The Oklahoma Today Podcast

Season 6, Episode 23: Toy Stories at the Toy and Action Figure Museum in Pauls Valley

Toys: They teach us a lot as we're growing up. They teach us to value our possessions, to use our imaginations, and how much our parents don't like it when we leave them all over the floor. It's no wonder we end up putting a lot of nostalgic value into them, or that there is a museum dedicated to them in south-central Oklahoma. The Toy and Action Figure Museum in Pauls Valley has thousands of figures on display, including those from franchises like Marvel, DC Comics, Star Wars, and more. Museum founder Kevin Stark is our featured guest today, giving us a tour of the site's impressive collection and helping us realize why our playtime heroes are worth preserving. 

Also on this week's episode, the editors share their own favorite toys of the past, and podvents tells us where to catch a cat by its tongue. You won't want to miss it!

Season 6, Episode 22: Dead Set on deadCenter Film Festival

June has arrived in Oklahoma, which can often mean that a dark room with air conditioning is very appealing. Thankfully an abundance of opportunities for just such an activity is headed for Oklahoma City. We're talking about the return of deadCenter Film Festival, the summertime favorite set to celebrate its twenty-fifth year June 11-15. Our guest this week is deadCenter's founding executive director Cacky Poarch, who tells us all about this year's Icon award winners, how it feels to see the festival at a quarter of a century, and why we can expect to see dinosaurs around downtown OKC. 

Also on this week's episode, the editors share their favorite comfort movies, and podvents let's us know what happens when youth meets opera meets Tolkien. You won't want to miss it!

Season 6, Episode 21: Meet Elisabetta, A New Restaurant Venture from Rachel Cope and 84 Hospitality

When it comes to local restaurant brands, 84 Hospitality Group is a heavy hitter. Empire Slice House is known far and wide, and Goro Ramen and Burger Punk have large followings of their own. There is a new name to add to that lineup now. Elisabetta Fine Italian & Wine is now open on North Western Avenue in Oklahoma City. Editor-in-Chief Nathan Gunter had a sit-down conversation with 84 Hospitality's Rachel Cope to talk about the new addition and what else is new from her line of delicious eats.

Also on this week's episode, the editors discuss the "green flags" they look for in a restaurant, and podvents teaches us a little something about magnolias. You won't want to miss it!

Season 6, Episode 20: Holy Boley! It's Time for the Boley Rodeo.

It's the oldest historically black rodeo in the country, and it's back for another year! The Boley Rodeo, in the historic black town of Boley, got its start in 1961. The event has seen ups and downs over the years, but has seen a resurgence under organizer Karen Ekuban. We headed out to Boley to talk with Karen and get a firsthand look at a new art project which will make its debut at this year's event. The Boley Rodeo is Saturday, May 24, and tickets are $20.

Also on this week's episode, the editors recommend their picks for summer vacation activities in the state, and podvents let's us know where to find the most happening 150th birthday party around. You won't want to miss it!

Season 6, Episode 19: Vintage Delights with Clinton Avery Tharp and Main Street Vintage

Oklahoma's vintage scene has a social media king, and his name is Clinton Avery Tharp. Along with childhood friend Eli Hartley, he owns and operates Main Street Vintage in Purcell. Fans of classic 1970s furniture, Kit-Cat Klocks, cigar box ukuleles, or anything cool and novel will get a kick out of visiting this shop of wonders. In this week's episode, Tharp and Hartley lead us on a tour through their carefully curated playhouse, and a lot of fun is had along the way.

Also on this week's episode, the editors discuss their favorite barbecue restaurants in the state, and podvents takes America's pastime all the way back to the 1880s. You won't want to miss it! 

Season 6, Episode 18: The Bob Wills Fashion Contest

Another day, another tough challenge for our host. This week Ben gives it his best shot in a Bob Wills themed fashion contest. Bob Wills, known to have reigned over Tulsa's Cain's Ballroom along with his band The Texas Playboys during the 1930s and '40s, was and remains an influential icon of Western chic style. Hie reputation as a sharp dresser is so strong that this year they introduced a fashion contest during the annual Bob Wills Day celebration at the Oklahoma State Capitol. Ben is far from a ten-galloned fashionisto, but he is a bolo tie lover with a feel for style that can be best described as . . . marginally above average. Will that be enough to win the inaugural Bob WIlls fashion competition? Probably not, but let's find out. 

Also on this week's episode, the editors try their best to describe their own fashion styles, and podvents tells Mom where to find the sweetest cruise in town this Mother's Day.

Season 6, Episode 17: Shattering Anger at the Tulsa Stained Glass Rage Room

Ben is mad. Like, really mad. With all that rage, he needs an outlet. It's a good thing Tulsa Stained Glass exists. Though normally a home for art and peaceful crafting, attached to this longtime Tulsa glass studio is a rage room where perturbed patrons can smash and shatter various glass wares for a cathartic release. The rage room is the brainchild of Tulsa Stained Glass owner Richard Bohm, who joins the podcast as guest today. Unlike some other rage room experiences, Bohm wants to make sure guests are reflecting on the positive as well as the negative. Listen as he guides Ben through unfamiliar territory (for him): destructive anger. 

Also on this week's episode, the editors share their favorite tips for finding calm, and podvents reminds us of the word spelunking. You won't want to miss it!

Season 6, Episode 16: Take Me to Church Studio in Tulsa

Purchased by the legendary Leon Russell in a deal struck at the diner across the street, Tulsa's Church Studio has become an iconic piece of music history. All-time greats like Tom Petty, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Stevie Wonder recorded there while the former real-life church was used as the home of Shelter Records in the 1970s, and the walls still very much contain a musical soul. On this week's show we meet up with Teresa Knox, who revived the Church Studio after it had sat vacant for many years. Today it is a first-rate recording studio once again, as well as a key tourist destination for music fans. Church Studio's Carney Fest, a celebration of Leon Russell's top-hat showmanship and legacy as a godfather of the Tulsa Sound musical style and movement, takes place Saturday, May 3.

 

Also on this week's episode, the editors discuss some of the historical sites in Oklahoma they love to visit, and podvents triggers some old prom memories. 

Season 6, Episode 15: The Federal Building Bombing in OKC, Reflecting 30 Years Later

The podcast assumes a more serious tone this time around as we reflect on the thirtieth anniversary of the April 19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building in downtown Oklahoma City, still the largest-scale and most deadly domestic attack in the nation's history. As a result of the attack, 168 people (adults and children) died. Today our guest is current OKC Fire Chief Richard Kelley, who has spent more than three decades in service to the local fire department and was a first responder the day of the bombing. He recounts what he saw on the scene that day, the scare of a rumored second bomb, and speaks on the important lessons the response to that day can teach future generations of first-responders and Oklahomans. 

Also on this week's show, the editors share what they remember about that day in 1995. This includes Chris, a working video journalist at the time. You won't want to miss it!

Season 6, Episode 14: A Samurai Showcase at Philbrook Museum of Art

Spanning nine centuries of armor worn by the iconic and fascinating warriors of old Japanese society, the new Samurai exhibition at Philbrook Museum of Art gives viewers a deeper understanding of the culture, lifestyle, and art of the day. Coming to the Tulsa museum from the Collection of Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller, Samurai is on display now through August 3. Nathan and Chris paid a visit to the exhibit for an up-close look at this blockbuster summer attraction at the Philbrook.

Also on this week's episode: The editors share their favorite places to eat in Tulsa (of which there are many good ones) and podvents reminds us of an all-time Oklahoma Today cover. You won't want to miss it!