On November 8, 1983, Seattle restaurateur and celebrity Ivar Haglund (1905-1985) is unintentionally elected to a six-year term on the Seattle Port Commission, after he files to run as a publicity gag. He was annoyed by boxcars that blocked the view of Elliott Bay from his Acres of Clams restaurant.
Actually running for office was a task to be diligently avoided. When Haglund pleaded with Scott Kingdon, the general manager of his restaurants, to help him withdraw, Kingdon told him that it was too late. Although he did not campaign, he won the primary by 30,000 votes. Being a Port Commissioner was tiresome for the 78-year-old restaurateur and he routinely missed meetings. He attempted to pacify his fellow commissioners with free clam chowder, but they were not so easily amused.
Sources:
Paul Dorpat "King of the Waterfront," (tentative title, biography of Ivar Haglund in progress), in possession of Paul Dorpat, Seattle, 2000; Dave Stephens, Ivar: The Life and Times of Ivar Haglund (Seattle: Dunhill Publishing, 1986), 147-150.
Licensing: This essay is licensed under a Creative Commons license that
encourages reproduction with attribution. Credit should be given to both
HistoryLink.org and to the author, and sources must be included with any
reproduction. Click the icon for more info. Please note that this
Creative Commons license applies to text only, and not to images. For
more information regarding individual photos or images, please contact
the source noted in the image credit.
Major Support for HistoryLink.org Provided
By:
The State of Washington | Patsy Bullitt Collins
| Paul G. Allen Family Foundation | Museum Of History & Industry
| 4Culture (King County Lodging Tax Revenue) | City of Seattle
| City of Bellevue | City of Tacoma | King County | The Peach
Foundation | Microsoft Corporation, Other Public and Private
Sponsors and Visitors Like You