The scene looks vaguely familiar but the details have all changed since this photo was taken in 1950. The view is south on SW Barbur Blvd. looking toward SW Hamilton at the next traffic signal.
(City of Portland Archives)
Tags: 99W, Blue Bell Chips, Oregon, Pagoda Restaurant, Portland, Signal Gas
October 30, 2012 at 5:56 am
I wish billboards looked like that now. Art Deco overload.
October 30, 2012 at 6:33 am
“The exotic lipo lounge”! What a name…
October 30, 2012 at 7:19 am
Li Po was a Chinese poet. There seem to be a bunch of other Chinese lounges around the country that use this name.
October 30, 2012 at 7:47 am
…and the Pagoda was recently done away with as well. Sad, but glad I got to go while it was still open
Funny that there would be a billboard for it here, going in the complete opposite direction on the opposite side of town…
October 30, 2012 at 8:01 am
I drive by here twice a day to and from work …not much has changed but agree with John Winn love the old billboard …have a menu from the 50′s for the Pagoda….love reading it from time to time.
October 30, 2012 at 8:06 am
Love the old Pagoda billboard!
October 30, 2012 at 8:58 am
Probably not a Lipo Lounge in the replacement building of the Pagoda, Hollywood Key Bank. How much longer for the Poor Richards building?
October 30, 2012 at 9:49 am
I noticed the Blue Bell potato chip truck. They used to be based in northeast.
October 30, 2012 at 11:42 am
Is this what used to be called Fulton Park area?
October 30, 2012 at 12:46 pm
Not Fulton Park, which is located further south, near where Barbur curves to the north toward town after passing by the Burlingame Fred Meyer. I believe this is part of the Corbett/Terwilliger/Lair Hill neighborhood.
October 30, 2012 at 8:55 pm
My dad always hated this signal! He’d shift gears, mumble something under his breath, my mother would remind him about his two sons in the back seat…and then he wouldn’t say another word until we got home! (Capitol Hill/Burlingame Park area…originally Falcon Park!)
Thanks for the smile, the laugh and the memory!
By the way…aren’t we about ready for an anniversary for this site?
October 31, 2012 at 8:49 pm
@Jim. I know just how your dad felt. When you missed this light with a loaded big truck it added 10 minutes to your run to the top of breeze hill because it was just steep enough you needed 1st double under to start out. If you made the light there is a false flat along here and you could pick up a gear and if you’re making 9 cents a mile 10 minutes is a big deal. At least it seemed that way at the time.
The Pagoda was probably feeling the competition from the Hi Hat and felt the need to remind folks they were going the wrong way
November 2, 2012 at 9:46 am
Love the Pagoda Billboard!
November 5, 2012 at 12:47 pm
I can think of quite a few spots where a “Prepare to Stop When Flashing” set up of this sort would be very useful. I can’t think of any existing ones here.
November 26, 2012 at 6:09 pm
Talk about deja-vu, I painted & maintained that bulliten board for a number of years for Ramsay Signs Inc. Our crew helped provide jobs in that end of the sign business. ( outdoor advertising) The Pagoda was a very nice restraurant in Portland’s Hollywood area.
I also designed the electric sign, called out the ceramic tile exterior
of the building. My associate in the Co. helped design the Bon-Sai
Plantings for the landscaping. The combination of the sign, matching decor on the building, and the landscaping won a first prize in the state , and 2nd in the national sign design contest. The Pagoda was a long time business in the Hollywood area. Food and service were superb. I will surely miss that place.
November 27, 2012 at 8:12 am
@John Rinehart: The Pagoda can be seen in this earlier VP post.