Oregon Experience: Tom McCall

Interview Extras

Before "Sustainability" and "Global Climate Change"

Brent Walth is the author of “Fire at Eden’s Gate,” the biography of Tom McCall. Walth says McCall tried to draw attention to national and international environmental issues years before the public paid any attention to them.

McCall's Funeral

McCall’s funeral took place in the State Capitol building. He had requested that it not be by-invitation-only, but that anyone could come. An overflow crowd attended the ceremony. McCall biographer Brent Walth describes the day.

A Way With Words

Tom McCall knew journalism (he was a journalist for 20-plus years!), he knew how to tell a story, and he loved words. No wonder he was on television and in the newspaper almost daily. Brent Walth, political journalist Russell Sadler, and Doris Penwell, Tom McCall’s executive secretary, describe his unique ability to use words to his political advantage.

Another Time, Different Politics

McCall biographer Brent Walth and longtime political reporter Floyd McKay talk about the very different political environment that existed in Salem during the McCall years.

Capitol Reporter

Journalist Russell Sadler reported from the Capitol for many years. Here he talks about the unique qualities of the Capitol itself and about the day-to-day life of journalist working that beat.

News Coverage Way Back When

Russel Sadler notes that in McCall’s time, years before the internet and hundred-channel cable TV, most people watched the local evening news on television. Unlike today, most Oregon TV stations, radio stations and newspapers kept reporters and cameramen in Salem. And Tom McCall kept them well-supplied with material.