La Grande, Oregon

A busy city of eastern Oregon. Home of the Eastern Oregon College of Education

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Coon Chicken Inn - Portland, Oregon

Coon Chicken Inn had 3 locations; Salt Lake City, Utah, Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon. I am going to be focusing on the Portland location for this post.

The first Coon Chicken Inn was opened in Salt Lake City by Maxon Lester Graham in 1925. The Seattle location open in 1929. The Portland restaurant was the third and final location and it opened in 1931.

Here's a little history from the Coon Chicken Inn website:

All three sites were booming and a cabaret and orchestra were added in Seattle and Salt Lake with a larger dining room and the addition of delivery trucks for outside catering. 
Maxon decided that if a gimmick were added for the children, it would help bring in the parents. He added the famous head logo to the entrances of the Inns it was a huge winking, grinning face of a black man wearing a porters cap. The words "Coon Chicken Inn" were spelled out on teeth framed by monstrous red lips. The doorway was through the middle of the mouth. At the time it proved quite popular. The logo of the Inn was on every dish, silverware item, menu and paper product. 

There was a variety of food served but the specialty of the house was, of course, fried chicken. Flickr user Krystal South has uploaded the menu. The cover, the left inside, the right inside and the back cover.

You should out this incredible bit of history from the Illinois Digital Archives. It's all the notes from the original postcard order from the Curt Teich company and photos of the the place (which makes it even more jarring) . I want to kiss this archive on the mouth. It's absolutely fascinating.

In the late 1950s the Grahams got out of the restaurant business, keeping the properties and leasing them out to other restaurant operators. The Portland site has become The Prime Rib. You can see the basic layout is the same but it has changed quite a bit in 50+ years.




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YouTube video of the day: 1959 Betty White commercials in color.




Betty White is timeless and I absolutely love the fact that this videos are in glorious color.

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QSL Card of the Day:




It's a pretty simple card, but I like the drawings and had no clue there was a town called WAR!

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In The Heart of Downtown's Motel Postcard of the Day:


Aggie's Motel - Port Angeles, Washington


The back reads:
535 East First
Port Angeles, Washington
Starlite Room
Coffee Shop
Dining Room
Motel

The arrow confuses me. It's as if the owners said, "Hey, maybe instead of having an arrow pointed at our motel we should have it pointed straight at the ground just to let people now that there is cement underneath us." Either that or they're telling their customers exactly where they'd like them to go. Note the one street light right above the sign.
Can anybody tell what the logo is on Aggie's Pent House? It looks like a man riding a rabbit with tuning forks for ears.
Here's what it looks like now. The motel is gone, but it looks as if the building was just turned into offices.

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Questions? Concerns? Neat stuff you want me to post?
You can e-mail me at jordan@thepieshops.com.
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Motel Monday: Sleepy Bear is Everywhere

This week's Motel Monday theme centers around the Travelodge chain (outside of California). These dozen motels represent the chain's presence in various states and one province. Most of these cards feature Sleepy Bear, the official "brand ambassador" for the Travelodge chain. Here's some early history of Sleepy Bear from the Travelodge.com website:

History

1954
Travelodge Hotels, Inc. introduced its mascot Sleepy Bear to North America. The lovable bear was also incorporated into all in-room items. Sleepy Bear quickly became an icon to children of all ages and a welcome face for travelers seeking affordable and comfortable lodging.

1955
The Sleepy Bear plush stuffed toy was born. Dressed in a white night shirt and cap with “Sleepy” on the brim, the toy was a winner with guests of all ages.

1956
The first Sleepy Bear walk-around costume was created and worn by individuals in parades, celebrations, and grand openings of new hotels.

1973
Sleepy Bear, one of the most recognizable logos in the lodging industry, was transformed from a sleepy-eyed brown bear to a warm, smiling bear for a softer, cuddlier look.

Motel Monday: Sands Across America

This week's Motel Monday theme is motels either called the Sands or featuring Sands in the title. The Sands name appears all over the country after the Sands Hotel opens in late 1952 in Las Vegas, Nevada. I guess that owners felt that if they named their motels after the famous casino/hotel that travelers would think they had landed someplace classy and extravagant.
See all the selection by clicking on the read more button below.

Sands of Tempe Motor Hotel - Tempe, Arizona

Sands Motel - Sacramento, California