Portland Confidential: Sex, Crime, and Corruption in the Rose City [Paperback]

It may come as a shock, especially to anyone who has come to regard Portland as a haven for enlightened progressive thought, light rail, and lattes for all, not that long ago — in fact as recently as the 1950s — Portland was known throughout the country as a Mecca of vice and sin.Portland Confidentialrips the covers from Portland's biggest dirty little secret. It was a side-opentown, with purveyors of all the traditional vices operatingopenly under the noses of the local police. All they had to do was pay off the copsand, of course, their bosses in City Hall.One day in the spring of 1956, it all blew up in everyones faces with newspaperexpos?s, indictments of public officialsincludingthe chief of police, the districtattorney, and the Mayorandshameful national headlines.Things got so bad that Bobby Kennedy, then a young lawyer for the SenateRackets Committee, hauled two dozen or so of the towns more colorful charactersback to Washington, DC and grilled them before a national television audience.It couldnt have been more embarrassing.So naturally, when it was all over, everyone came back to town and pretendedit never happened. For decades, its been Portlands dirty little secret.Not any more, thoughitsall right here inPortland Confidential.