Steel guitarist Bobby Koefer, one of the last surviving members of the Texas Playboys who recorded and toured with Bob Wills, has died at the age of 95. Here is Bobby's obituary, written by western swing historian Buddy McPeters for publication here at BatesLine: John Robert 'Bobby' Koefer, passed away...
From the BatesLine Bookshelf, a very occasional feature on authors and books that have influenced me: Christopher Alexander was an architect, but he might more appropriately have been called a philosopher of the built environment. He spent his career trying to describe and name the qualities that make a place...
Earlier this month was the 50th anniversary of the last time Bob Wills recorded with his legendary band, the Texas Playboys. The sessions that became the album known as For the Last Time were recorded at Sumet-Bernet Studios (aka Sumet Sound Studios), 7027 Twin Hills Avenue, Dallas, on December 3...
Edited from the version originally published on December 25, 2012 Merry Christmas to anyone who happens by BatesLine today. This Advent (2023) I renewed an earlier attempt to turn the 4-arm, 5-globe reproduction Victorian streetlamp in front of our house into a kind of Advent candelabra. I installed three purple...
A follow-up to a recent post about Charles Spurgeon's essay on music in worship. Brian Sauvé, a pastor and hymnwriter, posted recently on Twitter about his church's approach to music in worship: I get this question enough that it's probably worth posting about it separately: "How do you do...
Tulsa is the focus of another recent article from a UK newspaper website: A story in the Guardian Online about the impact of expressway construction on Tulsa's Greenwood neighborhood, and the possibility of reviving the neighborhood by removing the north leg of the Inner Dispersal Loop. Twenty-five years before Don...
More commentary opposed to SQ 820, on the ballot this Tuesday, March 7, 2023. (My earlier SQ 820 blog post covers campaign finances, the actual text of the proposition, and more voices against the proposition.) Twitter user Chels (@ChesterTweet) has a link-rich thread "explaining why every Oklahoman should vote...
Edited from the version originally published on December 25, 2012 Merry Christmas to anyone who happens by BatesLine today. As a Holland Hall high school student, I attended and sang in the annual service of Christmas lessons and carols at Trinity Episcopal Church, modeled after the annual Christmas Eve service...
The City of Tulsa's odd and oft-changed election process comes to its 2022 conclusion Tuesday with runoffs in three of nine Tulsa City Council seats. Three incumbents, all registered to vote as Democrats, failed to reach the 50% threshold in the August general election and so face a runoff. The...
Two State Senate districts and six State House districts that overlap with Tulsa County have general elections on November 8, 2022. Neighboring counties add in four additional State House seats. Here's an overview with my recommendations in six of the races; details after the jump, and more to be added....
Yesterday, August 15, 2022, at 5 p.m., was the deadline for campaign contribution and expenditure reports for candidates in any August 23 election. This includes the City of Tulsa general election as well as runoff elections for statewide office, county office, and the legislature. The legislature has created a mess...
The three-day filing period for the 2022 City of Tulsa election for City Council and City Auditor has concluded. All nine council seats are contested, but City Auditor Cathy Champion Carter has been reelected without opposition. Here is the complete list of candidates who filed. Names, ages, and addresses are...
At the end of the second day (June 14, 2022) of the three-day filing period for the 2022 City of Tulsa election for City Council and City Auditor, only two incumbents remain unopposed: District 3 Councilor Crista Patrick (D) and City Auditor Cathy Champion Carter (D). All nine City Council...
The last surviving Howard Johnson's restaurant, located in Lake George, New York, was recently found to have closed, evidently for good. An enthusiast, Alyssa Kelly, reported on Facebook over Memorial Day weekend that there were cobwebs on the door, a for-lease sign out front, and all the furnishings and...
This is a reworking of a post from two years ago, but it has been updated with current information about open seats and candidates, and there is some new information below. END OF FILING UPDATE, 2021/12/08: 5 of the 17 seats in Tulsa County had only one candidate (Berryhill, Collinsville,...
Local (almost), live conservative talk radio has returned to the Tulsa airwaves, on the frequency that was the first full-time talk radio station in Tulsa over 40 years ago. AM 1300 KAKC, owned by iHeartMedia, has rebranded itself as 1300 The Patriot, as of September 15, 2021. The station's line-up...
To journalists, photographers, and visitors, pilgrims this week of the centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre: Welcome to Tulsa. Some context may help you interpret what you see and hear this week.
AFTER-ACTION REVIEW: All items on the regular council meeting agenda were approved without dissent. There was only one controversy: Gary Brinkner, vice chairman of the Greenwood Chamber of Commerce, objected to special event application for the Black Wall Street Legacy Festival, which would block off Greenwood and Archer for three...
On Wednesday, April 28, 2021, the Tulsa City Council approved a massive rewrite of the city's animal ordinance (Title 2), which covers everything from pets to livestock to homing pigeons, at its regular 5 p.m. meeting. But the update didn't make any changes to the rules for raising chickens in...
Every February, the National Latin Exam gives students of the language the opportunity to show what they know, with the potential of earning prizes and scholarships. One of the challenges for doing well in the exam is that the exam syllabus does not align well with many popular Latin curricula....
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