The Crossroads
of Creativity.
The Crossroads
of Creativity.
The Future of Our Past
The OKPOP Foundation has officially completed the $18 million Heart & Soul Campaign, and the State Treasurer has now approved and certified the pledges, releasing the state’s matching funds. This milestone marks the beginning of OKPOP’s next chapter: exhibit design, fabrication, and the build-out of Oklahoma’s first museum dedicated to the global creative impact of its people.
Hello Friends and Potential Donors,
“You know, this whole campaign wasn’t just about raising $18 million – it was about backing a mission that means something. OKPOP is here to celebrate the crazy amount of creativity that comes out of Oklahoma, to tell the stories of the folks who shaped music, film, and art, and to fire up the next generation to chase their own big dreams. The way people showed up to support this blows me away. Oklahoma should be proud of what’s coming.”
Honorary Campaign Chair
We recently connected with Muppet performer Deena Al-Saleh for a video interview about her remarkable creative journey, from childhood performances in Kuwait to Sesame Street Egypt, international work with Sesame Workshop, and her life today in Tulsa.
Deena shared how an unexpected audition in Cairo opened the door to puppetry and eventually led her to perform Khokha, a character created especially for Egyptian children. She talked about the research, community outreach, rehearsal, and time spent performing for children that helped shape Khokha’s voice and personality.
She also reflected on the unique power of puppetry to create connection. A puppet can sometimes reach people in ways another person cannot, opening space for imagination, trust, empathy, and wonder. One of her most meaningful memories came while working with a blind child during a segment about Braille, when the child reached out to experience the puppet through touch.
Deena also shared stories from her work with Sesame Workshop and children affected by displacement near the Syria-Jordan border, along with some wonderful advice about creativity, curiosity, and holding onto the childlike part of ourselves.
“It’s okay to be a kid, you know, even when you’re this size.”
And perhaps our favorite piece of advice:
“Don’t be stagnant. Don’t be still water, be moving water.”
From Kuwait to Cairo to Tulsa, Deena’s journey is a beautiful reminder of how creativity can cross borders, connect people, and help us imagine what might be possible.
Thank you, Deena, for sharing your story with OKPOP. We’re honored to preserve it. 💛
#OKPOP #DeenaAlSaleh #Khokha
What a great day celebrating Jim Halsey with friends here at OKPOP! 🎶
Today, we gathered to honor Jim’s extraordinary legacy and celebrate the official unveiling of Jim Halsey Way in downtown Tulsa.
For decades, Jim has championed artists, opened doors, built careers, and helped carry Oklahoma’s creative spirit around the world. We’re proud that his name will now have a permanent place right outside our doors.
And we especially love saying this: OKPOP now sits at the corner of Main Street and Jim Halsey Way. ❤️
Congratulations, Jim, and thank you for a lifetime of believing in artists, music, and the power of big ideas.
#JimHalsey #OKPOP #Tulsa #OklahomaMusic #MusicHistory
Remembering Lillian Gish on her birthday! 🎬
Born October 14, 1893, Gish helped shape the art of screen acting, showing how a glance, a gesture, or a moment of stillness could tell a powerful story. Known as the “First Lady of American Cinema,” her film career spanned an extraordinary 75 years.
Her story also includes a meaningful chapter in Oklahoma. As a teenager, Gish spent time living with her aunt and uncle in Shawnee and attended Shawnee High School, coming to Oklahoma to reconnect with her ailing father before her film career began.
At OKPOP, we’re proud to preserve part of her story in our Lillian Gish archive, which includes her personal typewriter. It’s a tangible connection to the person behind the performances and a remarkable creative life that reached across generations.
Today, we honor her lasting influence on filmmaking and Oklahoma’s place in her story.
#OKPOP #LillianGish #OklahomaHistory #FilmHistory #Shawnee
🎹 JIMMY WEBB: AMERICAN SONGWRITER
Join OETA and Circle Cinema on Tuesday, October 20 for a special Oklahoma premiere screening of Great Performances: Jimmy Webb – American Songwriter.
Filmed at Oklahoma State University, the concert celebrates the extraordinary life, music, and legacy of Oklahoma native Jimmy Webb, with performances by Webb, Vince Gill, Lyle Lovett, Ashley Campbell, Sheléa, and Ryan Shaw.
Following the screening, Jimmy Webb and the program’s executive producers will take the stage for a special conversation about Webb’s remarkable career and the making of the concert, moderated by OKPOP’s own Curator of Storytelling, Jarrod Gollihare.
📍 Circle Cinema, Tulsa
📅 Tuesday, October 20
🚪 Doors open at 6:30 PM
🎬 Screening begins at 7 PM
We’re thrilled to be part of an evening celebrating one of Oklahoma’s great songwriters and the stories behind the songs.
#OKPOP #JimmyWebb #OklahomaMusic #CircleCinema #OETA
Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day from OKPOP!
Today we honor Indigenous peoples, their histories, cultures, and the creativity that continues to shape Oklahoma and the world. Through music, film, literature, art, and beyond, Indigenous creators share stories that connect generations, challenge expectations, and open new possibilities.
At OKPOP, we’re proud to celebrate these voices and their influence on popular culture. Their stories are essential to Oklahoma’s creative story, and they’re still being written.
We enjoyed celebrating with Tulsa at Dream Keepers Park today! ❤️
#IndigenousPeoplesDay #OKPOP #OklahomaCreativity #IndigenousArtists #IndigenousStories
Remembering Elmore Leonard on his birthday. 📚
Best known as the legendary writer behind stories that became Get Shorty, Jackie Brown, 3:10 to Yuma and Justified, Elmore Leonard also had a fascinating connection to Oklahoma.
Leonard spent part of his childhood in Oklahoma City, one of several places his family lived before eventually settling in Detroit. Decades later, he returned to Oklahoma in his imagination.
His 2005 novel The Hot Kid unfolds across 1930s Oklahoma, following U.S. Marshal Carl Webster through Okmulgee, Tulsa and the surrounding oil country, against a backdrop of bootleggers, bank robbers, lawmen and Depression-era legends like Pretty Boy Floyd. Leonard dug deeply into Oklahoma history while developing the book, researching everything from Tulsa and Okmulgee to the oil industry, outlaws and the Mayo Hotel.
When The Hot Kid was published, Leonard insisted its book launch take place in Oklahoma, kicking off the tour at Tulsa’s historic Mayo Hotel, a location that also found its way into his fiction.
He returned to Carl Webster and Oklahoma again in Comfort to the Enemy, set partly in Tulsa and Okmulgee during World War II.
Leonard’s time living here may have been brief, but Oklahoma clearly stayed with him.
Happy birthday to one of America’s great storytellers. 📖
#OKPOP #ElmoreLeonard #OklahomaCreativity #OklahomaHistory #Tulsa
From the vault: a little more gold! 🎸✨
Recently, we shared the exciting news that Eldon Shamblin’s 1954 gold Fender Stratocaster has come home to OKPOP. Today, here’s a closer look at this extraordinary guitar alongside Eldon’s 1953 Bandmaster amp!
The worn fretboard is a reminder that this was much more than a beautiful instrument. It was a working musician’s creative companion, helping Eldon bring his unmistakable sound to life.
And that gold finish? It inspired the gold in OKPOP’s building design. Now the guitar that helped inspire our museum is here, ready for its next chapter.
We’re honored to preserve these pieces of Eldon’s story for future generations. 💛
#OKPOP #FromTheVault #EldonShamblin #FenderStratocaster #WesternSwing
A golden piece of Oklahoma music history has come home.
We’re proud to announce that OKPOP has acquired Eldon Shamblin’s 1954 Fender Stratocaster, celebrated as the first custom-colored Stratocaster!
Presented to Shamblin by Leo Fender himself, this remarkable gold guitar became a longtime companion to the Oklahoma-born musician whose inventive playing helped shape the sound of Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys and generations of Western swing guitarists.
It also helped shape OKPOP. The guitar’s distinctive gold finish inspired the gold color palette and metal accents in our building’s design. Before it became part of our collection, it was already part of our museum’s identity.
Now, across the street from Cain’s Ballroom, we’re honored to preserve this extraordinary instrument and share the story of the Oklahoma creative who made it sing.
Welcome home, Eldon’s gold Strat. 💛
#OKPOP #EldonShamblin #FenderStratocaster #OklahomaMusic #WesternSwing
Donate
Your charitable donation directly contributes to OKPOP’s future, we are grateful for your support! Donations to support the OKPOP Museum may be made to the OKPOP Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax deductible as allowed by law.
Donations may be made through the secure online donation form or mailed to:
OKPOP Foundation
422 North Main Street
Tulsa, Oklahoma 74103
If you have questions about additional gifting options, please contact Abby Kurin at akurin@okpopfoundation.org
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