Scoop: Gossip That Cranks It Like a Chainsaw.

PAL'S SHANTY
  1. CRUNKENSPIN: It looks like the dirty-drawered people of Portland are finally getting a drunken laundromat. As reported last week at wweek.com, owner Morgan Gary has applied for a liquor license for Spin Laundry at 740 N Fremont St., near North Mississippi Avenue, advertised as an “eco-friendly laundromat, bar & cafe” with washing machines that text you when your wash is  almost done. The tap list looks sincerely minimalist: a pair of brews. But that’s two more than usual. The buildout is under way, with an opening date set for this winter.
  1. TUBE FOUR: Looks like Tube (18 NW 3rd Ave.) will be getting yet another set of owners, its fourth since it opened 10 years ago as a shiny replica of the London Underground. The onetime punk-DJ dive will continue its transition into the Old Town Fun Zone as it’s taken over by new owners Eric Bowler and Karen Davanzo Bowler, who work for event-DJ procurers the Music Trust. The duct tape holding the place together is going away, however. Eric Bowler—who doubles as EDM spinner DJ Evil One—told WW: “The Tube’s current demographic is 21, 22. I’m 35, and a lot of my friends like to go out. We’ll make it nicer so a little older crowd feels comfortable.”
  1. PAL TO ALL: The Hollywood neighborhood’s oldest bar, Pal’s Shanty, has been closed since being damaged in a Nov. 15 fire. Now, chowder-loving regulars are working to collect funds for out-of-work staff. Though the owners plan to rebuild, it will probably take six months because of the extent of the damage. A large slate of benefit auctions runs through Dec. 2, and donations are being accepted through U.S. Bank or online at gofundme.com. There’s more information at facebook.com/pals.shanty.
  1. LAUGH TRACK: Portland’s top five standup comics, as determined by a poll of the city’s comedy community, played to a capacity crowd at the Alhambra Theatre on Nov. 24. A highlight of the show was No. 1 comic Amy Miller first buttering up and then heckling a family who named their child Stellen. “That’s not even a real name,” she said. “That’s just two names mushed together.”

WWeek 2015

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