Dual Tributes and Farewells

Posted on October 18, 2023 by Thebeerchaser

Welcome back to Thebeerchaser. If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title at the top to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened. (External photo attribution is at the end of the post.)

Claudia’s Sports Bar and Grill – We’ll never forget you!

I’ve filled you in previously on some noted bars and breweries that have closed – most pandemic related – but I’m heartsick since Claudia’s poured it’s last pint on October 9th.

Sarah, my server in 2012 with the former Beerchaser logo

As reported by noted NW journalist and author, Kerry Eggers in his 10/15/23 column:

“Claudia’s Sports Pub closed its doors after 65 years in business. Claudia’s, on Southeast Hawthorne Blvd., was the city’s original sports bar, established in 1958 by restaurateur Gene Spathas.

It remained a family-owned business, taken over by Gene’s youngest son, Marty, who ran the place for the last 35 years.”

I have been in many sports bars and pubs – not only in Portland – but across the country. None had the historical ambiance and interesting regulars one encountered at Claudia’s.

The bar was named after Gene Spathas’ first wife. As I stated in my 2012 blog post:

“According to Gene’s Washington High School classmate and SAE fraternity brother at OSU, Oregon City attorney, (and my family’s attorney since the 1960’s) Don Bowerman, ‘Gene was a gifted businessman and Claudia Mickelson was an intelligent, classy and beautiful lady.'”

Upon reflection, naming a bar after a wife named ‘Mildred’ or ‘Gertrude’ would not be a good thing regardless of her attributes. Claudia was different.

The Annual Willamette Week Bar Guide has always been a valuable resource for my Beerchasing research and this excerpt from 2011 was no exception:

“Claudia’s is the best sports bar in Portland…..Every year it seems like more new, hip sports bars open, but at the end of the day, there’s only one place I want to go when the game is really close.”

claudia-trophy-case

And the trophy case was unforgettable. Claudia’s’ was like a mini-Oregon Sports Hall of Fame. The gigantic trophy case, in what was the poker room, was stuffed with hardware from the victorious AAU Basketball and other sponsored teams which were a hallmark of the pub for decades.

You can also see basketballs signed by John Wooden and legendary announcer, Dick Vitale.

The Basketball Team

The sports bar was known for it legendary Claudia’s AAU basketball teams, which had numerous former college hoop stars and Portland Trailblazer alums including Greg Smith, Dale Schlueter, LaRue Martin, Leroy Ellis, Jim Barnett, Phil Lumpkin, Cincy Powell.

Don’t forget Steve and Nick Jones, Frank-the-Flake Peters, Steve Pauly, Jimmy Jarvis, Ray Blume and Mark Radford (the last five, all former Oregon State stars.) (#1)

Dale Herron – No. 34 – Coach Spitznagel – Back right

And a key factor for the team’s success was it’s coach – Walt Spitznagel – labeled “a character” by everyone who knew him. “Spitz” coached the team for twenty-three years:

“Spitznagel’s career included stints working as a longshoreman, as a pari-mutuel clerk at Multnomah Kennel Club and operating a grocery store. But his avocation was coaching….

Spitznagel’s credentials are shiny. Under his direction, Claudia’s won 14 city league (Portland Basketball Association) championships, eight state AAU titles and one Northwest Regional crown… (Kerry Eggers Column 9/28/22)

He was an incredible recruiter and gifted in handling the egos of multiple stars competing for playing time.

Dale Herron – A Notable Athlete and Coach

I reviewed Claudia’s in a 2012 blog post entitled, “Claudia’s Sports Pub and Grill – Oh the History!!. I have a special affinity for the bar because my dad and our lawyer were friends and fraternity brothers of the late owner, Gene Spathas.

In addition, my high school basketball coach at Oregon City in 1966, Dale Herron, who starred at the University of Oregon, played for Claudia’s (see photo above).

Coach Herron, who passed away late in 2022, led the Ducks in scoring in 1959 and was inducted into the University of Oregon Hall of Fame in 1997.

As a testament to his athletic prowess, after his basketball eligibility ended, he accepted a one-year football scholarship and played in the 1960 Liberty Bowl. (#2 – #3)

When he was in his mid-twenties, he coached us to the OC’s first TYV League Basketball Championship in twenty-one years in 1966. He pushed us hard, but he and his Assistant Coach, Dick Arbuckle, were great motivators and made the most of the talent they had.

Arbuckle (photo below) was also a 1960 U of O grad and football letterman and coached varsity football at OCHS besides being the JV Basketball Coach. He had an outstanding career in high school and college coaching. (#4 – #6)

(#7) TYV Tropy

I remember seeing Claudia’s iconic coach, Walt Spitznagel at our high school games and at the 1966 Oregon State High School Basketball Tournament – where he did not pay to gain admission. As Kerry Eggers stated:

“…..we should mention Spitznagel’s propensity for landing free tickets to sporting events. There may never have been a bigger freeloader at Blazer games in Memorial Coliseum, or anywhere else.”

As an aside, Kerry Eggers is a six-time the National Sports Media Association’s Oregon Sportswriter of the Year, winning in 1981, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2011 and 2018.

I heard the same sentiments from another prominent Oregon sportswriter and broadcaster recently who told the story of how Spitznagel fabricated a press pass at a professional playoff series to gain admission.

Dale Herron After Athletics

Coach Herron had a remarkable career in both athletics and secondary education as a coach and principal and was known for mentoring students with great skill and compassion. (#8 – #10)

I reached out to one of my OCHS teammates, John Davidson (#30!) for some recollections as I knew he was close to Dale Herron .

(John was a much better basketball player, but I had a quicker first step to the hoop.) Notice the cool Chuck Taylor Converse All-star Black High-tops we wore. (#11)

Thebeerchaser (left) and John Davidson (#30)!

And as evidence of Dale Herron’s influence, John, who is now retired, had a long and very successful career as a teacher, coach and school principal – similar to his mentor!

He offered me this quote on the impact of Dale Herron:

“We all have people in our lives who are very influential. At the top of my list is Dale Herron because of his kindness, guidance, leadership and for being an amazing role model.

He was an inspirational basketball coach who went above and beyond in helping me in many ways. Mr. Herron guided me to his Junior College (Grays Harbor). I shudder to think what my life would be like without his influence.

I’m sure that I am one of many that had the great fortune to have Dale Herron in their lives.”

And he also mentioned Spitz:

“He would always yell at refs and call them ‘Stripes.’ I knew Spitz well as we worked on the Portland waterfront for years as checkers for Longshoremen.” (#12 – #13)

John shares my drink of choice – gin martini – up with olives

In Closing

Gene’s son, Martin announced on social media:

“’It has been a privilege to be a part of the community all these years,’ Spathas wrote. ‘While this difficult decision marks the end of an era, the spirit of Claudia’s will live on in Portland lore. The stories, bonds, and history made within these walls will never be forgotten.'”

And I will close with this thought – one that hit me initially, but had to modify slightly after some more research. Not only is it distressing to see Claudia’s closing, but a 10/11 Oregon Live headline announced:

“Wild’ Portland karaoke bar set to replace 65-year-old Claudia’s.”

The hallowed space at Claudia’s, which was a favorite bar for athletes, coaches, announcers, sportswriters, referees, fans and Walt Spitznagel, will now primarily host intoxicated bad singers.

This seems simply incompatible with the legacy of the bar.

That said, the 2009 Willamette Week Bar Guide did reveal that there is some history with sing-along at the bar:

“When all the (athletic) contests are concluded…how do they keep the beer-sodden spectators in their seats….? Claudia’s, the dowager of Portland sports pubs has devised a resourceful solution:

After the last out, the bar switches to karaoke, projecting lyrics onto its largest screen. It’s an ingenious idea, not least because it allows crestfallen fans the chance to constructively vent.

Claudia’s needn’t worry: It continues to pack ‘em in with high def TVs, cheap pints and its claim to fame – high-backed green captain’s chairs lining the bar.”

I don’t think Claudia’s followed that practice for very long and notwithstanding this history, I cannot envision athletes such as those mentioned above belting off-key versions of some of the Top 45 Karaoke songs such as “I Will Survive”, “Dancing Queen”, Billy Joel’s “Piano Man” and “Sweet Caroline”. (#14)

And to give some additional context, can you imagine now 73-year old, 6’11” – 208 pound – former Trailblazer, Larue Martin, crooning Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off?’

I stay out too late
Got nothing in my brain
That’s what people say
That’s what people say
I go on too many dates……

Now John Davidson owes me a steak dinner and onion rings at Portland’s famous Ringside Steakhouse on his next trip up from California. After finishing martinis and dinner, we will head to Suki’s Bar and Grill in Claudia’s former space.

One of John’s best games in high school was against the Tillamook Cheesemakers – I think he had a triple-double. To acknowledge this memory, I’ll get up on the stage and give an off tune rendition of “I Will Remember You.”

Cheers!

External Photo Attribution

#1. Claudia’s Sports Bar and Grill Trophy Case

#2 – #3. Dale Herron Obituary (https://funeralalternatives.org/tribute/details/305447/Dale-Herron/obituary.html)

#4. – #6 The Oregon City Elevator – High School Newspaper for OCHS

#7. The Oregon City Enterprise Courier

#8. – #10. Dale Herron Obituary (https://funeralalternatives.org/tribute/details/305447/Dale-Herron/obituary.html)

#11. Oregon City Enterprise Courier

#12. 1966 Oregon City High School Yearbook

#13. Courtesy of John Davidson!

#14. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BillyJoel2016MSG.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. Author: slgckgc – 15 April 2016.

#15. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LaRue_Martin.png) This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published in the United States between 1928 and 1977, inclusive, without a copyright notice. Author: Unknown – 1973.

Tall Tales and Highballs (okay-beer!) at the Low Brow Lounge

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Thebeerchaser

The Low Brow and the Pearl District - An Inherent Contradiction in Terms??

The Low Brow in the Pearl District

Perhaps there should be some recognition for a watering hole that was voted, “Best Portland Dive Bar” back in Willamette Week’s 2005 Readers’ Poll and still, amidst the burgeoning high-rise condos and pretentious shops and eateries in the Pearl District, retains its reputation as a dive bar in 2015. (Note: The Sandy Hut and Marathon Taverna, both reviewed by Thebeerchaser were second and third place in 2005.)

Note this review from Willamette Week’s 2015 Bar Guide:

“Low Brow Lounge didn’t land in the Pearl, the Pearl landed on Low Brow Lounge. Once just another dive proudly declaring its lack of pretension, the bar has, somewhat miraculously, survived long enough to take up the mantle as an oasis of indelicacy freaking out the nouveau-riche squares filling the condos that have sprouted up around it in the last decade.”

A dive amidst the high rises…..

Thebeerchaser ended up at the Low Brow Lounge at the suggestion of his daughter’s boyfriend, Ryan Keene, who established some credibility in bar discernment by previous Beerchasing events at Sniff Cafe, Quimbys and Club 21. Ryan is a very good athlete and enterprising young man as well as a good drinking companion.

Ryan, Ron (in the shadows) and Sam with Thebeerchaser logo

Also joining us were Dr. Sam Holloway, University of Portland professor and his dad, Portland attorney, Ron Holloway, who first crossed paths with Thebeerchaser in his freshman year at Oregon State University, when Ron, a junior, was his room-head in the SAE fraternity house. (More on that chronicled history below.)

The student reviews of Dr. Holloway are overwhelmingly superb and Ryan, enjoyed his interesting lectures. He was also reassured after a conference with Sam in which the good professor admonished him, “Remember, 50% of all students are below average….”

Ryan had been to the Low Brow before and it was close to the senior Holloway’s digs in the Pearl. Arriving on a Friday afternoon, we passed on the their signature dish – chicken breasts and tater tots – they label them , “Tits and Tots,” and ordered beers and the more mundane but equally unhealthy – tots and mini-corndogs.

The Low Brow fits the general definition of a dive bar (see Beerchaser post “Analyzing Dive Bars Head First.”) and it reminded both Ron Holloway and me of similar venues in which we matriculated while in college in Corvallis – Price’s Tavern, The Peacock and Don’s Den, to name the most popular, but certainly not all the bars.

An Ashley Montague mural

The Low Brow was not totally absent of class and the mural on the external west wall by Portland artist Ashley Montague was distinctive. (His work consists mostly of commissioned murals on authorized walls, like the side of Lowbrow Lounge or the wall at Chapter 24 Vineyards)

Otherwise, it was the typical dive environment including pinball machines, a Wonder Woman mural, some memorabilia and a curious four-foot high Miller High Life bottle with thousands of bottle caps in it.

Bartenders to busy to tell the story behind this artifact

The reviews of the Low Brow often have comments about surly bartenders and it appeared that those working that day fit the mold – also one reason that I have no explanation for the Miller bottle cap collection. In almost every watering hole visited by Thebeerchaser – even in the grungiest dive such as the Yamhill Pub, the bartenders are friendly and willing to share some stories or chat about their bar.

Not so with the Low Brow, which is one reason this blog post is written after just one rather than the customary two or three visits.

Others agree as evidenced by the following:

“…..bartenders so perfectly surly they must be coached in unpleasantness.” Portland Barfly

“……the bouncer—who looks about one phone call away from being arrested for loitering.” Willamette Week 2014 Bar Guide

Surly bartenders…..

“The new, extremely rude, bartenders have ruined this once great dive bar destination and as a result this place is now the most uncomfortable bar in the city.” Yelp review 3/9/15

That said, any time one can drink cheap PBR, stuff down fried food and share tales (both true and concocted) with old (and in Sam’s case) new friends, is memorable. Thus, I’ll end this post by focusing on the company.

Sam Holloway

Dr. Sam Holloway

Sam Holloway (who in an unprecedented early disclosure by Thebeerchaser, will be featured in June as the 20th Beerchaser-of-the-Quarter) is a well-educated gent. His first degree was in physics from Willamette University, followed by an MA in teaching from Pacific University and finally his Ph.D. at the U of O. This excerpt from the summary of his credentials at University of Portland conveys the breadth of experience for a young guy:

“Professor at the University of Portland’s Pamplin School of Business Administration. Prior to completing his Ph.D. in management, Sam’s professional appointments spanned a wide array of industries, countries, and areas of expertise. These positions include being an estimator in the U.S. highway bridge construction industry, teaching advanced physics in Prague, Czech Republic, and teaching secondary mathematics in Beaverton, Oregon.

He has received several teaching awards, including being named the outstanding graduate student teacher at the University of Oregon.”

Sam was awarded tenure at UP in 2015 and as mentioned earlier, was Ryan’s favorite professor during his undergraduate days at UP – an outstanding educational institution. He played a key part in the recent implementation of a Master Crafting Strategist Certificate – a graduate level curriculum to give craft beer industry professionals specific business training and wisdom.

Thebeerchaser in the forthcoming post will also discuss Sam’s reputation in the craft beer industry including consulting both nationally and internationally as a principal in his company Crafting a Strategy.

Sam Holloway’s Consulting Company

With typical humility, Sam defers praise and said while consuming his PBR: “I give all of the credit for my success to my parents – especially my mother and father.”

There is consensus on Sam’s genetic make-up among those of us who know both Ron Holloway and his college sweetheart and now spouse, Dinda. While Sam may have received some of his aptitude for higher education from his dad, (Ron served for several years as Assistant Dean at Willamette University) but his intelligence, interpersonal skills and good personal appearance all emanate from his mother’s side of the family.

Ron Holloway

Ron was my room-head for several terms at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house in my freshman year at Oregon State, where “Ronnie Clyde” claims he molded me and laid the foundation for all of my future accomplishments. He was also nicknamed “Root Beer” because to his credit, he did not drink alcohol until he was 21 (I told his son it was because he had an affinity for A & W). He served as President of the fraternity and player-coach of our intramural C-League basketball team. His leadership-coaching style was kind of a bizarre combination of Rutherford B. Hayes and John Calipari. The SAE’s won the all-university championship in all three intramural leagues that year (1967).

Ron Holloway as SAE President in 1969.

Portland attorney, Ron Holloway

Root Beer went on to law school and served as an Assistant Dean at Willamette before entering the private practice of law and in 1996 co-founding the firm of Sather, Byerly & Holloway, a successful twenty-lawyer litigation firm in Portland.

(It should be noted that the firm’s website reference which sites the co-founders’ concern at their prior law firms for “….soaring overhead costs and the inefficiencies of an overgrown bureaucracy,” is not a reference to Thebeerchaser when he served in firm management while Ron practiced at Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt.)

The SAE house was loaded with ahtletic talent that year (where future OSU basketball starter, Mike Keck, and former all-state round-ballers, Bob (BA) Allard (also Pac-8 Golf Individual Champion in 1969) and South Salem’s Chris Haag made up part of the A-League squad. The B-League roster also had several former high school all-league basketball players.

Ron and I along with teammate Craig (The Dude) Hanneman (Defensive tackle for OSU -1968 to 70 – where he was 2nd Team All American and First Team All Pac 10 and All Coast in addition to playing in the East-West Shrine Game, the Hula Bowl, the All America Bowl and the College All-Star Game) showed our hardwood talents in the C League. Ron and I regaled Ryan and Sam at the Low Brow with tales of legendary exploits in high school basketball where both of us lettered in the old TYV League – Ron at McMinnville HS and Dirt at Oregon City HS.

1966 TYV League Champions - coached by Dale Herron (Beerchaser is #10)

1966 TYV League Champions – coached by Dale Herron (Beerchaser is #12)

C-League teams were rated low in finesse, but high in belligerence. (Hanneman’s personal experience in those games ingrained him with the grit for his successful post NFL business career.)

More so, the games imbued him with what he needed to become the first former NFL or NBA player to scale Mt. Everest – he accomplished that in 2012 and “Run with the Bulls” in Pamplona the next year – he was showcased as one of the 2012 Beerchasers of the Quarter)

The Dude (right) on Mt. Everest climb

——–

It also attests to Ron’s motivational skill when as a coach, he channeled the rage Hanneman expressed during the championship game when a competitor showed poor sportsmanship and Mike Tyson-like behavior. (Hanneman called a time-out because he was bleeding and said in the huddle,“That Beta SOB, just bit me in the shoulder.”) The Dude went on to a triple-double in the game besides making sure the offender looked over his shoulder when he walked on campus for the next month.

Thebeerchaser and Craig Hanneman at OSU

Ronnie Clyde, inspired by Mike Keck’s no-look passes in the A-League games, developed his own version “the no-pass look,” where he established records – probably still standing – for most shots taken in one season. (Also the inverse record – shots taken verses shooting percentage.)

Ryan Keene

Ryan – athlete and enterpraneuer

After graduating from the University of Portland, Ryan joined O’Neill Electric as a project manager and demonstrates his work ethic by part-time work on the weekends at Artleta Library and Bakery Cafe as well as serving as an assistant coach for the track and cross country teams at Clackamas High School. He is an accomplished runner and was a member of the Gonzaga University Cross Country Team his first two years in college.

Laura Williams and Ryan – Beerchasing at Quimbys

In 2013 he ran a 50K – that’s 31.1 miles – ultra-marathon in Bend on the Flagline Trail. He finished 3^rd overall with a time of 4:15. – that’s essentially an eight minute mile for the distance!

The first time I met Ryan’s mom, Nancy, I talked to her about his running and the conversation went something like this:

Beerchaser: Ryan is a good athlete and his running is amazing. How did that happen?

Nancy: Well Ryan liked to run when he was little and in the ninth grade, he decided he was going to focus on this sport so he started running ten miles every day that summer.

Beerchaser: Wow, ten miles every day. That’s really dedication for someone that young.

Nancy: Well, it sounds impressive, but it wasn’t all good.

Beerchaser: What do you mean?

Nancy: Well in the fall when it was time for him to start high school, we had no idea where he was……

Another mural – this one of Wonder Woman inside the bar

We enjoyed our time at the Low Brow in spite of the environment. Perhaps one visit is not enough to appreciate its idiosyncratic ambiance, but this comment in City Search seems to be typical.

It also explains why Thebeerchaser will look for options with more amiable staff when checking out Portland dive bars in the future.

“Used to be a decent place to wind down…A long, long time ago, in a far, far away dream. To say the service is poor would be a compliment. Dive bars are supposed to be nice for their local feel and charm. The Low Brow is now anything but.”

——–