PERSPECTIVE FROM THE 19^TH HOLE:  This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all of my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

Kerry Tymchuk, executive director of the Oregon Historical Society, performed a solid service in his most recent “Director’s Corner” column.

Based on information provided by a resource called The Oregon Encyclopedia, Tymhuck listed films and TV shows that had been filmed in Oregon over the years, as well as top Hollywood stars who had made a mark here.  [Tymchuk is a friend of mine and a former partner in my old lobbying and PR firm.]

Filming in Oregon contributes to Oregon’s economy and I say that as a past deputy director of the Oregon Economic Development Department where one of our operations worked hard to sell TV and film location scouts on Oregon.

The rationale is more that Oregon connections to Hollywood, though that can be interesting.  When films and TV shows are shot here, Oregonians work on the shows.  And sometimes there even are slots for extras.

Here is Kerry’s list of Oregon Hollywood connections:

• The General, a classic Buster Keaton silent film was shot in Cottage Grove in 1926.

• Animal House, a highly-rated satire about fraternity life at the University of Oregon, also was shot in Cottage Grove, this time in 1978.

• One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was shot mostly in Salem.  It was based on a book by Oregon novelist Ken Kesey.  The film won Oscars for Best Film, Best Actor and Best Actress.

• The Way West, shot in Oregon, won a reputation as one of the worst westerns ever made despite the fact that it starred Hollywood icons Kirk Douglas, Robert Mitchum and Richard Widmark.

• Clark Gable, the Hollywood legend, once lived in Portland and worked at Meier and Frank where he met his first wife.  Of course, he moved on to fame and fortune elsewhere.

• Keiko, the Orca whale, brought huge crowds to Newport after starring in the move “Free Willy,” even though, unfortunately, the film was not shot in Oregon.

This list does not include another film shot in and around Astoria where I once worked for the Daily Astorian newspaper.  It was the Goonies, which used locations on the coast, as well as in town.   The movie still appears frequently on publicly available cable channels when my daughter often calls me to say she is watching it again for who knows what number of times.

As Kerry Tymchuk wrote, “fascinating and extensive history of films and TV shows” being shot in Oregon “will have you craving for popcorn.”