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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 2, 1956)
Thursday, February 2. 1958 MEDTORD (OREGON) MAIL TRIBUNE SEVEN an Working 1,05 Feet Over Moniisittan Finds Variety bf Subjects By H. D. QUIGG a. P. Staff Correspondent New York (U.R) Frank Pow ell has spent 17 years at work 1,050 feet in the air over Man hattan, scattering the ashes of deceased human beings over the city, settling bets, and greeting every conceivable breed of visit ing celebrity from kings to cab bage heads. He's the observation tower manager at the Empire State building. The 1,050 mark is his lowest working level. He often gets up near the 1,472-foot top of the building. Things are always happening up above the ground so high. "Just the other day," said Powell, "this fellow comes up and says, 'Are you Mr. Powel?' I told him yes. - He says, Tm a trumpet soloist. I'd like to play my trumpet on top of the build ing. All my life I've wanted to.' He hands me his card Samuel J. Coury, Salem Depot, N. H. "Well, he seemed like a nice chap. I told him go ahead. I even went out and listened. You know what he played? Tm Sit ting on Top of the World.' Fine tune.' When he left, I got to fig uring he'd go home and brag about it and have no proof. So I got one of our giant souvenir postcards and wrote on it that this would certify Mr. Coury had played his trumpet up here at such-and-such an hour, and I put the official building stamp on it and shovel it in the mail to him." Liltle Wager Bet-settling is. an old story with the observation tower peo ple. The most frequent bet is on how much the building sways. Powell- has1 had telephone calls from such places as London, Mexico City, and San Francisco to settle wagers on the subject! Powell's answer: "In a steady wind of 90 miles an hour, it moves out of line a shade less than an inch and a half." Tn manv cases the bet 'is On whether it sways around 20 feet. This is not too wild an assump tion when you' consider it has 102 habitable stories. Powell walked into the restaurant at the 86th floor observation terrace one day and found a man lying flat on his back, eyes wide, breathing normal. ,: ' The man's friends were at a table, staring glumly at him. "Gorblimey, the" building tip ped and I lost my balance," ex plained the man, obviously a visiting Englishman. "I can't help it if the others didn't lose theirs." ' . Questioning developed that the man had had a roush Atlan- tic crossing but all the while the ship was pitching his friends had told him: . "This is nothing com pared with what you'll get when you get to the top of the Empire State building. It sways 18 feet and more," ; Loose Bolt . The man told Powell the build ing had tipped just as he hung up his hat. Powell examined the hatrack. The bolt holding it .up right had come loose. When the hat was hung, the rack, had swayed forward, and the visitor swayed opposite it right on down to the floor. Powell has participated in several scatterings of cremation ashes. The original one was the case of a,man born in Manhattan whose family moved to an Indi ana farm when heNvas young. His will directed that his ashes be loosed from the building's top. His widow performed the rite, waiting for a day with a brisk wind. The latest one was the case of a New Jersey woman. The first day she met her future husband, hr took her to the top of the Em pire State. They went there sev eral times afterwards, and on one of those occasions he pro posed to her. When she was dy ing, she told his she wanted to be cremated and her ashes scattered from the building top. He wept as he carried out her wish. The building will be 25 years old next May. Nearly 16,000,000 persons have gone to its top. The oldest was 101, the youngest 13 days.' APPOINTED CHIEF Portland (U.R) Capt. Paul J. Shreve was appointed by Police Chief Jim Purcell yesterday to be chief of detectives succeed ing Capt. William Browne who is on accumulated leave and on temporary assignment with the government. 1 Use Mail Tribune Want Ada' Man Returns Stolen Clock; Note To Police Tokyo rJ.R) A man re turned a priceless, historic clock stolen a year ago to a newspaper in Shizuoka Wednesday night with a note ridiculing Japanese police as "slow pokes in criminal investigation." .The clock, presented by the king of Spain nearly 400 years ago, was taken from the Toshogu Shrine in Shizuoka last year. It was left in the office of the Shiz uoka city newspaper by the man who fled before he could be identified. 'RE NOT TRADING AT THE GROCETE J F YOU RIA YOU RE PAYING TOO MUG BIG FREE PARKING LOTS Ask About Extended Free Parking for Other Downtown Shopping (ED SIXTH AND GRAPE STREETS OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK UNTIL P.M. ARMOUR'S STAR OR CASCADE BRANDS TENDERIZED SMALL SIZES nJ3 Zr 1Zj y U SHARK HfiLF OR WHOLE A REAL LOW PRICE AT.. . U.S. GRADED "CHOICE" STEER Cut Thick or Thin Your. 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