Portland’s Willamette Week newspaper has just posted an article about the project, which should also be coming out in their print edition today.
The Organ Grinder, once found on Southeast 82nd Avenue between Foster Road and Holgate Boulevard, was made immediately notable by the spectacle of its 32-foot diaphone pipes visible from the street, a display that eliminated any need for advertising. As Richardson recalls, lines spilled out the door of the restaurant, which served over a thousand pizzas a day (though they weren’t known to be particularly tasty), all the while providing professionally performed pipe organ renditions of popular songs. The Organ Grinder shut its doors in 1996 after Interstate 205 changed the drive-by traffic, and companies like Chuck E. Cheese came in swinging to capture the child’s entertainment restaurant business.
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