeys, chickens,
trees, and candy were able
to enjoy at least one or two
evenings of good food and
good company without the
threat of deciduous troopers
knocking at their doors.
For more information
about World War II on the
Oregon Coast, visit the Can-
non Beach History Center &
Museum Wednesday through
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p.m. or check out the Oregon
Military Museum’s website.
8QFRUNHG5DPEOLQJV STEVEN SINKLER
Summer waxes and winemakers rule Th e Wine Shack
Summer is heading our
way like a freight train
and the beautiful weather
continues to amaze. I love
this time of year in Cannon
Beach.
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Summer Winery Series is
about to begin. Although
the series was in place be-
fore Maryann and I pur-
chased the store, we’ve re-
ally ramped it up over the
past couple of years and
continue to hear great feed-
back about it, and not just
from customers. Winemak-
ers started asking to partici-
pate and wanting to reserve
their weekends well in ad-
vance. This event is as pop-
ular with the winemakers as
it is with the customers! We
also keep adding new win-
eries to the lineup to keep
it fresh and listen carefully
to customer feedback when
we do.
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Summer Winery Series
kicks off on June 20 with
Trinity Vineyards from Sa-
lem. This will be Trinity’s
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Shack. If you aren’t familiar
with Trinity Vineyards, you
need to try their Willamette
Valley pinot noir, our store’s
“Pinot Noir of the Year.” Of
course, we’ll be pouring
that wine for all to enjoy.
What a great way to get the
summer started!
The lineup gains speed
quickly with Capitello (June
27), Sokol Blosser (July 3),
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J Scott Cellars (July 11)
visiting early in the sum-
mer season. These wineries
have become fan favorites,
as each delivers great wine
with an emphasis on fun.
No stuffy wine lingo while
these wineries are in the
house.
Seven of Hearts (July
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make their second visits to
The Wine Shack. Seven of
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to our tasting room and we
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come known for their spar-
kling wines, while Anam
Cara seems to master a wide
variety of wine, from Ries-
ling and Gewurztraminer to
more classic Chardonnay
and pinot noir. In fact, that
may be the Anam Cara tast-
ing lineup, right there.
STEVEN SINKLER
Next up on the calen-
dar, we get into a stretch of
Hearts makes a wide vari- wineries that have become
ety of wine, while D’Anu is Summer Winery Series fan
in only their fourth year of favorites, including Lujon
operation, but has already &HOODUV $XJ $QJHO
received recognition for Vine (Aug. 22), Elk Cove
their delicious wine. I real- (Aug. 29) and Zerba (Sept.
ly enjoy giving an up and ,W¶V LPSRVVLEOH WR SUH
coming winery a chance to dict exactly what’s going to
pour their wine and they are happen when these wineries
so appreciative to get to talk visit, but we do know deli-
about their product with our FLRXVZLQHZLOOEHÀRZLQJ
wine-loving customers.
Lujon, Angel Vine and Zer-
In August, we welcome ba offer a change of pace as
.UDPHU9LQH\DUGV$XJ these three wineries don’t
DQG$QDP&DUD$XJWR focus on pinot noir. I know
The Wine Shack. Both will that seems sacrilegious in
this Pinot fueled state, but
they pull it off. Elk Cove of-
fers a more classic Oregon
wine lineup, but every wine
is an absolute rock star.
After Labor Day, we
welcome Northwest Cel-
lars (Sept. 12). This will
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visit to The Wine Shack.
Northwest Cellars is locat-
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has become known for their
big red wines. We are in the
process of adding both Sin-
eann and Walnut City Wine-
works to the schedule and
expect they will be visiting
us in either late September
or early October. Both Sin-
eann and Walnut City are
fan favorites and each is
well-known to Wine Shack
regulars.
Before the summer kicks
in, you are invited to attend
The Wine Shack and Dogs
Allowed, Cannon Beach’s
“Wine Release and Fund
Raising Party,” on June
13 at the Dogs Allowed
store. These two stores are
working together to raise
money for Clatsop Animal
Assistance. We’ll be pour-
ing the two delicious Dogs
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p.m. and all tasting fees and
wine sales will be donat-
ed to help the local animal
shelter in Warrenton. Dogs
Allowed. Cannon Beach
will also be accepting dona-
tions of leashes, food, col-
lars, toys and cash for the
shelter. You can buy a bottle
of wine and help animals. I
call that “win-win,” or may-
be “wine-win.” Either way,
we hope to see you there.
You can see that the sum-
mer is going to be busy —
you may need to post this
one on the fridge to keep
track — I just can’t believe
that it’s almost here!
Please remember to drink
responsibly. If you’ve had
too much to drink, please
give the keys to a friend.