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For anyone researching Oklahoma City history for a college paper, a speech at a civic club, or simply wanting to better understand this growing community, we've assembled what we hope is the most exhaustive list of essential books. This list is not intended to be a central resource for people researching the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. With dozens of titles on that topic alone, it is our intent to provide a separate listing on that topic at a later time.
We start this list off with a bit of bias - our own books, which currently consists of a history of downtown Oklahoma City and will soon include works on the Skirvin Hilton Hotel and Bricktown.
- Steve Lackmeyer and Jack Money, Feburary, 2008
OKC: Second Time Around, by Steve Lackmeyer and Jack Money, Full Circle Press, 2006, in print, sold at locally-owned book stores and gift shops in Oklahoma City and at www.fullcirclebooks.com. The book retails for $39.95 and is in the second printing.
Review:
Two award-winning journalists from The Oklahoman have written a beautiful coffee-table book about the history and development of downtown Oklahoma City. "OKC: Second Time Around" by Steve Lackmeyer and Jack Money is a collection of more than 250 photographs and the story that accompanies them. The authors have well documented the ups and downs of downtown and the political implications that set the development of the downtown section back a few years or breathed life into the area.
The booms and bust cycles and the roller-coaster pattern of development are presented in a readable and interesting fashion. The heartaches and triumphs of urban renewal are told in narrative form, and there are many photographs of old buildings and of the people who played critical roles in the development of downtown.
Elected officials and captains of commerce are featured for the parts they played in keeping downtown alive. A review of the book's contents page reveals the comprehensive treatment the authors have given the subject. There are major chapters on urban renewal, predictions that downtown was dead, visions of up-and-coming leaders such as Neal Horton, and the rise to prominence of Bricktown.
This is a real story, based on historical fact, failed plans, misguided promotions and ultimate success.
In the foreword, Oklahoma Historical Society executive director Bob Blackburn reflects on the stamina shown by downtown leaders who, like their fathers and grandfathers, faced dark times in Oklahoma. "It is not a surprise that the people of Oklahoma City faced what looked like a hopeless depression in the mid-1980s with a stagnant economy, a crumbling inner city and a prevailing sense that the best was in the past. It is also no surprise that those very people found a way through the challenge and took advantage of every opportunity," Blackburn wrote.
"OKC: Second Time Around" is a remarkable preservation of a slice of Oklahoma history that gives credit where credit is due and maps for future generations the elements of success that can be emulated in any major city in the nation. The book is a must-read for anyone interested in the story of the successful rebuilding of downtown Oklahoma City.
- Bob Burke
And Satan Came Also – An Inside Political History of Oklahoma City, by Albert Leroy McRill, Britton Publishing, 1955, out of print, a few copies can be bought online or at antique stores for $150 to $200.
ESSENTIAL OKC HISTORY
Review:
As with other things, the writing of history may be specialized into any number of fields or limited to a certain interest. One area of historical inquiry oftentimes neglected is any forthright approach to the influence of the smoke-filled room and its politico occupants, whether on a local or national level. Often these same worthies upon close scrutiny are found to be in close harmony with the seamy side of society and with the area of the community known colloquially as the “bon ton” or “tenderloin” district.
Human nature being what it is, or for that matter if human nature were different than what it is, any objectively written book of history with such subjects as its principal theme is worthy of close attention and more than passing interest. Particularly if the volume is the careful and studied product of one whose entire life has been devoted to municipal improvement, civic betterment, and local government at the working and practical level. This book meets all such tests.
Judge McRill has packed between the covers of this book many names that, except for the volume, would live on only by word of mouth, tradition and smoking room after dinner story. They all come alive and seem back in business again – Two Johns, The Turf Exchange, The Southern Club, Big Anne, Old Zulu, Noah’s Ark, The Red Onion and all the rest. We of today’s generation are fortunate that it may all be recorded for us in this fashion, so that even though the insatiable march of time has precluded a more intimate introduction, we are not to be deprived of such acquaintanceship altogether. Thanks to Judge McRill for giving our generation a reference book on something that heretofore the only reference has been eavesdropping in the club room when it is filled with old-timers. – 1955 review by George Shirk
A Passion for Equality: The Life of Jimmy Stewart, by Bob Burke, Vicki Miles-Lagrange and Kenny Arthur Franks, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 1999, in print, $18.95
Review:
Great biography of a pioneering civil rights leader and executive with Oklahoma Natural Gas who deserves much of the credit for Oklahoma City’s relatively peaceful transition from the Jim Crowe era through the 1964 Civil Rights Act to today. Stewart was a mentee of the granddaddy of the city’s civil rights movement – Roscoe Dunjee. – Steve Lackmeyer
Baseball in Oklahoma City, by Bob Burke, Arcadia Press, 2003, in print, $19.99
Born Grown, by Roy P. Stewart, published by Fidelity Bank, 1974, out of print, copies easily obtainable online, at second hand book stores for $10 to $30.
Celebrate 100: An Architectural Guide to Central Oklahoma by Oklahoma City Foundation for Architecture and American Institute of Architects, 2007, in print, $19.95
Belly Up, the Story of Penn Square Bank, by Philip Zweig, Ballentine Books, 1986
Review:
Wall Street Journal reporter Zweig details how the Oklahoma City Penn Square Bank went under. PW recommended Mark Singer's account of the same events in Funny Money unless "the reader's appetite is for unembellished facts, presented in plain prose, of events that are of themselves exciting." – Publishers Weekly
Charlie and the Deuce, by Anita Arnold, published by the Black Liberated Arts Center, 1994, not in print
Chihuly: Oklahoma City Museum of Art, by Anna Katherine Curfman, Barry Rosen, Teresa N. Rishel, and Terry Rishel, Portland Press, 2005
Deals, Deals, and More Deals: The Life of John W. Nichols, by Bob Burke and Gini Moore Campbell, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 2004, in print, $26.95
Final Report: Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building Bombing, City of Oklahoma City, 1996, out of print, but available online for $5
For All Good Sports: A History of the Oklahoma City All Sports Association, by Bob Burke and Dick Dugan, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 2007
Funny Money, by Mark Singer, Mariner Books, still available in paperback
ESSENTIAL OKC HISTORY
Review
This account of the collapse of Penn Square Bank is a quick, interesting reader but probably not the book all of Oklahoma City has been waiting for.
The thin-skinned may bristle at the author's unflattering assessment of the aesthetic attributes of Oklahoma City in general and downtown in particular. Some may find snobbery in his subtle but pointed observations about local diet, dress and speech. Singer, a Tulsa native, Yale graduate and staff writer for The New Yorker, is no kinder to the principals of Penn Square, the bank and the disaster. But "Funny Money" presents a readable perspective on the historic failure that is filled with color and anecdote.
Singer begins by setting the scene western Oklahoma. He describes it as an area with "no natural beauty and very little water" that was settled in part by "Dixie interlopers ... who resented having to work for a living but were nevertheless willing to put in a few hours a day devising ways to rook the Indians out of some more land." He quotes an Oklahoma City acquaintance who says the class of borrowers represented by one of Penn Square's bad energy accounts "could never get banked in Tulsa."
Considerable print is used to explain the environment that would encourage Penn Square's lending crusade in western Oklahoma's deep-gas Anadarko Basin. Elements of that backdrop include a national policy of greater energy independence, deregulation of deep gas prices and the lure of overnight wealth. But the catalyst is the characters, four of whom Singer depicts as follows: Bill P. "Beep" Jennings, bank chairman, possessing a grandfatherly disposition and folksy charm, but no stomach for saying "no" to bad credit risks.
William G. Patterson, the bank's chief energy lending officer, named "Monkeybrains" by college friends but unable to part with his juvenile, fraternity house mentality when loaning hundreds of millions of dollars. J.D. Allen, bankrupt city oilman and large Penn Square borrower, an overstimulated amateur suffering from grand delusions about his place in the world oil community. Robert A. Hefner III, city oilman and Penn Square borrower, a deep-gas visionary long on style and short on ventures that make money for any participants other than himself.
Though different in many ways, all of the main players are bound by one characteristic the love of a deal. Singer finds that deal-making at Penn Square took on a life of its own apart from the broader mission of the institution and the realities of the oil patch.
The author highlights the excesses of those heady days through examination of a few of the drilling projects Penn Square financed. He explains that Penn Square began relations with money center banks that bought almost $2 billion in bad Oklahoma energy loans in an astonishingly casual manner.
The book presents a well-written chronology that is informative without being overly technical. Those seeking a more technical analysis will prefer "Belly Up," a report of the failure written by Phillip L. Zweig, a former American Banker writer who now works for The Wall Street Journal.
- Kevin Laval, 1985, The Daily Oklahoman
Heart of the Promised Land: Oklahoma County, by Bob Blackburn, Windsor Publications, 1982, out of print.
He Made It Safe to Murder: The Life of Moman Pruiett, by Howard K. Berry Sr., Oklahoma Heritage Association, 2001. In print.
Review:
A great act of preserving Oklahoma's early day legal history has been accomplished with the recent publication of Howard K. Berry's original 1940 manuscript of the life of lawyer Moman Pruiett. Titled "He Made it Safe to Murder" (Oklahoma Heritage Association, $29.95), the 700-page book details Pruiett's sordid, yet successful career as a frontier criminal defense attorney. Also interesting is the road down which the saga has traveled.
In the 1930s, the late Howard K. Berry was a young lawyer who became acquainted with Pruiett, who was phenomenally successful in his defense of those accused of crimes. In his first 20 years of defending the accused, Pruiett won 303 acquittals in 343 cases. His only client to be sentenced to death was spared by a presidential commutation.
Berry collected the tales and stories of Pruiett's cases and entered into a contract with a publisher before World War II. However, the publisher believed too many of the subjects were still alive and, fearing libel lawsuits, the project was dropped. Pruiett took Berry's manuscript and cut nearly half the stories from it. In 1944, after Berry went off to fight in World War II, Pruiett had the Harlow Publishing Co. of Oklahoma City print the information as his autobiography, "Moman Pruiett, Criminal Lawyer." The book has become one of the rarest for collectors of Oklahoma history books, commanding up to $1,000 for a mint-condition volume.
The Oklahoma Supreme Court, in the 1950s, ruled that Berry was the true owner of the original manuscript of Pruiett's story. Now, 40 years later, Berry's grandson, Howard K. Berry III, and family friend Richard Jones have spearheaded the publication of the full-length saga of Pruiett, the original manuscript written nearly two-thirds of a century ago. It is a publishing treasure.
Pruiett had no great admiration for the law. He simply did as he pleased as he built his reputation for having defended more murderers than anyone at that time in America history. He was a convicted felon, a fact that he used to scare opposing lawyers.
Some believe Pruiett was a great defense lawyer because he identified with people in trouble with the law. He would not have been allowed to practice law in modern times because of his criminal record. Maybe that's why he was easily persuaded to defend the scourges of society, the down-and-out crowd that had no one else to look to for help.
The true stories contained in "He Made it Safe to Murder" are stranger than the finest fiction writer could weave. They range from motivated killings to defending a U.S. senator from Oklahoma for allegedly fondling a constituent in an Oklahoma City hotel room.
The book is long overdue and is great reading. I only wish Berry, a capable and distinguished member of the Oklahoma bar, could have lived long enough to see his work in print.
- Bob Burke, 2001, The Oklahoman
Hero: An Oral History of the Oklahoma Health Center by Robert C. Hardy, published by the Oklahoma Health Sciences Foundation, 1985, out of print.
Historic Photos of Oklahoma City, by Larry Johnson, Turner Publishing, 2007, in print
Historic Stockyards City and Oklahoma National Stock Yards, by Bonnie Speer, Reliance Press, 1997
Honor Bound: The Life of Harvey P. Everest, by Christopher A. Mauldin, Oklahoma City University Press, 1989
Images of History, Oklahoman Collection, by Bob Blackburn and Jim Argo, published by the Oklahoma Historical Society, 2005, in print
Me and My Big Mouth, by Walter Mumford Harrison, Britton Printing Co., 1954, not in print, available at www.amazon.com.
Review:
Walter Harrison was an outspoken writer and editor during the early years of the Daily Oklahoman, then a broadcaster and then a city councilman. Harrison tells all – enough said?
- Steve Lackmeyer
Mr. Oklahoma History: The Life of George H. Shirk, by Howard and Mary Ellen Meredith, University of Oklahoma, 1982.
Essential OKC History
Review:
If this biography were to be written today, would it reveal more of this extraordinary historian and former mayor’s personal life? Having read Shirk’s diaries, his story is far more extraordinary than what is reflected in the official record. Considering the realities of getting such a biography published, this is still an essential read for anyone interested in Oklahoma City history. The Merediths do a great job detailing Shirk’s time as a member of Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s staff during World War II, his rise as a prominent attorney, and then his reluctant appointment as mayor during one of the city’s most turbulent eras.
- Steve Lackmeyer
Norick: The Mayors of Oklahoma City, by Bill Moore and Rick Moore, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 2005, in print, $26.95.
Oklahoma City: A Centennial Portrait, by Odie B. Faulk, Laura E. Faulk and Bob Blackburn, Windsor Publications, 1988, out of print, easily obtainable online or at second-hand book stores. Expect to pay $15 to $50.
Oklahoma City Air Material Area: Tinker Air Force Base [1962: 20th Anniversary] Directorate of Maintenance, Army and Navy Publishing, 1962
Oklahoma City: Land Run to Statehood, by Terry L. Griffith, Arcadia Publishing, 1999, in print.
Oklahoma City: Statehood to 1930, by Terry L. Griffith, Arcadia Publishing, 2000, in print.
Oklahoma City: 1930 to the Millennium, by Terry L. Griffith, Arcadia Publishing, 2000, in print.
Oklahoma City: Capital of Soonerland, by Lucyl Shirk, published by the Oklahoma City Board of Education, not in print, not too hard to find for sale online or at second-hand book stores.
Oklahoma City Rediscovered, by William D. Welge, Arcadia Publishing, 2007, in print.
Review by Doug Loudenback, www.dougdawg.blogspot.com: Mr. Welge's book is a welcome addition to the various Images of America series of books which focuses on Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City Rediscovered focuses on downtown Broadway, particularly "Automobile Alley," Capitol Hill, Deep Deuce, and the "Warehouse District," i.e., "Bricktown" in today's vocabulary.
I consider the element which makes this book particularly unique is its coverage of Deep Deuce and Bricktown, covered in more depth than any other publication I've seen, and its coverage of Capitol Hill isn't far behind.
Only one area gives me some pause: on quick review, I've noticed a few obvious errors which should have been picked up before publication. Some are harmless, e.g., using "capital" when used in the context of the state's "capitol" city (as did Lucyl Shirk's book even in her book's title!) but some are not. For example, on page 18 a very nice aerial photo of the warehouse district says that the picture was taken "around 1913" which is not possible since it also shows a 3-wing Skirvin Hotel in the lower right corner, each with 14 stories — the 3rd (east) wing of the Skirvin wasn't added until around 1925 and the other wings' elevation to 14 floors didn't occur until 1930. The image also shows the Calvary Baptist Church which was constructed in 1921.Whether this mistake was a careless proofreading error (1913 instead of 1930) or some other kind of mistake doesn't matter — things such as that give reason for pause in accepting text as "factual" when it is not.
Notwithstanding, the author is very well credentialed and the research put into the book, particularly as concerns Capitol Hill, Deep Deuce, and the Warehouse District, is obviously extensive and impressive. In this book you will find more images of Deep Deuce (which were apparently not always easy to obtain) than in any other book and they are a treasure to have.
Oklahoma City Zoo 1902-1959, by Amy Dee Stephens, Arcadia Press, 2006
Oklahoma Justice: The Oklahoma City Police, A Century of Gunfighters, Gangsters and Terrorists, by Ron Owens, Turner Publishing, 1995, in print, $29.95
Review by Doug Loudenback:
While it would be a stretch to regard Ron Owens' book as a "serious" history book (for example, while it does contain a bibliography, it contains no footnotes citing to references, and, for one interested in research, no index). That said, and while it would be tough to "test" the author's factual renderings from time to time as a researcher might want to do, it is obvious that the writer has spent countless hours in researching the history of the OCPD from territorial days through the Murrah Bombing, and/or/but, perhaps best of all, he doesn't "sound like" an academician - the phrasing is straightforward, very readable and pleasurable as he takes the reader through 100+ years of OCPD history, often with a tongue-in-cheek flair.
To illustrate what I mean, at page 12 a description of a gent named "Rip Rowser Bill" appears. He is described as "an armed drunk" who announced his summer 1889 presence in Oklahoma City with the prophesy, "My name is Rip Rowser Bill and I've come to Oklahoma City to start a graveyard." For many days, he swaggered around menacingly, but, eventually, a local group called the "Knights of the Cottonwood" had enough after Mr. Bill shot a few holes in a tent some of its members were occupying. According to Owens, they "decided that the man's manners better suited him for residence in Texas," they tied him up and planned to put him on the midnight trip to Texas. As it happened, and accompanied by "some local officers", they learned that the midnight train was going to be 3 hours late. The "local officers" left, "deciding that the intervening time could be better spent elsewhere", and Rip Rowser was left at the depot to be attended to by the Cottonwood group, sitting under a cottonwood tree with Mr. Bill. "When the officers returned at the appointed time to load him on the train, they found Bill swinging from a limb of the cottonwood. Locating and questing the committee members, they contended they had left Bill secured to a lim of the cottonwood tree and had limited his wanderings by means of a rope around his neck. A rapidly assembled jury agreed with the men's contention that the rope had shrunk during the night's dampness, raising Bill off the ground and causing his death. The next morning, Bill was buried on the banks of the North Canadian River just south of the Military Reserve section now known as the Bricktown area. Thus he fulfilled his prophesy about 'starting a graveyard in Oklahoma City'. But not before he was fined $3.30, the amount found in his pockets, for carrying a concealed weapon."
Sources? None cited. A great read? For sure. All 336 pages may not be as entertaining, particularly when the closer-to-home Murrah Bombing is discussed, but it's a fascinating and engaging story through and through about the OCPD, and I highly recommend it.
Oklahoma Land Rush of 1889, by Stan Hoig, published by the Oklahoma Historical Society, 1984, not in print.
Oklahoma Rescue, by Jon Hansen, Mass Market Paperback, 1995, not in print, but copies widely available online at about $5.
Review
I wrote the following review in July, 1995 – when emotions were still running raw from the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. I had worked with Jon Hansen for a few years at this point, and considered him a friend. But I shouldn’t have done this review. Right or wrong, I felt as if it was distasteful for John to have cranked out a book only a few weeks after the last bodies were recovered from the wreckage. And when the review was turned in, it contained a harsher tone than what ended up being reflected in print. And that’s probably just as well. Looking back now, it’s a decent glimpse at the media craziness that surrounded the disaster. So, without any further delay, here is my review of Oklahoma Rescue:
Jon Hansen is a natural at public relations. The Oklahoma City assistant fire chief is a veteran in dealing with the media, having developed the department's public information program in 1983. His job is to relay information and stories to the public about the men and women who risk their lives daily as Oklahoma City firefighters.
And usually the story is not about himself.
"Oklahoma Rescue," now on sale in Oklahoma bookstores, promises the "heroic untold story, direct from the heartland and the heart" of Jon Hansen's role during the rescue and recovery efforts following the April 19 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Hansen's book should not be confused with the book project involving Oklahoma first lady Cathy Keating.
Proceeds from the first lady's project are designated for the victims' families. Hansen told The Oklahoman he won't make much money from his book, but won't say how much he has received or will receive. A large portion of the profits will go to the publisher, agents, lawyers and editors, he said. "Oklahoma Rescue" is a 185-page paperback Hansen said he wrote while off duty.
The book may provide some new details for anyone who did not watch, listen to or read the daily news coverage of search and rescue efforts following the bombing. He tells the stories of his department - with kudos for all and not one ill word toward others.
Hansen is careful not to hog the credit, always attributing actions and decisions to "we" and not "I." A chapter titled "Satellite City" is probably the closest Hansen gets to relating his own story. While generally praising the media, Hansen focuses on celebrity television journalists he met.
"Ted Koppel of ABC really felt for the people of Oklahoma City," Hansen wrote.
"Though I didn't meet him personally, I could hear the compassion in his voice when we talked over the airways. " Bryant Gumbel of NBC's "Today" show, "is a guy who does his homework," Hansen notes. "When he arrived on the scene he walked up to me and said, 'Hi, Jon. How's your wife Jenifer? ' Having never met the man, I couldn't help but be impressed. " Jenifer Reynolds, Hansen's wife, is an anchorwoman for KWTV in Oklahoma City.
Hansen also gives his account of the interview with Connie Chung, who was then with the "CBS Evening News. " After arriving at the bomb site in a limousine, Chung posed the question that angered many Oklahomans - "Can you (the Oklahoma City Fire Department) handle this? " "My initial reaction was certainly surprise, because that's exactly what we'd been doing, and doing well, since 9:02 a.m. "I had dozens of interviews by that time and no other member of the press had questioned our ability to deal with the crisis.
"At the time I didn't really take offense. I simply answered what seemed to be a silly question as politely as possible. " Hansen said "It wasn't until the next day that I realized the problem that Ms. Chung had created for herself. "
- Steve Lackmeyer, 1995, The Daily Oklahoman
Old Man River: The Life of Ray Ackerman, By Bob Burke and Joan Gilmore, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 2002, in print, $24.95
Review:
Oklahoma City's modern history can't be told without giving prominent mention to Ray Ackerman, who built the state's largest advertising agency and boosted his adopted city at every opportunity.
Bob Burke, writing with Joan Gilmore, has produced a book, "Old Man River: The Life of Ray Ackerman" (Oklahoma Heritage Association, $24.95), that covers from birth to the present this human dynamo. Now chairman emeritus of Ackerman McQueen advertising agency, Ackerman carries a load of civic responsibilities. Ackerman served 35 years in the Navy Reserve, rising from pilot to the rank of rear admiral.
Title for the book came from Ackerman's long love affair with rivers, dating from childhood in Pittsburgh, when he swam in the Monongahela and Ohio rivers. For years after coming to Oklahoma City in 1947, he longed to see water in the North Canadian and became a prime advocate of dams and canals to bring the river into such places as Bricktown.
Ackerman and his wife, Lou, have been married for more than a half-century and have six children. Despite long hours spent in business and civic responsibilities, he and Lou took the family on long summer vacations. The couple have had more time for travel in later years.
This makes 38 books Bob Burke has written about Oklahoma and its people. He is an attorney whose passion is preserving the state's history. Joan Gilmore has been a journalist and established Joan Gilmore Inc., Public Relations/Videotaping. The book does a remarkable job of painting Ackerman in his multiple roles.
- Dennie Hall, 2002, The Oklahoman
One Man in His Time, by Jack T. Conn, Western Heritage Books, 1979.
Review:
Jack Conn, president of Fidelity Bank, was a leading civic leader who developed downtown’s underground pedestrian tunnels, which were named the Conncourse in his honor until being renamed as The Underground. It’s a decent read, revealing much of the mindset of the city’s business community in the 1960s and 1970s. – Steve Lackmeyer
One O’Clock Jump: The Unforgettable History of the Oklahoma City Blue Devils, by Douglas Henry Daniels, Beacon Press, 2007
Reviews:
Daniels chronicles a little-known but hugely influential jazz band: the Oklahoma City Blue Devils, which counted among its members Count Basie, Oran Page, Buster Smith and Lester Young. Touring from 1923 to 1933, the band had an appeal that crossed color and class lines, although it usually performed in segregated arenas. Most of the musicians—some of whom were college-educated—became meaningful symbols of black musicians determined to satisfy their artistic needs, despite the odds.
Their very existence, given racism and the Depression, symbolized "the vitality of a people," claims Daniels, a professor of black studies and history at the University of California at Santa Barbara. Whether playing in nightclubs or movie houses, the Blue Devils, with their masterful command of early swing, left their mark on the next generation of jazz and swing musicians, whose Kansas City and Chicago sounds often eclipsed the singular Oklahoma City strain.
To explore the Devils' enormous impact and their unique spirit of brotherhood, Daniels minutely records the lives of several key members, including Basie, Page, Smith and the famous blues singer Jimmy Rushing. He also illuminates the vibrant community of black Oklahomans, completing this important chronicle in American music history.
– Publishers Weekly
OPUBCO’s First Century, by David Dary, Oklahoma Publishing Co., 2003, in print.
Out of the Shadows: The Life of John J. Hardin, by Bob Burke and Kenny Arthur Franks, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 1998
Photographing Oklahoma 1889/1991, by Mark Klett, published by the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 1991, in print.
Pody Poe: From Tinhorn Gambler to Kingpin of Organized Crime, by Catherine Johnson, Grant Books, 2005.
Review:
What can be said about Oklahoma City retired gambler Tracy Coy “Pody” Poe? That he is colorful cannot be disputed; that he has been a warm friend to many people cannot be denied, either.
Actually, we don’t have to say anything. He’s said it all in his newly published book, “Pody Poe: From Tinhorn Gambler to Kingpin of Organized Crime” (Grant Books, $29.95). It’s one of those “as told to” books. Poe related his life story to Catherine Johnson, and she did much of the writing.
Poe, born in Oklahoma City in 1932, was the frequent subject of newspaper stories for many years because of his gambling activities. He keeps tongue far back in cheek when he uses the phrase “kingpin of organized crime.” It’s “tinhorn gambler” that he embraces, because most of his activity took place in the garage of his Nichols Hills home.
He’s greatly puzzled that so much was made of his low key gambling operation when the Justice Department could have been in pursuit of real criminals. Nevertheless, he finally wound up spending a few years in a federal prison, getting out just a few years ago. The government spent millions putting him behind bars.
A former state debate champion, Poe traveled in the entertainment business and worked in the insurance business before beginning a 35 year career as a professional gambler.
However, it’s his time in prison that makes some of the most interesting reading in the book. A recovering alcoholic and a cancer survivor, he was given medical treatment in prison. He lives in an Oklahoma City apartment.
The book’s co-author, Catherine “Katey” Johnson, studied writing at the University of Central Oklahoma and also studied film and the arts through the University of Oklahoma as well as in Los Angeles, Dallas and Maui, Hawaii.
A careful editor could have enhanced the book by eliminating some of the repetition. Poe marvels all too often at how the government eyed him when there were bigger fish in the sea. He cites other gambling operations that garner no attention at all.
Here’s the way he puts it: “People have always gambled. Even the Ancient Greeks wagered on many types of games. But gambling is a billion-dollar industry today. They gamble inside and outside the system. They always have and always will. To this day, I don’t understand why it is legal in Oklahoma for Indians to have slot machines on their land, but it’s not okay for you to play Twenty-one or poker with your friends in your garage.”
- Dennie Hall, The Oklahoman, January, 2005
Roscoe Dunjee: Champion of Civil Rights, by Bob Burke and Angela Munson, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 1998
Simple Truths: The Real Story of the Oklahoma City Bombing Investigation, by John Hersley, Larry Tongate and Bob Burke, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 2004
Staring at Sound: The True Story of Oklahoma's Fabulous Flaming Lips, by Jim Derogatis, Broadway Press, 2006
Reviews:
Chicago rock journalist DeRogatis (Let It Blurt) chronicles the Flaming Lips' 23-year journey from local oddities to nationally famous stars. Formed in 1983 by charismatic front man Wayne Coyne, the Flaming Lips have enjoyed a career boasting almost all the hallmarks of the usual indie band—except they're not an indie band. They've released nearly all their work on a major label, Warner Brothers, and are one of the few bands of the 1990s to fulfill the terms of their contract.
Along the way there were many tense moments, lineup changes and struggles (for 10 years, Coyne would come off tour to work as a fry cook at Long John Silver's). More than two decades later, however, in a testament to their dedication and vision, the band has a platinum record under their belt. Luckily for them and for their fans, they drew DeRogatis, one of the nation's best newspaper music critics, as a biographer. DeRogatis handles the story soberly yet intimately, without relating the usual tales of drug-fueled rock star excess, which the band has always eschewed.
Although the book lacks some flair for that reason, fans will appreciate that the Flaming Lips have avoided cliché in their lives as they have in their music.
– Publishers Weekly
The Flaming Lips have been a cutting-edge rock band longer than today's teens have been alive, yet, in the last few years, they've been able to attract new young fans. They defied conventional wisdom by making their best album nearly 20 years into their career. Using interviews with most of the key players and his own experiences, music critic DeRogatis takes readers on a journey that goes around the world with the Lips, but always back to their home base of Oklahoma City.
Though the author is obviously a fan, he doesn't fawn, and he allows true personalities to shine through. Singer Wayne Coyne is portrayed as a visionary, but also as a bit of a tyrant. Bassist Michael Ivins is his perfect complement–an introvert to Coyne's dynamic showman. The Flaming Lips toured relentlessly, rarely turning down gigs, and made phone calls, sent out demo tapes, and finally signed to a major label, where they outlasted countless other '80s and '90s groups that had more immediate success.
Teens should find it eye-opening to learn how a band promoted itself before the Internet. Several photographs show the performers in all their incarnations, and there are even some reproductions of Coyne's early artwork. The book is well indexed, but lacks a discography. However, each album is discussed in great detail and fans will love hearing the stories behind the songs. Luckily, the original albums have been rereleased.
–Jamie Watson, Library Journal
The Autobiography of Charles Francis Colcord, 1859-1934, published by C. C. Helmerich? 1970
The First Eight Months of Oklahoma City, by Bunky, The McMaster Printing Co., 1890 (reprinted in 1988)
ESSENTIAL OKC HISTORY
Review: Early day journalist “Bunky” records it all – the euphoria of the initial run, the politics of establishing a new town, the rush to establish industry, the unsuccessful effort to build a canal from the North Canadian River to city’s young industrial area, and the heartbreak of financial ruin for many of the settlers. – Steve Lackmeyer
The Judge: The Life of Robert A. Hefner, by Clifford Earl Trafzer, University of Oklahoma, 1975. Biography of the Ardmore attorney who became Oklahoma City mayor and an Oklahoma Supreme Court justice.
The Making of a Merchant: R.A. Young and T.G.&Y. Stores, by Odie Faulk, 1980, Western Heritage Books.
The Story of Oklahoma City: The Biggest Little City in the World, by W.F. Kerr, published by S.J. Clarke, 1922
The Vietnamese in Oklahoma City: A Study of Ethnic Change, by Charles C. Muzny, AMS Press, 1989
Vanished Splendor, by Jim Edwards and Hal Ottaway, Abalache Book Shop Publishing, 1982, not in print. Copies of all three Vanished Splendor books can be obtained online or at second hand book stores for about $150.
ESSENTIAL OKC HISTORY
Review: All of the Oklahoma City picture books published the past 20 years still can’t top this excellent collection of post cards. – Steve Lackmeyer
Vanished Splendor II, by Jim Edwards and Hal Ottaway, Abalache Book Shop Publishing, 1983, not in print. Copies of all three Vanished Splendor books can be obtained online or at second hand book stores for about $150.
ESSENTIAL OKC HISTORY
Review: All of the Oklahoma City picture books published the past 20 years still can’t top this excellent collection of post cards. – Steve Lackmeyer
Vanished Splendor III, by Jim Edwards, Mitchell Oliphant and Hal Ottaway, Abalache Book Shop Publishing, 1985, not in print. Copies of all three Vanished Splendor books can be obtained online or at second hand book stores for about $150.
ESSENTIAL OKC HISTORY
Review: All of the Oklahoma City picture books published the past 20 years still can’t top this excellent collection of post cards. – Steve Lackmeyer
Victor Wickersham: Your Best Friend, by Bob Burke, UCO Press, 2001
Review:
A great Oklahoma history trivia question is, "Who has run for public office more than anyone else?" The answer is longtime Congressman Victor Wickersham, according to Oklahoma City attorney, author and historian Bob Burke.
Burke's new book, "Victor Wickersham: Your Best Friend" (University of Central Oklahoma Press), chronicles the legacy of Wickersham, who spent more than half his adult life in public office. He ran for office 24 times, facing 105 men and one woman. He defeated 100 of the 106 opponents.
Wickersham, certainly one of the state's most colorful politicians, grew up in Mangum in Greer County. He served nearly two decades in the U.S. Congress. At more than 80 years old, he was elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
Part of the title of his biography, "Your Best Friend," comes from the way Wickersham answered his telephone, whether at the office or at home. He would say, "This is Victor Wickersham, your best friend, what can I do for you?" When he ate in restaurants, he even went to the kitchen to lobby the cooks and dishwashers.
Wickersham would do nearly anything to publicize his candidacy. It was nothing to see him dressed like Uncle Sam in a town Founders Day parade. He appeared in World War II-era magazine ads for tires he tested on the way from Mangum to Washington, D.C.
Even with his publicity events, Wickersham was a dedicated public servant. He cherished moments, day or night, when constituents called upon him for help.
Wickersham died in 1988, at age 82, while serving in the Oklahoma legislature.
- Eric Dabney, 2002, The Daily Oklahoman
When Oklahoma Took the Trolley, by Allison Chandler and Stephen McGuire, published by Interurbans, 1980, not in print.
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