Cinnamon Suckers Created a Criminal

When I was growing up, candy was like currency. You’d do just about anything to get some and if you possessed it, you could wield a tremendous amount of influence.

For some reason, only old people knew the true power of candy. All grandparents had a candy dish and they could get young-ins to do just about anything they wanted them to do because of it.

If the candy dish had run dry, they’d fork over some change for the grandkids to ponder the smorgasbord of candy choices awaiting them at the local Utomen convenience store. I could spend an entire day narrowing my choices between Super Bubble bubble gum or “heaven in a cube”; the beautiful, translucent cinnamon sucker.

There was something about that particular candy that made me crazy! It reminded me of a clacker on a stick, only we could eat it. In fact, I loved the cinnamon suckers so much that they were responsible for one of the best worst moments of my life.

I was a pre-K kid in late '60s Moore, Okla., a city only recently incorporated at the time. The Colonel hadn’t even come to town yet, so if you wanted carry-out chicken you’d get the broasted chicken dinner from the local grocery, Jerry’s Foods. It came in an aluminum foil sack with a side of potato wedges as big as baby arms.

It was in pursuit of Jerry’s broasted chicken that my life was forever changed. Upon heading to the cash register to pay for our decadent dinner, we passed the candy display that even then was placed within taunting distance of customers waiting at the check-out counter.

There, sparkling, shining and virtually singing my name was a floral-like arrangement of cinnamon suckers! I wanted one SO badly but, in typical mom fashion, my mother wasn’t buying. She said it would ruin my supper. Undaunted, I told her that I could enjoy it AFTER we ate. Still no luck.

That’s when I took matters into my own hands…or panties, as was the case.

I slipped the cellophane-wrapped wonder past the elastic waistband of my polyester stretch pants and into my panty purse. (We didn’t have pants pockets until we started wearing jeans in the 70s). The outline of the sucker was clearly visible through my wash-and-wear high waters, but I slithered out of that grocery and into our 1965 Galaxie unnoticed.

Mission accomplished.

Once we got home and as soon as dinner was finished, I busted out the back door and onto a backyard swing. I stuck my greasy hand into my drawers and retrieved the cinnamon sin. Like an adult might enjoy a cup of robust coffee at the completion of a good meal, I was chasing that broasted chicken dinner with pure sugar!

It was glorious.

Momentarily.

Within seconds, as if the rustling of the sucker’s cellophane wrapper set off their internal candy alarms, my brother and sister came running outside begging to know where I’d gotten the sucker.

“Mommy gave it to me,” I said.

Wrong answer.

My siblings went berserk and ran back into the house, demanding their own sugar-on-a-stick. I sensed that things were about to break bad, so I chunked my “precious” over the neighbor’s fence and continued to swing.

My mom, with my siblings in tow, asked me where I’d gotten the sucker and the jig was up. I was caught red tongued and confessed everything.

The drama, however, was just starting.

With snot and tears pouring down my face, my dad tanned my hide and loaded my mother and me back into the family Ford and off to Jerry’s Foods where I’d face the music.

By this time, I was in the convulsive stage of crying, but my mom grabbed my hand and dragged me back to the scene of the crime; the grocery store candy aisle.

With blood-shot, swollen eyes, a quiver in my voice and a mucous trail a mile long, I made my way to the store clerk I’d slipped past earlier in the evening with my candy contraband.

My knees were knocking as I stood there in front of the clerk and the rest of the store and confessed to my candy caper. I paid her for the sucker, turned and walked out of the store in shame.

It was a quiet ride home.

I remember that day as if it was yesterday and even though I was humiliated, I’m so glad that my parents delivered firm, swift discipline.

The lesson wasn’t just for my benefit. It was also my first experience with vicarious punishment. After witnessing my ordeal, my brother and sister never even considered getting a five finger discount.

With Halloween approaching and candy on the brain, I’m reminded of that valuable lesson: Don’t take stuff that doesn’t belong to you.

Pretty sweet lesson.

Play Stupid for Me

I guess I must be fooling some people in the intellect department because a few years ago I was asked to “play dumb”.

I was invited to take part in a sports show, but they wanted me to “act like I didn’t know that much” about sports so that I wouldn’t upset the guys in the listening audience. (Huh?)

They were interested in the “female perspective” of the game, which they assumed would include discussion of the team’s uniforms, band routines, tailgate recipes and general game day aesthetics. When I started to speak about the sport with a bit too much understanding for their tastes, I lost them.

First of all; I’m just an avid fan, like a lot of folks around here, who's followed football most of my life. To act as if I didn't know what I was talking about insinuated that maybe I did know what I was talking about which was both a compliment and an insult. It was great that they thought I might know my stuff, but why was it not okay to express that alleged knowledge?

It never even dawned on me that my participation in the football discussion might be considered some sort of weird territorial invasion or something. I loved cussing and discussing the season with fellow fans. What difference did it make that I was a woman?

A BIG DIFFERENCE, apparently.

You’d think it’d be hot as all get-out for a gal to discuss X’s and O’s with the boys but according to the folks controlling this particular show, that’s not the case.

Their stance really surprised me. I wondered if they’d ever looked around themselves while attending a game and noticed the tens of thousands of women in the stands. Had they ever considered that those female fans might be there because they actually understood and loved the game, not because they were dying to find out what the halftime theme would be?

And wouldn’t those same women in the bleachers find it offensive that their female radio rep was being asked to dumb things down to make the guys feel good?

As it turns out, I was never included in the show.

I still don’t get it. What’s the big deal about a girl talking sports? Why is one voice more valid than another?

If by “playing dumb” they meant mute, I played it perfectly.

Here it is: John Carter Cash's production of PICKUP TRUCK

I mentioned a few months ago that Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash's son, John Carter, was producing my song PICKUP TRUCK for an up-and-coming female country artist. We were asked to hold off on posting the song because they were going to do a video and they wanted an element of surprise as they launched the song and artist.

Since that time, things have fallen through. No video. No single. Disappointing, yes; but thrilling that someone liked the song enough to record it and Johnny Cash's kid produced it at the Cash Cabin studio!

So, here's the John Carter Cash version of PICKUP TRUCK as performed by Danielle Reed.

(If you're interested in hearing the original demo for comparison, you'll find it on the left side of this blog. Props to John Foster for the Stones'-like arrangement, Jennifer Dixon for the killer vocal and John Albani for the hot production on the original version.)

PICKUP TRUCK
(Stacy Barton Phillips)
Copyright 2007

I got a beat up pickup from my grandpa
Tricked it out last summer, got a custom paint job
When I cruise through town the boys look my direction
But I never got this kind of attention

At singles bars or Internet dating
Blind dates always kept me waiting
When I changed my ride I changed my luck
‘Cause I get guys with my pickup truck

Glass packs, spinners and chrome plated mud flaps
I even got a pool stick riding on my gun rack
Some Frederick’s of Hollywood swinging from my rear view mirror
Alpines blasting Willie’s “Whiskey River

I draw ‘em to me like moths to a flame
Horsepower and chrome beats ‘em at their own game
And when I pop the clutch it drives them nuts
‘Cause I get guys with my pick up truck

Now when it comes to courting I’m doing alright
A dozen to choose from, guys are waiting in line

No more singles bars or Internet dating
No blind dates, I’m tailgating
When I changed my ride I changed my luck
‘Cause I get guys with my pickup truck

Soothsaying Sooners' Season 2009 Style

Oklahoma head football coach, Bob Stoops, leaves the field after his team's loss in the BCS national championship game last year to the jeers and taunts of exuberant Florida Gators' fans. His young son, who's walking in front of him, appears to be recoiling in reaction to the insults being hurled at his father.

I'm "ate up" with college football, but this photo puts it all in perspective. It's just a game that most of us, especially in this part of the country, take WAY too seriously.

How seriously? Seriously enough to make one smuggle alcohol into a movie theater to help them forget about the football game they weren't watching because they thought they'd jinx their team!

I'm embarrassed to say that that someone was me during last year's national championship game between the Sooners and Gators. (See how well that technique worked???)

So, I've decided to back off this year and do my best to simply enjoy the game because that's all it is; a game. And games are supposed to be fun, not a mug shot waiting to happen.

Now, in the spirit of fun, I'll do my best Jeane Dixon impersonation. (For you youngsters or high-brow folk, she had a gig with the National Enquirer for several decades offering yearly predictions after she purportedly foretold Kennedy's assassination).

Here's what my crystal football tells me about this year's college football season as it relates to the OU Sooners and the NCAA in general.

GOOD NEWS:

OU beats Texas, wins another Big 12 championship and finally gets an elusive BCS bowl victory.

BAD NEWS:

OU does not play in the National Championship game due to an upset loss in a late season Big 12 game (Tech or OSU) that drops them enough in the BCS to allow another team to jump them in the final rankings.

BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME:

Ohio State vs. SEC champ (Alabama)

HEISMAN TROPHY:

A player no one’s talking about now will win the Heisman this year. (Oregon quarterback? Ohio State QB? Demarco Murray?)

There you have it. We'll see how things shake out in January. Until then, I'm just gonna sit back, relax and enjoy the college football season.

Maybe.

COWBOYS FOREVER: Fanfare or Foolish?

A former Baylor receiver-turned-singer/songwriter has been commissioned by Oklahoma State University to come up with a pre-game anthem for the Pokes.

His creation: COWBOYS FOREVER.

John Martin, whose father works within the OSU athletic department, has teamed with the producers of pop/rock sensation, the Fray, to record the football fanfare.

LISTEN HERE

The University of Oklahoma has no such commission, but there's a freestyle rap by former Sooner receiver, Malcolm Kelly, that's been turned into a pretty sweet remix by one Ronald Jenkees. Malcolm's impromptu performance became a YouTube sensation after it was captured in the Sooners' locker room following their win over Nebraska a few years back in the Big 12 championship game.

LISTEN HERE

Feel free to share your thoughts on the SOONER FREESTYLE and COWBOYS FOREVER anthems by hitting up the comments section underneath this blog.

BOOMER SOONER and GO POKES!

KEBC Killers

I killed KEBC.

Okay, I might have had a little help, but I was riding that legendary Oklahoma City country radio station when it died in 1996.

To be honest, the station had been faltering since its peak in the 1970s when you couldn’t pass a car or truck without seeing one of their infamous Keep Every Body Country bumper stickers. Good luck finding a grocery store or car lot that wasn't hosting one of their DJ’s on remote.

KEBC was hit hard when former rock station, 96X, went country to capitalize on the post Urban Cowboy craze in the early ‘80’s. KEBC tried to streamline by dropping their award-winning newscasts. They contemporized their sound and look as they went through the K94 phase.

No luck.

The tweaking continued into the early ‘90’s when country radio, thanks in large part to Garth Brooks, exploded. KEBC incorporated a slick new logo and was at the forefront of the “new country” movement. However, there was another station in town (KTST) that was doing the same thing, only better.

KEBC couldn’t catch a break.

The company I worked for acquired KEBC and I jumped at the chance to get into the country format with major market personality, Jim Lago. But the station still couldn’t distinguish itself from the other country stations. They even tried promoting themselves via a hot TV show. Remember “Dancin’ In Cahoots”?

Still no luck.

A final re-invention was attempted in the spring of ’96, complete with a more Top 40 sounding morning show featuring Tom Kelly and me. Within months, our company purchased the competing country duo, KXXY/KTST, and KEBC found itself as the odd man out. The axe fell shortly thereafter.

Our community lost an old friend and a part of its heritage with the demise of KEBC. The frequency has never gotten a foothold in the market since the country station’s departure.

Maybe it’s the radio gods’ way of getting back at those that killed KEBC: Keep Every Broadcaster Cursed?

That's one way to get even.

What's so funny?

What are you famous for?

Can you tie a cherry stem into a knot with your tongue?

Are you able to ride a 10-speed without hands?

Do you know ubbi dubbi?

I don’t know how it happened, but somewhere along the line, I became known for my laugh.

It’s not like it’s anything special. In fact, a lot of folks think it’s totally obnoxious. I’ve gotten hate mail over the years about it and I’ve tried to suppress it, but I can’t. It just explodes like a bladder at a frat party.

So, what’s the big dog deal? The only thing I can figure is that folks don’t have a lot of laughter in their daily lives and when someone else is joyful, it makes them feel good. It’s as contagious as a cold in a classroom.

I’m blessed to work with people who absolutely crack me up and I can’t hide it!

If laughter produces cancer fighting endorphins, then I hate to tell you, people, but I’m gonna live a LONG time. And my laugh’s staying with me!

LOL!

Sorry.

Two Little Words, Too Little Heard

Thank you.

It makes me feel warm and fuzzy just writing those two words. Unfortunately, we don’t say them or hear them nearly enough.

I like to hold doors for people and I was doing just that at a local restaurant the other night. In walked a middle-aged man dressed in scrubs and a well-dressed older woman. Neither acknowledged the friendly gesture.

I didn’t expect a French kiss, but their total disregard was surprising. I wondered if this was a sign that we were beginning to lose some of our Oklahoma values and manners.

Then I got a phone call.

It was an old friend whom I’d assumed was calling to tell me that someone we knew had died or some other major announcement.

But my friend wasn’t calling to tell me bad news; he had out-of-the-blue news.

He said he’d been re-visiting some projects we’d done together and he just wanted to let me know how much he admired my work! He said he appreciated me and told me…(wait for it)…THANK YOU!

WOW! I was blown away and utterly speechless!

I certainly don’t think I’m any great shakes and I couldn’t imagine that I’d left a lasting impression on him during our professional association. But I gotta admit; it was great hearing those two words: THANK YOU!

Words have the power to destroy or delight. Encourage or humiliate.

It doesn’t take much effort to let the people around us know that they’re appreciated.

Those two little words might be the spark someone needs to make it through a rough stretch in their personal or professional life; and they feel pretty good rolling off the tongue.

So, if you’re still reading this: THANK YOU!

I feel better already. I hope you do, too!

How Humpty Dumpty Changed the World

There was a time in my life when I actually enjoyed going to the grocery store. My favorite was Humpty Dumpty. In fact, I had my stomach pumped after one visit in which I licked rat poison off a jar of Nestle Quick thinking some of the product had spilled onto its lid.

But not all Humpty Dumpty trips ended with a trip to the emergency room. Most of them involved a half-hour or more studying items in the cereal aisle and promising my mom that I’d eat whatever cereal had the best prize associated with it. I lived for the Saturdays when I'd discover a box of Frosted Flakes with an Archies record on the back of the box.

I was mesmerized by the machine at the cash register that spit out S&H green stamps like scarves from the mouth of a magician. My mom would use them to buy store encyclopedias and “fine” china and while she was redeeming them, I’d usually talk her into getting me a Teen Beat magazine with Donny Osmond on the cover.

In the days before cable and the Internet, this was entertainment, kids, and I was all over it.

Despite all the goodness associated with my grocery visits, I had no idea that Humpty Dumpty was responsible for one of the greatest inventions of all time; the shopping cart!

An Oklahoma City grocer by the name of Sylvan Goldman had purchased the ailing Humpty Dumpty grocery chain in the early ‘30s. He observed his mostly female clientele struggling with the weight of the small grocery baskets provided by the store. One night, after work, he noticed two folding chairs in his office and had a brilliant idea: Why not place the grocery basket on the seat of the folding chairs and add wheels? A store janitor who was a master "redneck engineer" helped with the prototype and the shopping cart was born!

But nobody wanted to use them at first. Women hated them because it reminded them of a baby stroller. Men felt emasculated by the gadget. So, Goldman hired folks to push the carts around his store. He also paid young women to greet customers, offer them a cart and tell them that "everyone's using them". Eventually, the peer pressure worked and the cart caught on. So much so, that the invention turned into a $400 million business at the time of Goldman's death in 1984.

So, the next time you see a person pushing a shopping cart, think of Humpty Dumpty!

The Three "M's": Mullets, Music and McCains

Once upon a time...I had a mullet! However, we didn't call it that back then. No, sir, we referred to the hairstyle as a bi-level.

Anyways, I was sporting this 'do in 1985 as a bass playing member of the McCain Brothers' Band.

Remember the McCain Brothers? They were the super cute Oklahoma City television team that hailed from Bovina, Texas. They parlayed their local TV success into a national music and movie career.

The following YouTube video is photographic evidence of my follicle gaffe and musical pairing. As you watch the tape, you'll notice that my brother, Michael, has a similar hair cut...that's him on the drums.

What'd You Buy at TG&Y?

Do ya’ll remember TG&Y? Before Walmart, it was the Big Cat Daddy of discount stores. We bought all our school supplies, toys and most of our records there. Seems they even had a jewelry counter because one of my middle school beaus stole a necklace from there and gave it to me as a Christmas present (he also wore an army jacket and rode a dirt bike).

Here’s what Wikipedia says about the chain:

TG&Y was a five and dime, or variety store, chain in the United States. The chain was named for its three founders: Rawdon E. Tomlinson, Enoch L. "Les" Gosselin, and Raymond A. Young. The initials were ordered according to the age of the three, with Tomlinson being the oldest. Founded in 1935, the chain was headquartered in Oklahoma City. At its peak, there were more than 900 stores.

It was acquired by McCrory Stores in 1986, when it had about 720 stores. Shortly after McCrory's purchased TG&Y, that company cut over 8,000 employees and closed 205 stores, including 23 in its former home-state of Oklahoma. It did business under the TG&Y Family Center and later TG&Y Dollar and Aim for the Best and Dollar-T names as well. Toward the end of its successful years, the chain used the advertising slogan, "Your best buy is at TG&Y."


In 2001, the chain filed bankruptcy and eventually all stores were closed.

Our local TG&Y was located in the center of the City of Moore shopping center with OTASCO on the south end and Anthony’s on the north end (those stores would later fold, as well).

What’d you buy at TG&Y?

Unanswered Prayers

There’s an old Garth Brooks song that started running through my head the other day. Remember, “Unanswered Prayers”? It’s based on a true story in which Garth goes back home to Yukon for a high school football game and runs into his old sweetheart. Even though he was married, he longed for this other woman and felt that she was the one he should really be with instead of his wife.

But as he visited with his ex, something strange happened. She didn’t seem to be as perfect as he’d remembered and he could tell that she really wasn’t digging on him, either. So, as he walked away, he realized that God’s in charge and his wife really was the best match for him (of course, he’d later divorce his wife and marry Trisha Yearwood, but that would ruin my life lesson).

Have you ever ached for something and were destroyed when you were unable to attain it? I’ve prayed for guys. I’ve prayed for opportunities. I’ve prayed for better body parts. I’ve spent much of my life looking through my rearview instead of my windshield.

Recently, I began to consider where my life would be if I had followed those other paths that I’d tried so desperately to traverse. I had a revelation. Maybe I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing! That notion had never entered my mind! Wow, what a relief. And you know what? I’m at a pretty dang good place!

The Garth song reminded me that happiness isn’t getting what you want, but wanting what you got. God knows what he’s doing whether we understand it or not.

Thank God for those unanswered prayers.

"Handshake Town" music video

With all the distrust that's going on today, I often reflect on how things used to be...or maybe how they STILL ARE in the small towns around Oklahoma and the rest of the country. In these communities, a man's word is as good as gold and a handshake's a binding contract. I call them, HANDSHAKE TOWNS.

Here's a song I wrote with Michael Gresham that's all about those places. John Foster's tearing it up with his performance.

Where's your HANDSHAKE TOWN?

What Kids Did Before Cable

Once upon a time, there was no cable. There was no Internet. There were no home video games. In this not so long ago environment, children had to rely on an amazing resource for entertainment; their imagination.

From within this archaic world, a group of elementary school kids from Moore, Okla. joined forces to fight boredom head-on. They formed a singing group and stole their name from a Beach Boys’ hit. They called themselves the Vibrations. Other children called them the “awful Osmonds.”

With photographic evidence from 1974 and 1975 and a live recording from ’75, here's the result of their over active imaginations. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome...THE VIBRATIONS!

Did You Have This Shoe?

Okay, I've been trying to figure out the name/brand of a tennis shoe that EVERYONE wore when I was in elementary school. Here's a picture of a similar shoe, although I think I wore a knock-off of this one. It's a Converse canvas track trainer tennis shoe and they were everywhere in the early-to-mid 70s. I'm pretty sure we got the shoe at either Sears or Anthony's, but I can't find a pic of anything from those stores to back-up my memories.

Speaking of Sears, I had this shoe, too; the WINNER. The folks at Converse made this for the kids of Sears customers who wouldn't buy their children the real deal, the Chuck Taylor Converse! The patriotic colors coincided with the nation's bicentennial and I wore these shoes until they were completely red; stained by the Oklahoma red clay. Didn't Sears also have the JEEPERS brand?

Twisters Rip Through Oklahoma

We got an early start to tornado season with a round of deadly February storms striking the area yesterday afternoon/evening.

Locally, Edmond suffered the most extensive destruction. Thanks to BOB listener, JILL, for submitting these shots of tornado damage from the Oak Tree Golf and Country Club in north Edmond. Here are her comments:

Hi Stacy,

You may have already seen these, but a friend of mine at work shared them with me and I thought you guys might be interested. Sorry, no lighter, pocket knife or Skoal can to gage these by, but perhaps the hand will do!

Jill











Here's a photo from another BOB listenter, BARBARA. She writes:

Stacy,

I work with a gal that lives near Oaktree. Her son took these pictures.

I thought Kiki might like them.

Love your show!!

Barbara

(If you click on the photograph, you can clearly see a guy who's left the safety of his home to get a better look at the storm! I love the way men react to tornadoes!)

As bad as things looked in central Oklahoma, they were a lot worse in southern sections of the state where tiny Lone Grove (just northwest of Ardmore) was leveled. Eight deaths were confirmed after the EF-4 twister plowed through the Oklahoma soil for more than an hour!

The TODAY show aired this piece about the deadly storms:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Maybe there's something amiss in the atmosphere above Edmond. The last two twisters to strike the OKC metro area have hit northwest Edmond. So, is it the new tornado capital of Oklahoma supplanting perennial cyclone magnet, Moore?

No Oklahoma, No Obama?

This week’s historic inauguration of Barack Obama reminded me of an impactful local Civil Rights moment; the desegregation of the lunch counter at Oklahoma City's Katz drug company. (My mom, dad and grandmother were actually there when it happened, but it wasn't the first historical event in Oklahoma that my family managed to worm their way into. Please see the earlier blog entry on my kin’s attempt to overthrow the government with squirrel guns in the Green Corn Rebellion)

Not familiar with the Katz story? Well, back in August of 1958, Oklahoma City’s Katz Drug Store was the scene of one of the nation’s first sit-ins. My grandmother was the head cashier/business manager at the downtown store during this time of intense racial unrest. My mother helped her out by typing up payroll checks for employees. Before long, my parents would find love at Katz after my dad took a job as a busboy/stocker.

The store’s manager, Mr. Wade (that’s how my grandmother and every other employee referred to him), had been steadfast in refusing to serve African Americans. It’s hard to believe that this was common practice in these parts just fifty years ago.

Here’s how the whole Katz thing went down, according to the Oklahoma Historical Society:

“On August 19, 1958 Mrs. Clara Luper led 3 dedicated chaperones and 14 courageous members of the NAACP Youth Council from her home to the Katz Drug Store lunch counter in downtown Oklahoma City. They attempted to sit at the lunch counter and order soft drinks. This seemingly simple gesture ignited a non-violent act of civil disobedience that instantly catapulted Mrs. Luper and the youth council into the spotlight of the local and national press and has earned them a place in the annals of U.S. history. Their struggle to integrate the eating establishments in Oklahoma City lasted 5 years and 11 months.”

Eventually, as my grandma told me, Mr. Wade gave in. One day he said to the staff, “Well, hell; go ahead and serve ‘em. Their money’s just as good as anybody else’s.” And with that, the counter was opened to blacks and soon afterwards, other public facilities were desegregated, too.

Can you imagine what Ms. Luper and other African Americans of her generation must be feeling today with a man of color in the White House? I can’t fathom the humiliation of being refused service because of my skin color. But here we are, a half-century later, being led by a man whose father would have been forced to sit at the back of a bus simply because of his race.

We’ve come a long way, baby, and Oklahoma City got the movement started!

Thank you, Clara and company!

(Photos from the Oklahoma Historical Society)

Oklahoma’s Rockabilly Pioneer Makes Rock HOF

Oklahoma native, Wanda Jackson, is among the latest inductees into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame. She joins fellow musicians Metallica, Run-DMC, Jeff Beck, Bobby Womack and Little Anthony and the Imperials in the Class of 2009.

Wanda was the first girl to rock out. She'd later get mixed up in a crazy romantic relationship with fellow rocker, Elvis (hubba-hubba)! If Elvis is the King, Wanda should be the Queen...with all due respect to Aretha Franklin.

I had a chance to meet Wanda a few years ago while we were performing at the Oklahoma Country Music Hall of Fame in Del City. The late great Bob Wood put the whole thing together and Wanda was the headliner. We were all star struck. Even though she was dealing with an awful sore throat and a bad cold, she belted out her rockabilly classics with power and conviction. Not to mention, she was still hotter than a firecracker. Just a beautiful woman, inside and out.

Congrats, Wanda!



(There’s still no Heart, Alice Cooper or KISS membership, so the controversy continues. CLICK HERE TO READ THE SUGGESTIONS OF BOB LISTENERS WHEN IT COMES TO THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME AND TO ADD YOUR COMMENTS)

Most Inappropriate Ad EVER?

Notice anything disturbingly ironic in this newsok.com story about a Del City arson suspect?

That's "hot"!

Graffiti Bridge Interview

If Northmoor's 35th tornado anniversary didn't make me feel old enough, I was recently contacted by newsok.com to share my memories of the 1991 demolition of Graffiti Bridge.

I was working at KJ-103 at the time of the bridge's demise and we sprearheaded a petition drive to save the bridge. At the time, there was an article in the paper describing our efforts and I was quoted, so that's why they talked to me for the retrospective piece.

The following video is a bit choppy, but it's a great look back on the local landmark. It's so sad to see former city councilman, Mark Schwartz, in such a poor physical condition. He would die just a few weeks after he was interviewd for this piece.

So, for those of you who are "old" enough to remember Graffiti Bridge, enjoy the walk down Memory Lane. If the story is new to you, I'm sorry you missed this unique icon.

35th Anniversary of the Northmoor Tornado

It’s been 35 years since a tornado ripped through my elementary school in Moore. The November 19, 1973 tornado (yes, I’m that old, DANG IT!) touched down initially in Blanchard,
then traveled to the northeast and struck Moore, finally lifting in southeast Oklahoma City. In all, five people were killed and 53 others were hurt in the F3 storm that began its path of destruction at 7:30 p.m. on a balmy, spring-like Monday evening.

According to the National Weather Service:

The tornado moved NNE at about 40mph from about 1 mile SSW of Blanchard. It moved through the west part of Blanchard, where winds were estimated at 150-175 mph. About a third of the town was damaged; 31 homes, 2 businesses and 2 churches were destroyed, and 44 homes and 2 businesses had major damage. Spotty damage occurred NE of Blanchard before it moved into Moore, where it struck a trailer park in S Moore and hit many homes and businesses in N sections. 37 mobile homes were destroyed and 30 others damaged. Of the 28 injuries in Moore, most occurred in the trailer park. Substantial damage occurred to a warehouse at SE 89th where a watchman was killed by a collapsed concrete brick wall. The remaining deaths occurred in mobile homes in Blanchard and Moore. Minor roof damage occurred in SE OKC and Del City N to about 20th Street SE. [Path width 500yd, length 24mi]

Thanks to Northmoor alumnus, Jana Plowman, for providing a scan of the newspaper article that appeared in our local paper, The Moore Monitor:

Since the event made national news, I’ve included a small scan from its appearance in the St. Petersburg Times from their Wednesday, Nov. 21, 1973, edition.

Here’s how the AP story read:

The people of central and northern Oklahoma sifted through scenes of devastation Tuesday after nighttime tornadoes left five dead, dozens injured and property damage totaling millions of dollars.

Three of the dead were infants.
The Monday night tornadoes hit nine Oklahoma communities, but Moore and Blanchard were the hardest hit. More than 60 persons were injured in the state, most of them in Moore and Blanchard.

RESCUERS in the two towns worked all day Tuesday, feeding the hungry and arranging shelter for the homeless.

Linda Hill, 20, and her 3-month-old son, Neal, were killed at Blanchard, where a tornado destroyed two churches and 31 homes and caused major damage to 44 others.

Robbie Maynard and Jennifer Moore, both four months old, died when a twister smashed into a mobile home park in Moore near Oklahoma City.

RAY SAUNDERS, a 77-year-old security guard, died when a tornado caved in a warehouse in Oklahoma City.




The deadly weather made the front page of The Lawton Constitution , too. A scan from that particular edition appears on the right.




What isn’t mentioned in any of the available accounts is the devastation to our neighborhood school, Northmoor elementary. (Please CLICK on the COMMENTS section BELOW to read what some of my classmates had to say about that night). This is the only picture I've been able to locate that depicts the damage to the school. Thanks again to Jana Plowman for providing material from The Moore Monitor.

There was a PTA meeting at Northmoor that night and I was performing a square dance with other 5th grade PE students. We were waiting for our magical moment in a classroom to the east of the main office. At the last moment, we were moved to the opposite side of the building, probably because we were so loud that they couldn’t hear the program that was being conducted in the nearby cafeteria.

The lights had been flickering because there was a severe storm in the area (we were under a tornado watch, too). ‘How cool,’ we thought, ‘if the lights would go off while we’re all messing around in a classroom after hours?’ Well, we got our wish. And as soon as the lights went out, pandemonium ensued. All I remember is the sound of people screaming and crying and the smell of natural gas. There was also that typical jet-like sound that we heard as the tornado moved away from us.

The tornado completely destroyed the wing from which we were recently removed. The cafeteria suffered heavy losses which meant that we had to travel to Moore High School for lunch and a few classes until they could make the necessary repairs. Amazingly, no one was killed or suffered severe injuries in our school.

The photo on the right is that of Trooper Pat Grimes who has just picked up a child, killed in the storm, and is holding it in his arms. The horrified expression on his face says it all.

(On a side note: Trooper Grimes would die in the line of duty five years later in what has been called the saddest day in the history of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Lt. Grimes and two other troopers were killed in gun battles with a pair of prison escapees near Lake Texoma. Grimes’ funeral was held at the First Baptist Church of Moore and was attended by Lt. Gov. George Nigh and Gov. David Boren, among other dignitaries. Grimes was recently posthumously honored with the “OHP Lt. Pat Grimes Memorial Bridge” which is located on State Highway 97 where it crosses the Arkansas River in Sand Springs.)

As an addendum, BOB listener, Peggy Brooks of Yukon, submitted this article from USA TODAY -- published 11/20/2007 -- concerning an interesting modern day find in the aftermath of the '73 tornado:

Wedding Ring Recovered 34 Years After Deadly Tornado

BLANCHARD, Okla. (AP) — In 1973, a tornado killed Elinda Hill and her newborn son, and left her gold wedding ring hidden in the dirt.

Thirty-four years later, Eva McGrew was walking across the dirt in her backyard vegetable garden when she saw something shining in the sun.

She bent to pick it up and saw that it was a gold ring, with a cluster of three small diamonds.

"That ring was laying there on top of the ground just sparkling," she said.

When her son-in-law stopped by a few days later, she told him about her find.

"He said 'I bet I know who that belongs to' and he told me the story of the Hill family," she said. "This is where their trailer used to set."

The trailer was demolished in the tornado. Neal Hill's 20-year-old wife and his infant son were the only two people in Blanchard to die in the storm.

Hill built a home a few blocks north of where his trailer had been. He remarried, and the couple had a son. Hill is divorced now, but his son, Destry, 27, still lives nearby.

McGrew decided to see if she could verify that the ring was Elinda Hill's.

"Some people would call me a busybody, but I was bound and determined I was going to find out who that ring belonged to," she said.

She first called the funeral home to see if there were any records showing the woman had been buried with her rings, but the papers didn't say. She then got up her nerve and called Neal Hill.

Hill was cautious at first, in disbelief that this could be his wife's ring.
"I didn't want somebody else's ring," he said.

He looked through old photos, then came to see if he could identify it.

"I laid that ring down on the table, and he just stared," McGrew said. "You'd never think after all these years it would turn up. I have no doubt that it was hers. I'm glad it's found its home."

Elinda Hill's fingers were swollen after their son's birth, so she had put it away until the swelling went down, Hill said.

"It feels like this is the final chapter," he said. "It's kind of a bittersweet experience. I was glad to get it back, but all the memories came rushing back."

Finally, in a weird piece of irony, another deadly tornado hit the OKC metro area on the same date many years earlier. On Nov. 19, 1930, a twister also leveled a school (Camel Creek) and the town of Bethany, killing 23 people.

BOB Listeners' Message to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: "Let Us Pick 'Em"

The nominees for the new class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame were just announced and they include an Oklahoman, rockabilly star, Wanda Jackson. Others making the cut were: Metallica, Jeff Beck, Chic, the Stooges, Bobby Womack, Little Anthony and the Imperials, War and RUN-DMC. The nine finalists will be whittled down to five new members in January. However, the list still DOES NOT include Heart, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Alice Cooper and many other great rockers!

So, we posed the question: Which rocker is missing from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? The response was tremendous. Here’s a sampling:

Mike Tautkus from Kingfisher writes:

I suggest we make a grass roots hall of fame as an independent authority by YOUR listeners AND YOUR WEBSITE!!! YEAH!!! THE PEOPLE’S ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME

1. Jefferson Starship (Airplane)?
2. Steppenwolf?

(NOTE: Jefferson Airplane were inducted in 1996.)

Dana Bilyeu from Stillwater asks:

Who are these voters?
Did they spend every waking hour at concerts or spending their hard earned money on these bands? I doubt it. If Madonna goes in then the Moody Blues should be considered too. Where is Alice Cooper, Deep Purple, Bad Company, Yes, Heart, Nazareth, Thin Lizzy, KISS, RUSH, Genesis and I could keep going on and on? These people have paved the road for others to have the freedom to do what they do best in this business.

Spending the late sixties, seventies and eighties in the San Francisco Bay Area, I've seen tons and tons of concerts. We the people should be the voters of the Hall of Fame.

The ones who have invested in the business quite heavily !!!! Stood in line for days, hours, at concerts, record stores, beer lines, bathroom lines, tons of endless traffic, and stood at freeway on ramps hitching tons of rides from countless people to get there.

(EDIT: Dana has taken the fight to get YES into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame into her own hands. She wrote a letter to the Hall back in 2004 trying to talk them into putting the band on their ballot.

Here's the response she got from the RRHOF. Just click on the letter and it will open in a new window, large enough to read the fine print.)

REO Fan Forever was upset that the Speedwagon wasn’t getting any love:

As a lifelong fan of REO, their early stuff is rockin’, and even though I’m from Kevin Cronin’s home town (now planted in Oklahoma) that is not why I love their music.

They contributed so much to touring, they were always out there nonstop, and it’s unfortunate that most people think of REO as a pop band. Their “You Get What You Play For” is one of the better live albums ever put out. (IMO) It’s all preference and my preference is “REO SPEEDWAGON FOR LIFE”

It's an REO Speedwagon thing and you wouldn’t understand.

Tina Piro from Oklahoma City weighs in with:

I fully agree with all the rock bands you and your listeners are listening to – especially Heart, KISS, Pat Benatar and Stevie Ray Vaughn. But if you’re also talking influential bands, I have to add Duran Duran to the list.

They were the first band who pioneered video screens at a concert, they were the one of the first bands to truly create memorable music videos, they were the first band to have a song digitally downloaded, and even though they’re known as a pop band, these guys can truly rock. Listen to “Careless Memories” if you’ve never heard the song. Okay, that’s my $.02 worth.

So, who do YOU think should be in the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame? Partridge Family, anyone???????

Barry Switzer Guest Stars on "Saving Grace"

The King, Barry Switzer, was a guest star on "Saving Grace" Monday night. In case you missed it, here's Switzer in his cameo role!

Alamo Fury Discovered by BOB Listener

I received an inquiry from BOB listener, Mark Moore, wondering if the "rockin'" guitar I'm strumming in the Little House on the Prairie outfit is an infamous Alamo Fury guitar. Here's the picture he's talking about...

The answer is, yes, that's an Alamo which my parents picked up at Jesse Austin's music store in Moore! Mark told me that he, too, had a Fury from Jesse's but recently had to sell it. However, he had such a strong affinity for the instrument that he was able to track down another Fury that needed a little restoration. Here's Mark and his awesome guitar...

Thanks, Mark, for refreshing my memory when it comes to that vintage guitar that I basically gave away! Please don't bring up the 70s/80s era concert t-shirts I also sent to the Goodwill, okay?

My Redneck Relatives Tried to Overthrow the Government in the Infamous “Green Corn Rebellion”

Ever get some amazing news about a family member or friend and you’re just blown away by the revelation? Well, my mother casually mentioned to me recently that she’d never met her mother’s father because he died prior to her birth and oh yeah, he’d done time for TRYING TO OVERTHROW THE GOVERNMENT! What?!?! Talk about a shocker! Not only did I not know about this guy’s shady past, but I’d never heard of a revolutionary uprising in rural Oklahoma.

So, with my head swimming and being somewhat embarrassed by the fact that I was related to a rebel, I did some digging and this is what I found.

In the summer of 1917, rural Oklahoma was the unlikely setting for a failed governmental overthrow; the infamous Green Corn Rebellion. Never heard of it? You’re not alone. The Green Corn Rebellion is a little-known part of U.S. history in which poor farmers who’d aligned themselves with the Socialist Party of America worked up a short-lived uprising which grew out of the recently passed national draft law.

Despite the political stereotype of today which casts most Southern states as conservative strongholds, early 20th Century Oklahoma was fertile ground for the Socialist Party which wielded considerable political muscle (generally garnering as much as 10 percent of the vote in elections). The Oklahoma farmers felt that World War I was a rich man's war and they vehemently opposed it. The farmers didn’t want their sons forced into a battle with European entities in which they had no quarrel.

Things came to a head when the government tried to enforce the national draft law passed by Congress. On August 2, 1917, a group of farmers from rural sections of Southeast Oklahoma --encouraged by local socialists and the Arkansas-based Working Class Union -- formed a group to fight the draft. The rebels were under the false impression that they’d get the support of the Industrial Workers of the World, but that group had rejected affiliation with the WCU a few months earlier because the WCU accepted membership from those other than wage workers. So, a few hundred rebels, armed with pistols and small caliber rifles, met on the banks of the South Canadian River in preparation for a march on the nation’s capitol, Washington, D.C..

Local townspeople got wind of the rebellion brewing on the nearby riverbanks and gathered together their own forces, fighting several small battles and eventually scattering the would-be revolutionaries. When the dust and gunpowder settled, four townsmen, three rebels, and a local schoolteacher (mistakenly killed by a posse after he ran a roadblock) were left dead. 266 men were arrested with some of the rebels serving terms ranging from a few months to 10 years.

The Green Corn Rebellion forever weakened the Socialist Party in Oklahoma and the national organization took a hit, too. Even though the rebellion was touched off by the spontaneous acts of the disgruntled Oklahoma farmers, the national Socialist Party was blamed for their actions. The rebellion was one in a series of events that eventually led to the diminished appeal of the party and helped create the subsequent Red Scare.

Thank you for allowing me to "get all academic on ya". I now return you to the celebrity sleeze I've posted for your reading enjoyment!

Remember Patch the Pony?

Did anybody else have the childhood safety program, "Patch the Pony"? It featured a talking horse with a patch (although we never were told how he suffered the injury -- a duel, perhaps?) who would guide children through various stranger danger scenarios. I've included a few pics from the low-budget filmstrip and you'll love the funked up re-mix of the lame song they made us sing and memorize: "There's a brown and white pony and his name is Patch the Pony. He says, 'Nay, nay. From strangers stay away!'"

Ah, memories!