I Don't Know What We're Yelling About

BurgundyFest celebrates the Anchorman legacy.

By AARON MESH

Step aside, Dude: There's a new movie tribute festival in town. It's BurgundyFest, the first event in the country dedicated to celebrating the 2004 comedy Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, which starred Will Ferrell as a pompous, mustachioed 1970s San Diego TV news reader. Bearing striking similarities to national Lebowski Fests across the country—including the requisite costume contest, and straight scotch in place of white Russians—this Saturday's BurgundyFest is the brainchild of two Salem men, Shad Barnes and Justin Labhart. We asked Barnes our burning questions.

WW: Are you saying that there's a party in your pants and that I'm invited?

Shad Barnes: It's more of an event than it is a "hang out and party" thing. We've got several things on the docket. We have a little game called the Baxter Punt—I don't know if you remember the movie very well, but Jack Black kicks his dog off a bridge. We have a jazz-flute solo. We're going to have a little singing of "Afternoon Delight."

What? You pooped in the refrigerator? And you ate the whole wheel of cheese?

I wish I had some exotic story involving gamma rays and meteors falling from the sky. The shining moment came when we went to the Lebowski Fest up in Seattle. We were enraptured. That's when we started cookin' on, "What's something we could do?" We love this movie Anchorman, we're real passionate about it. We've each seen it 25 or more times. And the whole thing kind of blossomed from there.

Why don't you go back to your home on Whore Island?

Basically, our promotion is, we get dressed up in the polyester. We've both grown these disgusting mustaches. I'm about a month and a half in on my little cookie duster right now. We just hit the downtown bars when they're busy on Saturday nights. It is unreal, the reception we get. This Saturday, I bet we had at least 250 people take a photo with us.  

GO: BurgundyFest, Bossanova Ballroom, 722 E Burnside St., 383-9797, burgundyfest.com. 8 pm Saturday, Aug. 27. $25. 21+. 


Headout Picks

THURSDAY Aug. 25

[COMEDY] MARIA BAMFORD
If you haven’t seen Maria Bamford live, know this: She is just about the funniest woman in America at present. Helium Comedy Club, 1510 SE 9th Ave., 888-643-8669, heliumcomedy.com. 8 pm. $20-$25. 21+.
[BEER] MACRO BREWFEST
O’Malley’s presents its second annual Macro Brewfest, celebrating the beers “that everyone drinks but is afraid to admit,” including Rainier, Oly and Blitz tall boys. O’Malley’s, 6535 SE Foster Road, 777-0495, omalleyspdx.com. 7 pm Aug. 25-27. Free. 21+.
[ART AND MUSIC]
DANIEL JOHNSTON
Quirky singer-songwriter Daniel Johnston caps off a monthlong exhibition of work from his forthcoming graphic novel, Space Ducks: An Infinite Comic Book of Musical Greatness, with a live performance at W+K. Wieden+Kennedy, 224 NW 13th Ave. 5-9 pm.
[HISTORY AND MUSIC] OREGON ROCKS EXHIBITION OPENING
The Oregon Historical Society’s tweely-named new exhibition Oregon Rocks: A History of Popular Music in Oregon kicks off with a genuinely cool show, promising local legends like Ural Thomas, the Kingsmen, Pierced Arrows and Quasi. Oregon Historical Society, 1200 SW Park Ave., 306-5270, ohs.org. 5:30-11 pm. $10. All ages.

FRIDAY Aug. 26

[FESTIVAL] FESTA ITALIANA
Now in its 20th year, Portland’s annual celebration of all things Italian features live music, food, wine, pizza tossing and grape stomping. Pioneer Courthouse Square, festa-italiana.org. 11 am-11 pm Aug. 25-27. Free. All ages.

SATURDAY Aug. 27

[SHOP] PDX COLLECTIVE SALE
Eleven schmancy local boutiques, including Isaac Hers, Radish Underground and Lizard Lounge, will be selling their wares cheap(er) in this end-of-season group sale. The Cleaners, 403 SW 10th Ave. 11 am-6 pm Saturday, noon-5 pm Sunday, Aug. 27-28.

SUNDAY Aug. 28

[FOOD] KRÄFTSKIVA CRAWFISH PARTY
House Spirits is throwing a traditional Swedish end-of-summer party in its parking lot, featuring the distillery's excellent aquavits alongside food from Chop Butchery, Broder and Viking Soul Food. House Distillery, 2025 SE 7th Ave., 235-3174, housespirits.com. 11 am-5 pm. Free. All ages.

WWeek 2015

Willamette Week’s reporting has concrete impacts that change laws, force action from civic leaders, and drive compromised politicians from public office. Support WW's journalism today.