Upcoming Exhibit:  Oklahoma @ the Movies

Opening in 2012

Oklahoma History Center

Oklahoma City, OK

The Oklahoma History Center, in conjunction with the development of Tulsa-based OKPOP, will open a 8,000-square foot museum exhibit titled Oklahoma @ the Movies in 2012.

This celebration will showcase the creativity and innovation of Oklahomans and their legacy of creating, starring in, and watching motion pictures on the silver screen.  Historic theaters bridging decades of change will be featured, including the Coleman in Miami, the Poncan in Ponca City, and the many ornate marquees that still grace the streets of Oklahoma's towns and cities.  These historic theaters of Oklahoma will be the highlight of the "in front of the screen" section of the exhibit.  The theme will explore our "shared memories," taking people back in time to those magical moments when reality was suspended for a short time.

Filmakers, including all roles of crafting a movie, will populate the "behind the screen" part of the exhibit.  These stories will focus on film industry pioneers such as cinematographer Buss Boggs (Oklahoma City); film editor Elmo Williams (Lone Wolf); public relations executive Stan Rosenfield (Oklahoma City); producer Gray Fredrickson (Oklahoma City); writer S.E. Hinton (Tulsa); art director K.K. Barrett (Tulsa); and academy award-winning directors Blake Edwards (Tulsa) and Ron Howard (Duncan).

Oklahoma's vast number of actors will provide the magic of the "on screen" section of the exhibit. This creative talent ranges from early cinema heroes such as Tom Mix and Will Rogers to the current roster of stars.  Hundreds of stories, many told by the stars themselves, will include the Oklahoma roots and Hollywood careers of Joan Crawford (Lawton), Gene Autry (Berwyn), James Garner (Norman), Tony Randall (Tulsa), Hopalong Cassidy (Tulsa), Kay Francis (Oklahoma City), Mary Kay Place (Tulsa), Dudley Dickerson (Chickasha), Gary Busey (Tulsa), Lon Chaney, Jr. (Oklahoma City), Vera Miles (Boise City), Ben Johnson (Foraker), Ed Harris (Oklahoma City), Jennifer Jones (Tulsa), Robert Knott (Oklahoma City), Alfre Woodard (Tulsa), Wes Studi (Nofire Hollow), Jeanne Tripplehorn (Tulsa), Brad Pitt (Shawnee), Tim Blake Nelson (Tulsa), and Chuck Norris (Ryan).

The exhibit will also explore film stories about Cowboys and Westerns, American Indians and Hollywood, African American movies filmed in the state, the film industry in Oklahoma, and the "Oklahoma Image" on screen.

Find out more at www.okhistory.org/movies.