Oral history interview with Ron E. Henderson [Sound Recording 01]
- SR9243_T01S1
- Item
- 1980-10-27
Part of Drive-in Restaurants of Portland Oral History Project
Tape 1, Side 1. This oral history interview with Ron E. Henderson was conducted by Curtis Johnson on October 27, 1980, at Crossing Restaurant in Vancouver, Washington. The interview was conducted as part of the Drive-in Restaurants of Portland Oral History Project, a series of interviews that Johnson conducted about the history of Portland drive-ins, with a particular emphasis on Tik-Tok and Yaw's Top Notch. In this interview, Henderson discusses his experiences during high school in Portland, Oregon, in the 1960s, including going to drive-in restaurants and his participation in street racing. He describes the food, atmosphere, and clientele of the drive-in restaurants, including Yaw's Top Notch and the Tik-Tok. He talks about cruising on Broadway Street, places where street races were held, and dating. He discusses racial tensions among street racers, cars he owned, and reasons why he stopped frequenting drive-ins. He speaks about the decline of drive-in restaurants, his involvement with the Hot Rod Club, and his career as a mechanic and later with Coors Brewing Company. He closes the interview by talking about pranks he and his friends pulled at drive-ins and again describes some of the drive-ins in Portland.
Henderson, Ron E. (Ronald Edward), 1947-2009