Oral history interview with Eugene M. Waddle, 1980 November 21

This oral history interview with Eugene M. Waddle was conducted by Curtis Johnson on November 21, 1980, at Waddle's home in Portland, Oregon. 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, Waddle discusses his early life in the Los Angeles, California, area, including his early forays into running restaurants and his early careers in accounting, life insurance, and radio broadcasting. He then talks about relocating to Portland, Oregon, and describes running a coffee shop beginning in 1939. He discusses opening Waddle's Restaurant in 1945, including the design of the building, hiring carhops, and the challenges of operating a drive-in. He discusses the future of the restaurant business; shares advice for succeeding in the business; and talks about other drive-in restaurant operators in Portland. He describes his clientele, the reasons why the popularity of drive-ins declined, and the menu at Waddle's. He revisits the topic of opening Waddle's Restaurant in 1945, particularly getting the building financed and constructed. He closes the interview by talking about the rewards of running a restaurant and about his marriage to Natha DeVon Jones.