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61 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, June 14, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Prime Times Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend May 21, 2004 Clint Eastwood makes JPR’s day By JOHN DARLING for the Mail Tribune Actor-director Clint Eastwood has donated $25,000 to restoration of a childhood icon — Redding’s 70-year-old Cascade Theater — putting owner Jefferson Public Radio within an ace of full restoration for an opening this summer. The historic, art deco-style movie palace was a boyhood haunt of famed cowboy-cop actor Eastwood, 73, and when he toured the theater a month ago with his family, he told general manager Ken Putnam, "You’ll be hearing from me." The check arrived a few days ago, Putnam said. "It’s a significant contribution at a point in this project where we’re winding down fund raising and it again emphasizes the importance of this theater for the Redding community," said JPR Development Director Paul Westhelle. "After touring the theater, Eastwood said he liked what he saw," said JPR Executive Director Ron Kramer. "We didn’t know what his response would be, so we’re enormously gratified." The JPR Foundation took on the $5 million restoration of the Cascade Theater in 1999, buying it from United Artists, which built the 1,348-seat theater in 1935. The restoration, which Kramer described as "full of thrills, surprises, challenges and travails, like any remodel," provided a home for JPR’s Redding station and was vigorously supported by the Redding community. Advertisement The "enormous attachment" of the town was highlighted, Kramer said, when the Redding Record-Searchlight newspaper tagged it one of the top 10 regional news stories of the 1990s — and it received $750,000 from the state of California, with large grants from the city redevelopment corporation and many businesses and citizens who bought individual seats. The theater, featuring gold and silver gilded walls, ornate plaster work and a neon marquee, will be restored to a vaudeville-style stage that will house live music and entertainment acts, similar to Medford’s Craterian Ginger Rogers Theater and Klamath Falls’ Ross-Ragland. It is slated for a July 3 pre-opening. "We were the guys," said Kramer, referring to the JPR Guild, "who stepped forward and, where many said it was a lost cause, we were able to assemble a spectacular local (Redding) steering committee that put its shoulder behind the project and got it done." Eastwood is a regular visitor and sometimes resident of Redding because of his purchase of the nearby Bing Crosby ranch and his friendship with a local obstetrician who delivered babies for Eastwood and his wife, said Putnam. Eastwood’s gift has drawn attention to the Cascade project and spurred other large grants, he added. The Cascade was named by the city of Redding as one of the top three redevelopment projects for its urban core, said Kramer, noting that the city has no other venue for live theater. John Darling is a free-lance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S RESOURCES Oregon Road Conditions & Cams SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Food for Thought Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Prime Times