Front Street Weekly; 316

[Male Narrator]The following is an encore presentation of a recent edition of Front Street Weekly. [Thunder storm sounds fade into intro music] [Intro music] [Female Narrator]Oregon Public Broadcasting presents Front Street Weekly, a television magazine featuring news and arts coverage from an Oregon perspective with Gwyneth Gamble and Jim Swenson. [transition music] Good evening, I'm Gwyneth Gamble. Welcome to Front Street Weekly.

I'm Jim Swenson and here's a preview of some of tonight's stories: convenience store robberies are almost a daily occurrence in Oregon. Tonight we'll examine the holes in the crime prevention programs designed to protect the clerks. [Interviewee] They're paying people $3.35 an hour to get their heads blown off. [Gwyneth Gamble] And we'll see how Japanese business investments are being used to help bolster Oregon's lagging economy. [Jim Swenson] Often its victims can't relate to the world, they're easily frustrated and may throw wild tantrums. Autism is a rare neurological disorder which has been misunderstood in the past but things are changing. [Interviewee] It took a long time for me to realize that these people were trying to give me a hand. [banging in background] [Gwyneth Gamble] Throughout the Northwest interest is growing in traditional African dance. We'll have an inside look at the Northwest African American Ballet in rehearsal, in the classroom, and in performance. [Male Interviewee] Hi, excuse me and we just slip through here. [laughing] Thanks. Excuse me. [laughing] Pardon me. [laughing] [Jim Swenson] And finally correspondent Steve Amen takes his life into his own hands to investigate a

bridal fair. [Gwyneth Gamble] Convenience stores have always been a popular target for robbers. As a result, several of the stores have developed crime prevention programs but the programs are far from complete, and this has some clerks constantly looking over their shoulders. [cash register sounds] From early morning until late at night, Convenience Stores like 7-Eleven, Dairy Mart, and Plaid Pantry provide those of us on the go with everything from a microwaved sandwich to the latest edition of TIME magazine all in one stop. Late night markets have sprung up all over our cities. But there's a hidden cost to the service. What's convenient for us, is also convenient for the criminals and that makes the clerks who work here potential targets for armed robbery and even murder. [banging in background] Dave Rickettson was one of those targets. The former 7-Eleven clerk was the victim of one of 183 convenience store robberies last year.

That's 183 robberies in Portland alone. [Dave Rickettson] I'd never felt terror until that moment. I thought I was going to die, I really did, because they stayed so long in the store. And then it is really funny we always had customers, steady stream during the night. And that particular night nobody came in. After being robbed twice I believe- th- that that they are leaving it a little bit open, a little bit too late. That you're just asking for trouble on leaving the stores open that late or the gas stations. It- There's nobody there really, you know, nobody around. If something were to happen to you, you'd be out a chance of a some customer came in to find you. [Gwyneth Gamble] Convenience store managers and clerks are having a hard time agreeing on solutions to robbery problems. Closing the stores earlier would mean a substantial loss of profits for multimillion dollar companies like Plaid Pantry and 7-Eleven Southwind

Corporation, and some managers don't believe it would do any good. [Male] All we can do is continue to keep moving steps toward making it less attractive. [Gwyneth Gable] Instead of closing the stores earlier, this is how many convenience stores are combating crime. Films like this one are used as tools to train the clerks on how to prevent robberies. South Incorporation pioneered this type of crime prevention program and many other convenience store chains have followed suit. Aside from training the clerks, the plan includes making the stores less attractive to robbers by keeping them well lit and their windows free of clutter. [Male] Well the first thing we do is we encourage the employee, we tell them not to resist whatever, whenever they're held up to give them money and not argue. We also keep our tills down, we have double safes in all of our stores where the money is dropped. On a regular basis like the bills I saw that the robberies of our stores average about 40 dollars. Both Piacentini and the

Southland Corporation say the plan is working. But there still are problems. For one thing, the crime prevention programs are by no means complete. Sometimes consisting of only a few words of advice to new clerks. [Male] They don't tell you exactly which stores are being held up or anything. They just, you know, they go over in case you are held up. But they don't really go into it that much. [Male] The only thing that was mentioned to me it was this is a rough store so be on your toes. But, he says we haven't been robbed in three or four years so I wouldn't worry about it. [Gwyneth Gable] It turned out former Portland 7-Eleven clerk Dave Ricketson did have something to worry about. He was held up at knifepoint last year while working the graveyard shift. The robbers, who still remain at large, took the store's cash register but left Ricketson unharmed. Another problem, since Ricketson worked for a 7-Eleven store that is independently owned, his employer was not required to train him. Southwind Corporation enforces the crime prevention program in every store it

operates. However, company officials say they can only strongly recommend the independent contractors train their clerks. And another problem, most convenience stores do not require more than one clerk to be on duty during the late night shifts. Field producer Beth Willon was told by former clerks that they feel more than one clerk is essential in discouraging potential robbers. [Male] I would have felt better with another person there, yes. In case something did happen, you know you either- I or the other person got shot, at least there would be someone there to help them out, after the person left. [Male] I think it should be made mandatory for any convenience store that is going to be open 24 hours to have at least two clerks on duty from nightfall to daybreak. For the wages they pay, they can afford to do that. They're paying people $3.35 to get their heads blown off. [Male] We don't do that too much because that's expensive, you know you we do if the store

warrants it. Our stores are pretty busy at night so most people who will rob a store, will not rob a store if there's other customers in the store. [Gwyneth Gamble] But in several cases clerks have been held up at gunpoint with customers at hand. The police say there is more that can be done to discourage dangerous criminals. Lieutenant Richard Golden says continual electronic surveillance is the missing link in many of the crime prevention programs. [Richard Golden] If you have a recording device such as a video or a camera system that's activated all the time, then the clerk doesn't have to do something that may be different than what they normally do in order to activate the system. Banks have cameras out at all times and banks have armed guards and that doesn't stop bank robberies Oregon has highest in the nation and it doesn't do much good to have all of these devices to stop it if they catch the person and they're out a week later and they can go out to rob another store and that's what the problem is. [Gwyneth Gamble] Case in point: the 1982 Dairy Mart murder case in Springfield Oregon.

Thirty-six-year-old store clerk, Karen Carnes, was murdered by Donnie Freeman who at the time, was on probation. [Male] Oh there's no doubt in our mind that Donny Freeman was looking for the opportunity to either seriously injure somebody or kill them because it was not his first episode with the police and he had been armed in the past with stabbing devices. [Gwyneth Gamble] Freeman was accompanied by his brother, Jack, and each are serving minimum sentences of 20 years in the Oregon State Penitentiary. After admitting to the murder the Freeman brothers reenacted their crime on camera for the Springfield Police. [Male 1] How do you open this thing? [Inaudible recording] [inaudible recording] [Male 2] You break it open. [recoding continues] Hurry up! Jack, grab the money in the till.

Alright. Nineteen-year-old Freeman brutally murdered Carnes after she had given him the money from the till. The police believe Carnes may have unwittingly triggered the murder by not following the orders of Freeman, that is to stay in a kneeling position. [inaudible] lay down on your face. Hurry up! [inaudible] [inaudible] like this and she started to stand up. [inaudible] do that; you turn around like this. You start to put your head up like that. And then you're standing up [inaudible] Come on, Jack, that's [inaudible] Let's get the hell out of here. Let's go. [Gwyneth Gamble] It is cases like this, that have made the police advocates of intense clerk training. [Male] Throughout the investigation we've always felt that if Karen had stayed kneeling she may have lived. [Gwyneth Gamble] Murder cases like this one are highly

publicized, along with convenience store rapes and robberies. But this has not affected most job searchers. Even some clerks who have been robbed don't quit. They know jobs are a scarce commodity in Oregon. [Male] Somebody mentioned it to me today when I mentioned that I was going to go and apply for the job and no because I think that most of the experiences that I've heard of people that have been robbed that usually they come in and they say give me all your money and you give them money and they leave. [Male] Well I really need the money at the time and I was waiting to go to basics so I needed some type of job. I didn't figure that I would be held up again. I figured out that was my first and only time of getting held up and I made it through that so I didn't figure lightning would strike twice. And, firstly my wife does not work and I was the only income at that time, still am. So I felt as though I had to go back to work. I didn't really want to go back to work.

And I was looking over my shoulder the next to months after the robbery. [Gwenyth Gamble] Local Southwind Corporation officials refused to be interviewed on camera but the company did send us some statistical information. Southwind claims robberies decrease nationally by 55 percent since the crime prevention program was implemented in 1976. But to many store managers, the crime rate is still at a dangerous level. [Male] We still have robberies. We have quite a few robberies; we have quite a few stores having more than one robberies, one too many, but the number of stores we have we probably average a robbery per-store per year. So yes, its been a problem and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. [Gwenyth Gamble] The solution they say is a state law mandating long term jail sentences. If someone uses a dangerous weapon or causes bodily harm. [Male] If someone is going to take a chance and rob you for 40 dollars and you know again of course if they're going to rob you for

$40 you know they get caught, they don't go to jail; they're not losing much anyway. I personally wouldn't want anybody that I loved or cared about working in a convenience market. You know- because I think there is a lot of danger there and help is not readily available. [Gwenyth Gamble] Some federal officials believe that one reason Oregon's bank robbery rate is increased is because convenience stores have so little money in their cash registers. So next week Front Street we'll examine the reasons behind Oregon's high number of bank robberies. [Jim Swenson] American companies and investors are accustomed to being number one in the world market but today they're strong a new trade competition from industrial West Germany and Japan. The nations all over the world are going to the oil rich Middle East countries and to Japan for investment money. Even the U.S. is looking for foreign investors to provide capital for manufacturing plants and real estate development. Money which will mean more jobs for Americans and a boost for our economy. But what does this mean to Oregon?

Rhonda Barton narrates this report. [speaking Japanese] [transition music] [speaking Japanese] [speaking Japanese] [Rhonda Barton] This coming fall, a possible 20 million TV viewers in Japan maybe following the adventures of a Japanese family trying to adjust to life in Oregon. Japanese TV writer Mitsuo Kurotsuchi spent a couple of months last fall in Oregon, exploring possible filming sites and developing script ideas. Why set the drama in Oregon rather than San Francisco or say Seattle? [Mitsuo Kurotsuchi] Japanese people they like beautiful nature but we now in Japan we haven't beautiful nature. We haven't -Not so much. For example, yes some praise, we have a beautiful place. But do you know Japan is a very small country and that

Too many people. [laughs] and usually, we are going to some place, beautiful nature- has beautiful nature. And of course many Japanese people is coming here because Oregon is very beautiful. [Male] Being a bit provincial, being from Oregon, it's it's hard to imagine until you get over there the crowds, the number of people, the amount of congestion, everything else that goes on in major far eastern cities Hong Kong or Tokyo. It is a big change to come to the state of Oregon from that type of community and nature just I mean it it really does overwhelm a lot of the Japanese. [Rhonda Barton] It's no surprise that our environment turns out to be one of Oregon's strong selling points for tourists. But it's also a factor when we try to encourage Japanese business to come and bring its newest export; capital investments to bolster Oregon's lagging

economy. [Male] Well I think what's happened is that the economy of Japan has been very successful first of all so that there is excess capital. It can look for homes elsewhere. Which is the same thing that this country experienced over the last 100 years probably. Traditionally, Oregon has been what they call a capital poor state. The last couple of years things have been so depressed, there hasn't been a lot of need for capital so that we probably haven't been aggressive in seeking it last year or the year before. But I think in anticipating what's going to come and hopefully, getting back to the type of growth rates we had, we are going to need new capital. We're going to have to be able to attract it from outside [inaudible]. [Rhonda Barton] Half of Oregon 6 billion dollars of international trade is with Japan. Another 30 percent is trade with other Pacific Rim countries. But when we went looking for Japanese capital investments in business in real estate, we found only three projects, all in the Portland area. One is the Palm Co. company, a Japanese plant in the river

gate industrial area. At the plant, palm oil from Malaysia is refined into cooking oil. It's used extensively in Eastern Oregon, Washington and Idaho for making frozen french fries. Coconut oil from the Philippines is also converted into cooking oil and for use in soap products and artificial creamers. Another Japanese business is four year old Columbia grain, a subsidiary of Marubeni America. It's one of eight grain export companies on the lower Columbia River. The company employs around 100 people, all Americans in their business office at their Portland dock and a three grain elevators in Washington and Montana. They export between 70 and 80 billion bushels of grain all over the world with roughly half going to Japan. The Pakwest bancorp building may appear to be just another office a retail structure in a growing downtown of office buildings. But there is a difference. The Pakwest building is financed by long term lower grade investment capital from

Japan. [Male] This actually is the first major development project that the government of Japan has given permission for a life insurance company to invest in. You would've assumed that that would be in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles. But instead Portland received that favorable announcement. Portland's downtown continues to be at the center of the whole geographic region and you have growth equally in all directions. Japanese understood that and understood the implications of that for the stable property values in the downtown area. They- that's the type of city they are, you know, they're accustomed to in their own country. Three investments is a small commitment to the Oregon economy, when Japanese assets in the U.S. now are estimated at 70 billion dollars one fourth of the manufacturing plants financed by Japanese money are located in California. Why not in Oregon? The people we talked to said that although Portland is well known as a Trade Center, Oregon is little known as an area for investment.

To help correct this, the 1983 Oregon Legislature allocated about a quarter million dollars to set up an Oregon trade office somewhere in the Far East, possibly in Tokyo establishing that overseas trade office is a very important first step to increase our visibility in the Far East. 21 other states have such trade offices. They essentially serve as your own state's little embassy over there. [Rhonda Barton] Competition is stiff for foreign investments and Oregon's unitary tax does nothing to help us lure investors. This tax is levied by the state on the total earnings of multinational corporations, not just on the earnings of their Oregon subsidiaries. Oregon is one of only 12 states that has a unitary tax. [Male] States are looking for things they can play off against another state. So any state that doesn't have a unitary tax is out shouting it to the foreign investors and shouting it to multinational corporations. One of the major things that we're doing over the interim, the trade committee is doing, is studying the unitary

tax. How far and how far the state of Oregon ought to go to cut back on its present approach. So I see coming out of that study, a- perhaps a major redefinition of the state's, state's role and in the unitary tax area. But it is an issue. I think it's an issue in terms of how they feel we're going to treat those type of corporations in the long run ,more than the dollar number in the bottom line this year. They're just worried about what we could do with it. [Rhonda Barton] Oregonian's are well acquainted with things Japanese and trade and cultural exchanges. Now Japanese officials say that setting up a trade office in the Far East and taking a hard look at the unitary tax will put Oregon in a much better position to profit from Japanese investments. In time investment relationships with Japan may become as traditional as the import export trade which we've developed over a long period of time. [Jim Swenson] Japanese officials met with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Donald Regan, last week to express their

concern on the unitary tax. The secretary will make some recommendations on the issue to President Reagan later this month. Also the Oregon Department of Economic Development plans to meet the State Emergency Board in the next two months to recommend a location for the new Far East State Trade Office. [Gwenyth Gamble] Autism. It's a relatively rare neurological disorder. Doctors don't know its cause but researchers suspect an organic basis. There is no cure. Autism distorts its victim's sense of reality and often times, makes communication with others impossible. Reporter Trish ?Nyworth? narrates this report. [Tim's Mother] When Tim was a couple years old, we knew something wasn't right and so we took him to our family doctor and he said "Can I grow out of it?" but by the time he was four, we had him seen by the best doctors in the state, and they said he was severely retarded and that we should put him in an institution. And that's not what we wanted so we just

started the long battle trying to find placements for him. Trying to find services for him. [Trish Nyworth] Meet the Croak family. Their eldest son Tim has Autism, a neurological disorder that isolates its victim from the rest of the world. Autism makes speech difficult, often impossible. Most autistic individuals don't relate well to others. Typically, they avoid eye contact, have trouble following directions and perform stereotyped behavior, such as rocking back and forth. Autistic people often become frustrated and throw wild tantrums that may last for hours. Even though much research has been done, there is still no known cause or cure for autism. And although the future appears to be hopeful, at least here in Oregon, parents, researchers and others say there is still a lack of programs to help these people. [Tim's Mother] This is Tim's last year of high school. And, hopefully, he'll be able to get into an activity center. But, there are hundreds of people

sitting at home waiting to get into an activity center or a group home and after everything else, there's no money for these programs. [Trish Nyworth] Tim's case is similar to many. His family has always found it difficult to get in the proper services. Like many autistic children, he was first diagnosed as having some other handicap not autism. Years later the Croaks learned that his doctors had suspected autism but hadn't told the parents because they felt it was hopeless. At one point, Tim's parents were told they must have rejected Tim and that this caused his autism. They were accused of being, what is called, refrigerator parents. [Tim's mother] Ted and I had to go through therapy classes to see how we did this to our son. I know a lot of people really felt guilty from this. I don't think I've ever had that feeling because I knew that I really love this kid and I wasn't a refrigerator mother. [Trish Nyworth] The Croaks say they are just two of thousands of parents who had to endure further suffering

because their children's condition was blamed on their lack of love and affection. Today, there are more than 100 theories about autism's cause but the refrigerator mother theory has been rejected by most professionals. [Male] I think the overwhelming majority of people who are doing work in the field now see very strongly, suggest an organic cause and there are pretty good research data now to support the idea that parents who are parents of autistic children are no different from the general population, so the information that I have would strongly debate that there is any support for the psychogenic theory. [Trish Nyworth] Even so that offers little help for people like the Croaks who are now faced with the possibility that they may not find services for Tim once he is out of school. Authorities say there are many reasons why Tim and other autistic people find it difficult to get help. Many times, it's because there's been confusion about what

autism is. [Male] It's easy to confuse autism with other disabilities, espe[cially the severely autistic individual looks similar in many ways to the severely mentally retarded individual. Another is that there are several theories of what causes autism and these theories have led to different beliefs of what autism is and so there is confusion there too. [Trish Nyworth] Still the situation isn't hopeless. Doctors and educators say that teaching these children in special programs is the treatment of choice. Some authorities say that many of the programs needed by this population haven't been developed because very few autistic individuals have been identified. And so there has been no perceived need. [Female expert] Many of the medical people that see these children. have hesitated to identify the child as artistic because the myths are that you can't do anything about it. And so why tell a parent that they have an autistic child if it's hopeless? Well so if the child doesn't get

identified somewhere then the schools say we don't have any so we don't have to develop programs. And so then you get a cycle going. The school doesn't have programs so then the medical community doesn't want to identify and they feed on each other. [Trish Nyworth] According to World statistics for the incidence of autism there should be over thirteen hundred people under 21 in Oregon with the disorder. At this time, only 52 individuals have been identified. State education officials say that probably all autistic school age children are being served in some sort of special education program. But the bulk of these students are in programs for the mentally retarded. ?Crewg? and others say these programs might not be doing autistic individuals much good. [Male expert] Essentially autistic individuals, especially the more severely autistic do not learn very well under typical teaching strategies for other handicapping conditions. And a result has been that nine out of 10 autistic individuals as adults are in institutions.

The long term data isn't in but it looks like a much higher percentage of autistic children who go through appropriate community based programs will be able to be maintained in the community as adults. [Trish Nyworth] Tim's parents say they faced many problems trying to find the right services. Tim has been enrolled in over 30 different programs for the handicapped. He was kicked out of many of these. He just didn't fit in. Soon Tim will no longer be eligible for services provided by the public school system. He will join hundreds of other people on a two to three year waiting list and hope that he can get into a suitable program. Although the future doesn't look very encouraging for Tim right now, A few autistic individuals have gotten appropriate help and are now making it in society like Mike Sanders. As a child, Mike went through several programs, both in public and private schools. School was difficult for him but his family and teachers stuck by him and he graduated from high school. Now he has his own apartment and a

full time job as a mail clerk. [Mike Sanders] Difficult to work with at first and it took a long time for me to realize that these people were trying to give me a hand. [inaudible] getting that into my head. And once I realize that, then, I begin trying to do more on my own. [Trish Nyworth] Professionals say that not all autistic people can hope to function at the level that Mike does. Researchers estimate that only 5 to 10 percent of the population can make it in society. But with the proper training and education starting at an early age, they predict that 50 to 60 percent could live their lives with a minimal amount of help in a sheltered workshop or group home setting. As for now, professionals say most autistic individuals aren't getting that special

training they need and without it about 90 percent of them will end up as autistic adults in institutions. In Oregon some help may be on the way thanks to new legislation. 1984 will be the first year that the Oregon State Department of Ed has provided services on a statewide basis to children with autism. Right now, a group of people are working on what those services will look like, the eligibility criterion for children entering and accepting those services, the type of program needs that those children will have and how we can best provide the whole array of services that those kids need. ?Crewg? and others say that most autistic individuals have lacked the proper skills and social behavior to make them wanted participants in community based programs because they are often so difficult to work with and because these facilities often lack properly trained instructors for autistic

people, professionals say that autistic individuals tend to be passed by for placement in these facilities. With enactment of the state wide plan and the dissemination of new information about autism and its treatment Brazeau, ?Crewg? and others say there is some new hope that more autistic people will be able to function, both on their own and in community based programs. And there's also hope that fewer of these individuals will end up spending their adult lives in institutions. If you are interested in learning more about autism, call the Autism Council of Oregon a support group for parents of autistic children. Their number is 7 6 1 9 2 9 1. Jim I was really glad to hear Dr. Stubbs say that the refrigeration mother theory they've thrown out and that the guilt is taken away from parents. It's organic. Fine but you know one of the things that impressed me was the statistic that only 52 cases have been diagnosed as autism in Oregon when there should be according to National projection something like 11 hundred which means 95 percent of cases aren't being dealt with as

autism. Well at least we're making some strides. [music] A year ago Front Street reported on the popularity of bingo as a social game and as a wide open ground for professional gamblers. Well since then there have been a couple of busts by police but the ground is still fertile for those who are clever. Here's some of that earlier report and an update. [transition music] Far from the sedate social game amongst a few grandmothers, bingo today is a booming business in Oregon. Somewhere between 10 and 25 thousand

people are playing bingo for bucks at more than 300 games around the state. In the past two years, the popularity has doubled according to Bob Sonato, a man who sells supplies to bingo operators. It's a sophisticated game, more professional and the prize money is good in some of these games. You can walk away with a thousand, two thousand dollars you know and that's a lot of money and some of the people are unemployed now they're, instead of oh I guess they used to hang around the tavern, well they will sit there and play bingo and they'll donate to the cause and on top of that, they walk away with some of the money. So it's a game of chance. I17 Out on the streets, banners, billboards, marquees and neon signs proclaim the locations where one may engage in illegal gambling which Bingo has become. In newspapers, advertisements compete side by side to entice players with

promises of free steaks, home appliances, automobiles, expense paid trips to casinos and cash jackpots in the thousands of dollars. G57. 5-7 Make no doubt about it, Bingo is big business. In Washington state, where bingo is strictly regulated and taxed, Bingo players laid out between 88 and 90 million dollars last year. In Oregon, there is no regulation, but the estimates run up to 60 million, something more than just a small social game for grandmas. What is happening is people are stealing the cards out of the bingo halls; taking them home and reconstructing them by tearing them open; then on the inside they will go ahead and put a wheel on each corner. If you can- I don't know if you can see that or not- but, they can spin those wheels to whatever number they want. They close it back up, with some type of a tape that will keep

it down; then they're able to take a pencil and slide the number that they want up in the corner by just spinning with the pencil. So that way, they are able to call a bingo. This green card is your biggest paying card. They do have some leads on someone in the Tacoma area that is manufacturing the green cards and selling them for 250 dollars a piece. Which one night would pay for itself, if a person really knew how to use them and used them properly. G57. 5-7 It's easy enough to get a Bingo game going in Oregon. The state law passed in 1977 allows almost any nonprofit, charitable, religious, educational or fraternal organization to conduct bingo games. All that's required is a tax exempt certification from the IRS which is then filed with the state corporation commission in Salem. Some 462 such authorizations are currently on file. They include

67 Catholic churches, several other denominations including a Buddhist temple, 51 American Legion posts ,22 Eagle Aires, thirty eight Elks lodges, 22 moose, eight Lions and 15 Odd Fellows organizations. There are also an assortment of social service agencies, neighborhood associations, youth groups, a rabbit breeders club, a CB radio club, a mobile home park, labor unions and even a group at the Port of Portland. Obviously the IRS is quite lenient in its judgment as to what constitutes a tax exempt organization and the state doesn't look any further beyond the IRS determination. [transition music] Oregon's hands-off bingo law was intended to allow as many tax exempt organizations as

possible to take advantage of bingo as a source of recreation and income. And except for a few, the groups that have cashed in on the bingo boom do support good intentioned charitable programs of service to the community. [background noise] We have approximately four to five hundred boys in our hockey program from ages 4 years old up to 19 years old. The money that is made at bingo pays for equipment, for boys that are unable to buy their own equipment. It also pays for the rental of the ice time. We pay the referees. We have referees to pay. So this is where the most of our money goes [inaudible]. G50 5-0. Of growing concern to the legitimate organizations who are conducting bingo games are those who are taking advantage of Oregon law by setting up commercial bingo operations where the profits go to undetermined causes. No one in Oregon audits bingo

operations and forming a tax exempt church is as easy as mailing a letter. Well as you know anyone can send away and get a Universal Life Church or some other church down in California or Texas and for $15 or a bishop for maybe $50- you can be a bishop. So then- now you incorporate yourself and you don't even have to have a church or meetings, there's no doctrine. In fact now you can get a guru license for $15 from the Universal Life Church, same company. But that's legal in Oregon and therefore there are a lot of [inaudible] going on in Oregon where. The people hand out a few dollars to some cause- it's a good cause they give it to but they pocket the majority of the money. And there's nothing you can do about that.

According to bingo insiders one such operation is the Church of Conceptual Truth in Southeast Portland. There are other operations like this. Here, the church is the bingo parlor, a former supper club. They offer big prize money as inducements to attract players from other games. Front Street cameras were barred from filming the games which five nights a week, may draw upwards of 400 people, who spend between 10 and 40 dollars an evening. The house take can range from 4000 to 8000 dollars a night. Maybe more. The house payout is considerably less. Where does the money go? Does it go to charitable purposes? Under Oregon law, there's no way to find out. Dr. Martin Girdler, pastor of the Church of Conceptual Truth, refused to be interviewed by Front Street to discuss these questions. Shortly after our reports, the Oregonian published its investigation which was done with local police. It revealed among other things that the Church of Conceptual Truth was in fact a front for a multimillion dollar gambling operation. And Reverend Girdler and his partner Alex

Manor were in fact Nevada gamblers. And that money was being funneled from the operation to a millionaire in California also of known gambling association. The state of Oregon and Multnomah County sued the reverend and his partner and their wives and recovered some three hundred thousand dollars in forfeited winnings. The two were given two years of probation and last surfaced in California when they were denied a gambling license when they tried to purchase a casino in Santa Cruz. California officials took those actions after they had heard of the pair's experience in Oregon but you can't keep a good game down and a year after the Church of Conceptual Truth operation was shut down another bingo operation was underway in the same establishment only to be closed down shortly by police. [inaudible] the Oregon Legislature last session did pass a bill that would have created a state gambling commission that would regulate bingo and other games but it was vetoed by the governor so basically bingo is still unregulated, unaudited and very susceptible to the fast buck operators who try to cloak themselves in the name of some well-intentioned organization.

Well in one of those well-intentioned organizations that you mention- are you actually didn't mention by name in your story is the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Portland Oregon which I understand had a- they- didn't they run a bingo game? That was the game that I referred to and as a matter of fact they were taken advantage of by a couple of bingo operators. They got very little money out of the deal themselves. They got a bad reputation out of it and their fundraising efforts have been severely damaged. That's really unfair because they count on going to the public for monies and when they're taken advantage of as you say their fund raising efforts for a good organization are severely hurt. That was the case here for sure. They need to be more careful I guess. The Northwest African American Ballet is the only traditional dance company of its kind in the northwest. The dances come from Mali, Guinea and Senegal in West Africa. But the dancers live, work and perform here in Oregon. Ruby Burns is a teacher of Afro Caribbean dance styles and she's taught in Portland for several years. Michelle Burch is the youngest member of the Northwest Afro American Ballet Company. And in our next story we'll meet both of these dancers along with the leader of the group Bruce Smith.

OK the step- the step before that. [counts steps] Ballet means a dance that tells a story and that's what we do- you know- we do dances that tell a story. [humming tune] Right, left, front. Right, left, front. Right, left, front. Right, Left, front. Right, left, front. Right, left, front. Right, left, front. Thank you. Right, left, front. [humming steps] Let's just do it now with the drums. [drums play] See I'm originally from Portland and there's never been a solid cultural African thing that you know people can relate to. People are really starving for

roots here. We try to show the richness of our culture. Periodically Smith travels to New York City to study dance styles that can't be found anywhere in the northwest. New York is just a stop short of Africa. There are at least 8 traditional companies in New York- at least and maybe a lot more. And there's lots of traditional dance classes there, so I go and take classes. In summer of '81, Smith spent a month researching dance and drumming in five regions of Senegal in West Africa. When I was in Africa I was with the drummers a lot so a lot of my learning of dances happened as I played for the dances and watched the movements. [drums play] Smith brings the traditional dances that he learned in New York and Africa to the members of the troupe. The

youngest, Michelle Birch, is an eighth grader at Harriet Tubman Middle School in Portland. As long as she maintains a good grade point average at Tubman, she can take dance classes at Jefferson High School as part of the magnet program there that draws in students from around the city. Michelle attends class at Jefferson every day and hopes to make a career in dance. [inaudible] [inaudible background conversation] [music plays] For Michelle Birch, as the youngest member of the Northwest African American Ballet, Bruce Smith is someone to look up to and learn from. He's help me go into different fields of dance- you know instead of all tap and jazz and ballet and he's help me go into a different field of dance. OK- let's start from here. and one and two and three. Then you two go back. Okay

Okay, here we go. and five, six, seven, eight [music plays] Most of it, it originators for Africa. We put our own feeling into the movement. but we we do the steps the way that he teaches us. [music plays] I feel like it's a big part of my culture. The boot dance originated in South Africa. The brothers had worked in the mines in South Africa and They do a lot of traditional boot dancing there by wearing those real high knee boots. And as they come out of the mines, you know, they started this- this cadence and a lot of slapping hands, slapping thighs, slapping their ankles and the hand jibe back in the '60s came from- from the boot dance. What I did was,

used for women and I used the veils around the ankles of the dancers. So you could still- you can get the same sense of rhythm by hearing those bells. We put the high pitch on the right leg and a low pitch on the left leg and you get a nice sense of rhythm with that. [bells jingle] Okay, hold it, hold it... All right. In January, Bruce Smith and Ballet member Ruby Burns conducted a two week intensive workshop at Reed College. Along with its performances, the group gives classes and workshops which help introduce African dance to a wide and receptive audience in the northwest. [drums play] I think that in terms of dance forms and techniques that

African dance is probably one that is most accessible to a large number of people. It asks you to incorporate your whole life experience and that helps people to be able to do the movements because the movements are tied to your daily life and the way you are in this world. It frees you. It asks you to really look inside yourself and bring your own self into the dance that a lot of times other dance forms don't do. I think that it- It makes them walk taller, makes them feel stronger, makes them feel more confident about their lives. It's just so gutsy- you know. You really just want to get out there and dance. It works different muscles and it also works a different sense of movement, I think. Well after I saw the Northwest African American Ballet performance, I knew that that was the form I wanted to take because it fills my soul to center. It's the most satisfying dance form that I have experienced. I found out about Ruby from- through some other dancers and you're able to start at any level with her because she works with you individually. And the reason she is great to work with is because she just sends so much energy through her body when she moves across the floor; you want to dance for her and the drums help a lot [drums play] changes the way that they perceive other cultures which is really important because the true way to universal peace is through the understanding of different cultures. And I think that is a very important aspect of African dance. Along with Israel ?Ano?, from Ghana, drummers Bruce Smith and ?Katon? keep pace with the

dancers at the 1983 KBOO World Music Festival. In African dance, there really isn't a separation of music and dance. For every dance, there is a rhythm and there's music and throughout African culture, the drummers are very important, esteemed group of musicians. [drums play] We've had people dancing in the aisles, wanting to come on stage. We generate a lot of excitement. In the future, there will be a lot more commitments, of course. Right now, we're just- we're just scratching the surface and I'm giving them a taste of what's to come. Just a taste. [cheering in background] The group is performing tomorrow evening at Lewis and Clark College. The 8:00 p.m. performance, part of the State of the Art series there, is in Evans auditorium and the group will also perform at Oregon State

University in May. Jim I saw them at Reed College during ?Padea? in January and they really are fantastic. It's an incredible dance experience. Well I was going to say I hope these places have got strong dance floors to support the performance. No I was- I was surprised at the- at the diversity of people who were involved in that and it looks like a good project. Well the one Reed student who said it filled her so soul, probably the best way of putting it. It's very nice. Well speaking of traditions, our resident critic Steve Amon has a report on one of the biggest, right Steve. Right you are Jim. Did you know that Oregon averages over 20,000 marriages a year, nationwide. There's over two and a half million. That's a lot of I dos. And as if that isn't bad enough, someone out there is devised a new ritual to capitalize on the blessed event. Who is the bride to be? Are you the bride to be? Oh my God, Annie, you're going to get married? Well, don't look so [inaudible] I don't want to get organized.

And just what do these ladies want that brings them out in droves. [music plays] [music plays] [music plays] [music plays] The wedding. Now at least from my vantage point, the only thing more depressing than getting married is all the preparation it takes to tie the proverbial knot. But as you can see from the size of this crowd, there are a lot of people who don't feel that way. And one weekend alone over 4000 turned out in Portland to talk about the wedding and what a glorious exciting adventure it is. Good morning everybody and I mean it this time. Welcome to the 1984 KOIN tv bridal fair. I'm Eric Schmidt... Now the first phase of the fair featured a panel discussion of experts and they answered many of the questions I'm sure we all have on our minds. You know like can I get married on top of a

mountain if I'm a Catholic and why can't the groom wear cutoffs? But what I particularly liked was the fact that one of the experts was an insurance agent. The way I try to approach life insurance with a young couple is first of, what can you afford and general you need the most life insurance plan. What could be an uglier experience than an insurance agent armed with a microphone in front of a captive audience. Well once the discussion was over I found out. Excuse me; pardon me Which way are you trying to go? We're not sure. So why the mob action. What's worse than a thousand women at a big sale? Thousand women competing for free gifts that's what. And when the winner was announced, well see for yourself. That's me. Oh I don't believe it. That's the one I wanted! This is more than the honeymoon trip, more than the PSA, more than anything. Oh, this will be so terrific! I can't believe it. Oh, that's great. The more I talk; the more I'm going to cry- better be careful. Yes, excitement was running rampant at the old bridal fair and why shouldn't it? Just take a look at some of these great

exhibits. The latest in vacuum cleaners. Something that everybody has to have; they may not like to use it but they have to have it. Too tame for you? How about a demonstration on the newest arcade game, watching pasta grow. Still not enough? Well the truly brave heart could face a gang of insurance experts. We work a lot with young marrieds. We work a lot with anybody. Discriminating isn't he? But one of the most popular exhibits wasn't the Eurekas or the insurance agents or the Rings. Why, it wasn't even the free marriage vows. It was a photographer who was busy snapping away free official bridal fare photos. There you go. A little of a bit of tilt on the head like that; bring the chin down a little bit; okay, nice little smile. Now there's a natural look and pose for you. Right. Thanks a lot. Ah, what can compare to the wedding photos when it comes to memories? Unless you take into account that bizarre tradition of freezing the cake and attempting to eat it a year later. Course if you're going to spend 175 bucks for a cake like this, it should last a year. But 175

dollars? That works out to around $1.20 a piece. And what do you get for that? Well, they're just your little- they are little pieces of cake. No, they're not very big, unless you get real generous you know. OK now why wouldn't I want to, say, buy a Sara Lee? I don't know why wouldn't you. Now I'm no history major but I'll bet when Marie Antoinette said let them eat cake. It didn't cost her no 175 bucks. But that's nothing compared to what's in this room. Wedding gowns. Now they run anywhere from two to six hundred dollars and they're all the same color and you can only wear them once. And that brings up another important question I've always wanted to ask, why is it that women buy their wedding gowns and men rent? Well, women are all different sizes. Women have different tastes and women do not necessarily like to wear other women's clothes. Now that's a big contrast that we men who as we all know are the same size, have the same

taste and like nothing better than wearing another man's clothes. And while we're on the subject of clothes, it's time for the pièce de résistance, the fashion show. And as you'll see, it was a time when all women young and old, turned animal.[whistles, cheering] Once order was restored, I couldn't help watching the models and wondering who really walks like that anyway? But the audience didn't seem to mind. [music plays] [music plays] [music plays] Well I've decided it's time to end this story and how better to wrap it all up than the find out how the audience felt about 1984 bridal fair? Do you have a favorite exhibit? Well I like the car that was out in the hall out there, that was nice.

I like it, its enjoyable. You learn anything? No just more than- just [laughs] No not really. Remember this is your special day. Well one good thing about the bridal fairs at least, if you can make it through one of these, the weddings a [inaudible]. You know, Steve it may have been a special day for a lot of those attending but it seemed to me, looking at you in that throng of screaming women, you looked a little sweaty [inaudible] little nervous. Are you hoping for the super hope chest? No, it was just a little too intense for me when it comes to getting married. So you know with your attitude and all of our experience we all ought to be responsible for putting together the 1985 divorce fair. [laughs] I like that better. I don't know about that. At any rate, speaking of special days that's all for this edition of Front Street Weekly. Until next week. Good night. Good night. Good night. [outro music plays] [outro music plays]

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