February 03 2010 at 06:19:24 Name: David Bagsby Topic: Pots o' Smudge Comments: Always expected Boris Badinov to be placing
those things on the street...or Wile E. Coyote
February 02 2010 at 22:07:14 Name: Doug Topic: Smudge Pots/Railroad Flares Comments: Speaking of smudge pots, who remembers in Tulsa
(and I assume other towns) when the train would cross the road and they threw
out those red flares on the street. I'd forgotten about them until I thought
about smudge pots.
February 02 2010 at 10:11:41 Name:
Jim Ruddle Topic: Helen Alvarez Comments: The passing of Helen Alvarez
brings many things to mind about her. First, as all acknowledge, she was
a stunning woman, whose marriage to Joe Alvarez gave her an exotic (at the
time) last name and which led many to think she was Latina, which, of course,
she wasn't.
She was driven by her desire to escape a not-so-glamorous childhood in a
rooming house run by her mother. Mrs. Harman, her mother, had gone to jail
for not disclosing information to officials about goings-on in her establishment
that involved individuals related to the
notorious Phil Kennamer case in the mid-1930s.
Helen hated what had happened to her mother.
After she became suddenly wealthy with the advent of KOTV and her share in
its good fortunes, she was thrust into the public eye as a glamour girl,
but with no background in sophistication. She gained her outward style by
going to Neiman-Marcus, in Dallas, and simply turning herself over to their
fashion experts, telling them to dress her head-to-toe. They knew; she didn't.
This next information came from someone who knew her extremely well and spent
considerable time in her company during the period in question:
Wanting to upgrade her living quarters, she commissioned sculptor Bernard
Fraser to create a large bronze relief of running horses--she loved horses--and
he complied with a magnificent piece, three or four feet across and two or
three high. It was titled "The Yearlings," and was a great work from a very
talented, sensitive artist. (Fraser did the bronze doors at the University
of Kansas memorial library.)
Unfortunately, the wall on which it was to be mounted had the horses--to
her eye--running in the wrong direction. She told Fraser to make them gallop
the other way. It was a big commission and Fraser didn't have a lot of them
in Tulsa, so he diligently returned to the clay and eventually the casting
in bronze and the yearlings were turned around.
I'm sure the sculpture must be in her effects, unless it was sold off during
the
C.
Arnholt Smith disaster.
A fascinating character about whom many other stories revolved.
February 01 2010 at 19:42:18 Name: Dave Topic: Smudge pots Comments: Highway smudge pots were being marketed as
"patio flares" in 2001, according to a
web page with
accompanying photos.
February 01 2010 at 15:27:23 Name: Mitch Gray Topic: Smudge pots Email: North Of You Comments: For some reason I woke up this morning thinking
of those firey road markers called "smudge pots".
If you grew up prior to 1970, you might remember these little cartoon bomb
shaped devices glowing around Tulsa's never-ending road construction.
With the advent of flashing battery-operated traffic barricade lights, and
possibly a few lawsuits from curious folk receiving burns from handling these
flaming doohickeys, the pots gradually disappeared.
I was however, fortunate enough to have participated...er...um...witnessed
a pot slinging contest or two. Distance was king in these contests but a
well placed loop de loop in mid-air was always a crowd pleaser.
I kinda miss those smelly little lanterns.
Now that you mention them, seems like I once thought the cartoon bombs
and smudge pots were one and the same.
Leon at the Grammies, courtesy of David Batterson
January 31 2010 at 23:42:34 Name: Cat Topic: Magicians TheatreEmail: cat2907atlive.com Comments: As we were watching the Grammy awards show this
evening, I was surprised and pleased to see Leon Russell. Great to see him.
I was telling my sons how I used to see him and several other musicians sitting
in with the band at the Magicians Theatre.
How cool to be able to come on this site and show them the names of the clubs
I used to frequent, the restaurants (The
Louisiane in particular holds many fond memories of family dinners).
Thanks for keeping this "together" for those of use who had sooo much fun
back in the 70's!!!
January 29 2010 at 17:11:06 Name: luvmyaussy Topic: Don Woods Weather Commercial and Don
Getting kicked... Comments: Living at the base of Lookout Mountain in Red
Fork in 1964 we had a few birthday parties on Mr. Zing and Tuffy. It was
a real treat too to see Don walking around the halls. I remember a KTUL weather
commerical that featured Don walking down the street when the weather was
fair and everyone he encountered was happy. The commercial then flipped to
rain and the same people who were nice to Don in fiar weather were not so
nice with rain. Is this commercial by chance archived anywhere? I really
enjoyed that commercial and it made a lasting memory.
Thanks and thank you for a wonderful website.
Safety & blue skies,
LMA
January 29 2010 at 02:18:17 Name: Jim Reid Topic: Catching Up
Comments: Thanks for the kind words, Dale. We really had good
times at channel 8, back when tv was fun. I'm getting old enough to be the
guy who bores my younger co-workers with all the wild stories about things
were in "the good old days". Most of my stories are from my channel 8 days.
It really was lots of fun.
January 28 2010 at 22:56:04 Name: Dale Topic: Catching up Email: horvendale at gmail Comments: Two items: the death of Helen Alvarez and the 35th
anniversary of Jim Read in television.
The late, great Chan Allen told me about Helen Alvarez when I worked for
KOTV. Later I read more. I've always been impressed by her, and even more
so after the things I read in her obituary. I mourn, even though I never
knew her.
Though he is a year younger than I, Jim Reid has always been a mentor to
me. I just had my 30th anniversary in TV, June 11th (the day John Wayne died,
for what it's worth). I learned a lot from Jim. Plus we've each had many
a meal at Goldie's, Nelson's, & Ike's Chili. Thanks, Jim, and
congratulations.
Sometimes I wish I could go out and thank all the people who have contributed
to my life . . . those like Alvarez, who I never met; and others, like Jim,
who were more directly an influence.
January 28 2010 at 12:15:54 Name: John K. Young Topic: A Musical Interlude... :) Email:
johnk662561atyahoodotcom Comments: Greetings from the Valley of the Sun!
A friend of mine who lives in Tulsa sent me this today. This is his lyical
tribute to the ice and snow in Oklahoma...
"SNOW…….klahoma!/ Where the cold front's sweepin' down the plain
/And the piles of sleet/beneath your feet/Follow right behind the freezing
rain...!!"
Stay warm! :)
JohnnyK
January 28 2010 at 09:21:51 Name: DolfanBob Topic: Katie Green Email: DolfanBob@lycos.com Comments: Katie has returned home to Tyler, Texas. I have
heard some rumors but I will not repeat what I do not know as fact. But you
can read her take on why she is there. Here is the link:
January 28 2010 at 07:03:54 Name: Rick Topic: Katie Green Email: clarkrick@yahoo.com Comments: What happened to Katie Green on KOTV? Sure liked
her.
January 27 2010 at 20:06:19 Name: Rocky Frisco Topic: The Scotch Mist Email: rocknatural@gmail.com Comments: Can anybody help me remember the last name of Don
and Val, who used to own the Scotch Mist at 51st & Harvard back when
Reggie Mason, Jimmie Ellis and I used to play there?
George Shriver talked about managing the Scotch Mist in
GB 159 (scroll down from Lee Woodward's remarks
to read George's).
Later note: Rocky wrote back to say:
"I remembered Don's last name yesterday. He was Don Gawthrop. I looked up
the name and called Val. Don died in 2008."
January 27 2010 at 08:11:16 Name: Beverly Topic: Helen Alvarez Comments: I always admire her house when I'm driving
on 31st St.
January 26 2010 at 21:28:36 Name: TulsaTownie Topic: Helen Alvarez Dies at 88 Comments: Tulsa's First Lady Of Television: Maria Helen
Alvarez, Died last Friday in her Southern California home. She was 88 years
old. What a woman, she will be dearly missed. KOTV's article:
Tulsa's First
Lady Of Television Dies.
Much more about Ms. Alvarez in GB 276,
including a link to a spread in Life Magazine. She pioneered KOTV, Tulsa's
first TV station, and later was a co-owner of the Disneyland hotel.
January 26 2010 at 16:46:26 Name: David Bagsby Topic: Frank L. Wright House
Comments: Didn't the folks that lived there call it the Pickle
Factory?
January 26 2010 at 13:21:11 Name: Mike Bruchas Topic: Stuff
Comments: Another long running TV "face" has passed:
Pernell
Roberts.
The Frank Lloyd Wright house in Tulsa, I had never heard of till 5-6 years
ago. Jenkin Lloyd Jones and family were related to FLW. Jack Hobson told
me that his one-time minister and family lived there a few years back.
January 26 2010 at 08:10:02 Name: Webmaster Topic: History of Tulsa movie theaters Comments:
Via email, she told me the other day: "We just finished putting up two new
small exhibits at the Tulsa Historical
Society, one of them being about some of Tulsa's old movie theaters.
I selected nine theaters and two drive-in photos to feature at this time.
In addition to photos, statues from the Orpheum and the Ritz are also on
display with more goodies to be added after February 1."
January 24 2010 at 08:53:24 Name: Beverly Topic: Mother Tucker Comments: Thank you to everyone who responded to my question
concerning Mother Tucker. I'm happy to now know that she is still here and
continues the work that I heard of all of my life. I'm sending the check
tomorrow. Bless her heart!
January 20 2010 at 01:01:42 Name: Clifton B. Sartin Topic: Mother Tucker Email: a1sartin@cox.net Comments: Mother Tucker is 91 and doing fine! Here is her
website:
MotherTuckerMinistries.org.
January 16 2010 at 16:09:13 Name:
Gary Chew Topic: Those Movie Awards Comments: Just noticed last night's Critics Choice Award
thing (on this day before the Golden Globes) puts
"The Hurt Locker" as Best Pic. I
say right on! But differ seriously with this perceptive bunch of film nutz
on choosing two awards for Tarantino's
"Inglorious Basterds": Best original
script and best ensemble cast. I think "Basterds" is more of a flop than
most everyone else thinks that "Nine"
is. On the other hand, there is a reason to see "Basterds" and that is
Christopher Waltz, who plays the crafty and vicious SS Officer. The Critics
Choice award goes to him for that performance. Right on again.
I'm also pleased to see that Saoirse Ronan got Best Young Actor award. I
rant about her in the "The Lovely
Bones" review, just posted at this web site. She's right super at acting
the role of Susie Salmon in the creepy, yet somehow hopeful serial killer
flick from Peter Jackson of late.
A parting shot: Julianne Moore is outstanding in
"A Single Man." Seeing her in
this film is also a reason to take it in.
The Critic's Choice medals are a good precursor to what's up with the Globes
and Mr. Oscar.
Del in Cal
January 16 2010 at 01:40:16 Name: David Harmon Topic: Bill Raffensperger Email: k6xyz at sbcglobal dot
net Comments: In the late 50s I played some gigs in Tulsa, and
Bill was nice enough to join in with rest of the guys that included Charles
Gilliland, Tom Roney and Tom Goodridge.
We weren't exactly beginners but Bill was much more advanced musically than
we were. He was always very friendly to everyone especially myself....it
probably helped that his brother Tom was married to my sister's daughter.
I'm really distressed at Bill's passing.
Play on man!!
January 15 2010 at 10:28:25 Name: Steve Bagsby Topic: Bill Raffensperger Comments: My prayers go out to Bill Raffensperger. Got
to play some gigs with him, and he was truly a nice guy to work with.
On Mother Tucker, I've heard her on AM 1340 KJMU on Sunday morning.
January 14 2010 at 18:04:18 Name: Scott Linder Topic: Bill Raffensperger Comments: I'm sorry to hear of the death of Bill
Raffensperger. Before his transition to other musical forms, I often played
jazz gigs with him at various clubs in Tulsa when he was playing acoustic
back in the 60s. I'm sure that piano guys such as Gayle Williamson, Jon Detherage
and Sonny Gray would also remember working with him back in the "jazz days"
in Tulsa. Rest In Peace, Bill.
January 14 2010 at 16:52:39 Name: DolfanBob Topic: Mother Tucker Email: DolfanBob@lycos.com Comments: Mother Tucker is alive and well. I saw a news report
about her getting turkeys for less fortunate people at Christmas.
She has after many years started up another Church.
The lady is truly special. I can't recall but I believe they said she is
in her 80s. God bless her and all she does.
January 14 2010 at 13:33:41 Name: Webmaster Topic: Good Day Tulsa tomorrow Comments:
I'll be on KTUL Channel 8's "Good Day Tulsa" program tomorrow around 9:30
am, talking about the new Mazeppa DVD, Vol. 4 of the 'Lost Tapes of Mazeppa',
available at Mazeppa.com. (Here are
recent Tulsa World articles about it).
Wish me luck!
Courtesy Jody McIntyre, KTUL producer. Try 480p fullscrn for best
quality.
January 14 2010 at 11:36:32 Name: Mitch Gray Topic: Raffensperger Email: North Of You Comments: More on Bill at the following link:
"Publicity-shy
rocker was one of the greats" (Tulsa World).
My condolences to the family and "The Zigs".
January 14 2010 at 09:47:54 Name: Jim Reid Topic: Thanks
Comments: Thanks Chuck, but I make no claims of sanity.
January 14 2010 at 07:44:44 Name: Beverly Topic: TTM Comments: Mike,
I know I'm very, very late in saying this, but I love Tulsa TV Memories!
Congratulations and a great, big thanks!
January 13 2010 at 17:40:58 Name: Beverly Topic: Seinfeld
Comments: I have to agree with "Arm." I will certainly miss Seinfeld
on Fox23 at 10:00 pm. I don't know if I can go to sleep without spending
a little time with Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer. I guess I'll have to
get the DVDs out at bedtime.
January 13 2010 at 16:04:53 Name: Teb Blackwell Topic: Bill Raffensperger Email: tebiiatcomcastdotnet Comments: I received word that Tulsa Sound legend Bill
Raffensperger passed away this morning. He played with nearly everyone in
Tulsa's first-wave of rock and rollers, and went on to play, record and tour
with the likes of Eric Clapton, JJ Cale and Leon Russell. He was a great
musician, but more importantly, a fine individual.
January 13 2010 at 09:10:28 Name: Chuck Fullhart Topic: Mother Tucker
Comments: To Beverly. I could be wrong, happens at least once
a day, but I believe Mother Tucker passed on a few years back.
January 13 2010 at 08:52:55 Name: Beverly Topic: Mother Tucker Comments: Does anyone know if Mother Tucker is still
a legitimate charity?
I had a call from a representative in November and gave then. I had another
call two nights ago and when I told him I wanted to just send a check, he
said he didn't know an address to give me. He wanted me to give a credit
card number and I told him I wouldn't do that over the phone.
But, I have always admired Mother Tucker and the work that she has done so
I wanted to give something. To save them the price of the stamp, I asked
him to just give me the address and I would mail it promptly. He said they
would send an addressed envelope. After we hung up, I was perplexed by the
conversation and wondered why he didn't know the address.
In my mind, I continue to see Mother Tucker feeding, clothing and sheltering
the homeless, but I after thinking about it for awhile, I realized I haven't
heard anything of her work in quite some time. Does anyone know if she is
still around and if so does she still have a ministry?
January 13 2010 at 08:23:39 Name: Chuck Fullhart Topic: Congrats to Jim Reid Comments: Congrats to Jim Reid. After 35 or a "million
years" at The Shrine of The Golden Transmitter, and still a reasonable amount
of sanity, you should at least be getting letters from The White House. People
like us don't retire, I think a lot of us go to Branson and work "regular"
hours and jobs. Congrats again.
January 13 2010 at 08:12:49 Name: Chuck Fullhart Topic: NBC and scheduling wizards Comments: With Conan looking for a new home, Leno licking
his wounds, and the janitors at 30 Rock cleaning up the egg that fell off
the face of the programming gurus, I started remembering the jumps made by
Tulsa on air talent.
Of course, Travis Meyer from 8 to 6. Jack Morris from 8 to 2, Cy Tuma from
6 to 8, and a lot of other "coups" that caused a lot of publicity at the
time. And a few names and faces of weather people, I believe that is the
correct term, that have just disappeared over the years.
January 13 2010 at 00:08:09 Name: Jim Reid Topic: 35th Anniversary Comments: Today was my 35th anniversary working in
television. My first day of work at KTUL-TV was January 12, 1975. Seems like
a million years ago.
January 12 2010 at 16:00:51 Name:
Gary Chew Topic: Leon Email: Northeast of Eden Comments:
I just followed Wilhelm's and Ms. LeMoine's advice. Then emailed Sirius/XM's
Satellite feed of "Classic Vinyl" (60s & 70s music) - Channel 46, to
follow up on the story and get out their disques de Leon. They play him,
hardly at all 'cept for some Cocker backup.
January 11 2010 at 18:04:08 Name: Bob Jernigan Topic: Mel Waldorf
Comments: Does anyone have current information on Mel Waldorf.
He was with KOME ca. 1962? We first met when he was with AFN in Munich, Germany.
January 11 2010 at 16:14:41 Name: Si Hawk Topic: Radio Show Contact: Neil Thruston Email:
sihawk@hawkshometown.com Comments: Sorry to be so tardy with a response to the Radio
Show thread.
First congrats to Mike and the gang for an excellent web site. I don't believe
there's another one like it anywhere!
Back to the Radio Show conversation; mentioning
Neil Thruston really gets my interest. Neil is one of the most enjoyable
and professional people with whom I have ever had the pleasure to work.
I first met Mr. Thruston while we were both working for NewsTalk 13 - KXXO
in the late '70s. Neil took over 'The Talk of Tulsa' show from Mel Young
(who moved to KMOX I believe). When Clear Channel decided to retire KXXO,
Neil went to KRMG and continued doing The Talk of Tulsa.
When KRMG started cutting back I believe Neil took the show for a short time
to AM 1430. After a year or two there Neil went to KTRT and the "Oklahoma
Talk Radio Network" (four stations spread out across the state). After several
years Neil turned hosting The Talk of Tulsa over to me and went to work for
the Tulsa County Health Department.
He is now at the Tulsa Aerospace Museum. Stop by and say hi. Neil is a
classic!
January 11 2010 at 14:02:46 Name:
Gary Chew Topic: Simon & Garfunkel Redux Comments: Maybe it's because the sun refuses to shine
in the Big Valley, but...I just heard an Irish politician's 60-year-old wife
has scandalized him having an affair with a 19 year old dude. And her name
is...Mrs. Robinson!!!
Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio?
The Nation turns its lonely eyes to you
Make me a MOVIE !!
Delmeaux in the Fog
January 11 2010 at 13:39:19 Name: Mike Bruchas Topic: Ghost Rock - the movie Comments: My cousin gave me a DVD movie with Gary Busey
starring in it; a western called Ghost Rock. Has anyone seen it?
Arkysaw has NO ice like the ice in Tulsa - just cold.
Reporting LIVE from Tulsa today and tomorrow...
January 10 2010 at 19:08:36 Name:
J LeMoine Topic: WAHOOO!!! Email: ok_lemoineatyahoodotcom Comments: I scored a Gizzerblinkie today on eBay!!!
January 10 2010 at 16:30:20 Name: John K. Young Topic: Brain Concussion Email:
johnk662561atyahoodotcom Comments: I just wanted to report that I am recovering from
a brain concussion brought about by making a batch of
"Tulsa Public School Bean Chowder".
I didn't fall or anything. It was just that the stuff was so good it made
my tongue jump up and beat my brains out!
January 10 2010 at 13:02:54 Name: Webmaster Topic: Previous GroupBlog link
Comments: Archived GroupBlog 306
Jim Ruddle
Gary Chew
J LeMoine