Gossip Should Have No Friends

[March 8th, 2006] PILLOW FIGHTS, WINS While urban pillow fights have struck around the world Portland experienced the soft, fluffy phenomenon for the first time last Friday in Pioneer Square . About 200 down-warriors and another 200 onlookers (including 20 police officers who just hung out and watched) created a giant cloud of feathers within the first few seconds of an event that lasted over an hour. The fight was organized through an anonymous MySpace profile and word of mouth (but our bets are on the merry pranksters of the Portland Cacophony Society). It wasn't sanctioned by Pioneer Courthouse Square Incorporated (the company that books events at the space), which had to call in a special crew to get the ankle-deep feathers removed after the battle ended. Scoop swears some of the pillow fighters helped clean up, too.

WORK IT "You got to get to me if you want to get to her," says Kevin Cook , a.k.a. Poison Waters . One of P-town's most popular female impersonators, Cook is leaving his position as the Special Event Associate for Cascade AIDS Project (after only four months) to become the executive assistant to peripatetic Portland Monthly publisher Nicole Vogel . "I've asked that they put me on the masthead as the official drag queen of Portland Monthly," says Cook, 37. Don't expect Cook to hang up his ball gowns for his new day job, though. He'll still be performing at Darcelle XV on Friday and Saturday nights.

BIG TALKER After a painful year without hearing the slightly enlightened ramblings of Rick Emerson, Portland talk-radio fans who prefer ELO and interviews with lovable dumbshits to FOX and interviews with greasy pundits can rest easy. Emerson, along with his beloved cast of Tim Riley and Sarah Dylan, is back on the airwaves. The motormouthed wiseguy will be setting up camp at KCMD-AM/Johnson 970 starting Monday. The show, which will air weekdays from noon to 3 pm, will be similar to Emerson's old show on Max 910. Let's hope he brings "The Penis Watch" with him.