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How did the Unassigned Lands become unassigned?
This past April 22, 2020, was the 131st anniversary of the land run that opened the central part of today's State of Oklahoma to homesteading by non-Indian settlers. These were lands owned by the U. S. Government and not assigned to any organized territory nor to any Indian nation or...
Bob Gregory: A tribute from his son
After I posted my tribute in memory of Bob Gregory, I received an email from his son, Jason Pitcock, who included a copy of the eulogy he wrote for his dad and delivered at his service. What an amazing life he led! Like Bob Gregory's work, Jason's tribute to his...
Primary night at Sullivan HQ
We pulled into the Sullivan HQ parking lot shortly before 9 p.m. on election night. We were just coming back into Tulsa after five days away. We voted Friday morning at the election board, then headed southwest to hear the magnificent final performances of the choir and orchestra at...
State Sudafed system SNAFU; snuffly Sooners suffer
It's cold season, and Oklahoma's whipsaw weather has Sooner noggins clogged with snot and in search of a solution. A few minutes ago at a nearby chain drug store, I heard one of the assistants say that, at the moment, no one in the state of Oklahoma can buy products...
A New Zealander's fond memories of Tulsa
A few weeks ago I received a note from Eseta Sherman. Eseta is originally from New Zealand, now lives in Alaska, but spent the 1980-81 school year at Tulsa's Memorial High School as an AFS exchange student. She remembers Tulsa, her teachers, her classmates and fellow AFSers, and her church...
Coburn to sing Elton John hit for Florida gathering
As if the pride of Oklahoma weren't sufficiently wounded: Oklahoma's junior senator in Washington soon will be belting out a rendition of the Elton John hit "Rocket Man" after losing a bet with a colleague from Florida. Sen. Tom Coburn and Florida Sen. Bill Nelson placed a wager on Thursday's...
Inside the AP Top 25
If you've ever wondered what goes into a sportswriter's vote in the weekly AP Top 25 college football rankings -- particularly in September when only a few games have been played and the relative strengths of teams aren't as clear as they will be in November -- head over to...
Fantastic Tulsa Films, Vol. 2: tonight at 7 on KOTV
Jack Frank has put together a number of wonderful films about Tulsa's past, using old news footage and home movies to show us what our city used to be like -- the ordinary, everyday stuff as well as the big news. Jack has issued a new DVD, Fantastic Tulsa Films,...
Terrorist attack at OU game?
A bomb went off outside the OU-Kansas State game at about 8 p.m. on Saturday. Here's the official statement from the University of Oklahoma. Sunday's Daily Oklahoman reports that the bomber and sole victim was Joel Henry Hinrichs III, a junior. A cache of explosives was found at Hinrichs' apartment....
Watts out. Who's in?
Got a comment wondering if I'd be writing about the decision of former Congressman J. C. Watts, Jr., not to run for Governor of Oklahoma. I heard Watts on KFAQ this morning. He cited family as the main reason for his decision, wanting to be a part of his kids'...
Orange Bowl consolation
Were the Sooners that bad, or were the Trojans really that good? I stopped watching in the middle of the second quarter, stopped listening in the middle of the third. At least Oklahomans have this to console us: Our wily Boy Governor, Brad Henry, didn't bet over his head in...
Dining out: Binh Le, Billy Sims
We recently ventured out to a couple of restaurants we hadn't visited before. Binh Le is a Vietnamese restaurant at 31st and Joplin (west of Sheridan), in a converted QuikTrip. (You could never tell if you didn't know already.) When Ri Le Restaurant lost its lease at 31st and Yale...
Noted in the "table sauce" aisle at Reasor's...
...Billy Sims Barbecue Sauce and Selmon Brothers Barbecue Sauce. But these Sooner greats aren't just to be found in the stores. Heisman Trophy winner Billy Sims has a barbecue place at the Farm Shopping Center now, where the dishes are named after the opponents of the Sooners -- e.g., the...
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