Today is the birthday of Bob Wills, the man who did more to create and popularize the wonderfully piebald music known as western swing than any other figure. Not that there weren’t some other great ones — Spade Cooley, for instance, along with Hank Thompson and Milton… Read More »Bob Wills, born March 6, 1905
It’s the birthday of my No. 1 writing hero John Steinbeck, who’ll be forever known as the author of one of America’s all-time greatest novels, THE GRAPES OF WRATH. (My personal favorite of his, however, is CANNERY ROW.) Thanks to a couple of good friends, my collection… Read More »John Steinbeck, born February 27, 1902
Today is the birthday of one of the pioneers of western-swing music, Clifton “Sleepy” Johnson, a very early member of the Fort Worth-based Light Crust Doughboys, the pioneering band that spawned both Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys and Milton Brown and His Musical Brownies. Adept… Read More »Sleepy Johnson, born February 25, 1909
Born on February 22, 1915 , Jesse Ashlock was a fiddler, songwriter (“My Life’s Been A Pleasure,” “The Kind of Love I Can’t Forget”), and occasional vocalist, best known for his longtime work with Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. In addition to being an integral part… Read More »Jesse Ashlock, born February 22, 1915
On this date in 1932, a feature film from the prestigious MGM Studios called FREAKS hit America’s theaters — to MGM’s almost immediate regret. This tale of life and love in a touring circus, directed by DRACULA’s Tod Browning, was a horror picture like no other, its… Read More »Freaks, premiered February 12, 1932
Happy birthday today to Garth Brooks, the top musical act of the 1990s and one of the most successful entertainers of all time. I was privileged to be the TULSA WORLD’s country-music writer during his ascendency, and I have to say that he has handled superstardom… Read More »Garth Brooks, born February 7, 1962
I’ve often told people that our birthday boy today, John Carradine, is the only celebrity I ever encountered in my 23 years on the TULSA WORLD’s entertainment beat who actually intimidated me. And I’ve written many times before about his coming to Tulsa to shoot a… Read More »John Carradine, born February 5, 1906
For almost a generation of Tulsa-area radio listeners, Phil & Brent and their Roy D. Mercer ruled a lion’s share of the airwaves. These days, Brent Douglas — who voiced the hilariously bellicose Mercer character for many years — has overcome health issues and dipped… Read More »ANOTHER HILARIOUS CHAPTER
Plenty of evidence exists to suggest that Gene Crose, who passed away in August at the age of 84, was Tulsa’s first rock ’n’[ roll star. In the decades he performed around the area, dozens of great Oklahoma rockers spent time in his bands, many of them… Read More »The Legacy of Gene
I’ve long been a fan of Sam Harris, the wildly talented Sand Springs kid who parlayed his award-winning appearances on TV’s STAR SEARCH into a lasting career as a Broadway player, recording artist, renowned stage performer, and in-demand talk-show guest. Now, following the successful publication… Read More »Master of All Trades