Yaw's Top Notch dinner theater poster, circa 1982

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Yaw's Top Notch (Portland, Or.)
Title
Yaw's Top Notch dinner theater poster
Dates
circa 1982
Quantity
0.15 cubic feet, (1 oversize folder (30x42))
Collection Number
Coll 884
Summary
Hand-lettered poster advertising performances of "The Drunkard" at Yaw's Top Notch Restaurant by the Mark Allen Players. Yaw's Top Notch was a Portland, Oregon restaurant that was popular in the mid-20th century, and closed in 1985. The Mark Allen Players were a theater company that became the Willamette Repertory Theatre, and then the Portland Repertory Theater, before dissolving in 1998.
Repository
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Languages
English

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Yaw's Top Notch Restaurant was founded in 1926 by Winford Page Yaw (1887-1967) as a lunch counter in Portland, Oregon. Yaw's later became a popular burger restaurant located at 2001 NE 40th Avenue, managed by Yaw's son W. Page Yaw (1918-1976), and then his grandson Stephen Yaw (1946-2017). The restaurant closed in 1985. Stephen Yaw unsuccessfully tried to open a new Yaw's restaurant in 2012.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

The Mark Allen Players was a theater company founded in 1957 by Mark Allen (1923-1994) in Portland, Oregon. In the 1980s it leased a theater in the Willamette Center, and became known as Willamette Repertory Theatre. It later changed its name again to Portland Repertory Theater. The company dissolved in early 1998.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

In late 1982 and early 1983, Yaw's Top Notch Restaurant hosted dinner theater productions of the melodrama "The Drunkard," performed by the Mark Allen Players and directed by Corey Brunish.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection consists of a poster advertising performances by the Mark Allen Players of "The Drunkard" every Saturday evening at Yaw's Top Notch Restaurant, presented by Yaw's Theatre Dinnerhouse and the Willamette Repertory Theatre. The poster includes three stage production photographs and hand-lettering that notes the times for the cocktail bar opening, dinner, and the play's start.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.

Preferred Citation

Yaw's Top Notch dinner theater poster, Coll 884, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Acquisition Information

Gift of Corey Brunish, August 2021 (RL2021-100).

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Dinner theater--Oregon--Portland
  • Restaurants--Oregon--Portland
  • Theatrical companies--Oregon--Portland

Corporate Names

  • Mark Allen Players (Portland, Or.)
  • Yaw's Top Notch (Portland, Or.)

Form or Genre Terms

  • posters