Whoop, Whoop! Remembering Portland's Bud Clark

 

Oregonians of a certain generation know the significance of hearing someone go Whoop, Whoop!. It was the eccentric catchphrase of citizen Mayor Bud Clark. He passed away earlier this month, just a month after his 90th birthday. Portlanders all know the story of Bud Clark. The owner of the Goose Hollow Inn that took on the unlikely task of running against Mayor Frank Ivancie. No one was paying attention when they should have and Clark pulled out a shocking win with 54% of the vote in 1984. 

It shouldn't have been a surprise to anyone that Clark, as a community small business owner had become a community activist. He served on several local boards and helped revitalize the Goose Hollow neighborhood. Fearing that citizens were going to left with the same old leaders that were wasting chances to improve things for the city he made the unlikely decision to enter the race for Portland Mayor. 

 

Clark was described by a friend at his 50th birthday party in 1981 as "husband, father, friend, successful businessman, jaywalker, community leader, historian, philosopher, philanthropist, and flasher". That last one was in reference to the now-famous 'Expose Yourself to Art' poster that features him as a model exposing himself wearing a trench coat to a local Portland statue. His political opponents noted that it was his only claim to fame and that meant he was not a serious candidate. The Clark campaign turned around and issued buttons saying he was "SERIOUS!"(an example is above). 

The poster was made in the 1970s and kept getting more popular over the years. Here is the one in my collection that Bud Clark signed and inscribed to 'Art Lovers'.

 Clark only ran two campaigns for Portland Mayor and opted to not run for a third term in 1992. A variety of buttons were made for his two campaigns. The Rose became the symbol of his 1988 re-election effort. Here is an example of a photo button. 

The campaign produced, signs, stickers,shirts, and other items pictured below. 

 

Here is an example of a t-shirt you would have seen supporters wearing in 1988. Below is a photo of Clark wearing one along with some supporters holding lawn signs. Clark was also known for holding galas and parties that started at first to pay off his campaign debt but soon became fundraisers for charity. A variety of items exist from this events known as the Mayor's Ball. Oregon musician Billy Hults shares more on the details of the origins of the events here. When Vera Katz was elected, she opted not to continue the association with the events and the Mayor's office. Here are some items from the events. 

John Hamlin provided the image of this badge from the very first ball. 

a badge from ball number 7 and poster from ball number 8.

Bud Clark dived right into being mayor during his eight years leading the city. You can find a more comprehensive look at his administration in the obits published by The Oregonian, Willamette Week, and OPB. He brought with him a levity and change of attitude so desperately needed in government/politics regardless of the times. 

Oregon APIC Members Carl Fisher and John Silvertooth have items related to the Goose Hollow Inn in their collections. After serving as Mayor, Clark went back to serving up Reubens and beer at the Goose Hollow Inn for many years. It is still open and still in the family. Here are some Goose Hollow Inn- related items. 

I'm still not sure how Whoop, Whoop! came to be, but I sure know what image comes to mind when I hear someone say it. Do you have a Bud Clark related item we didn't show here? Feel free to send us a photo and we will add it.