Home movies are an important part of history. They show the private moments of our family’s lives, places we went on vacation, how we dressed, and how our cities looked year ago.
When the Tulsa History Series went on TV in the mid 1990s, the shows got people thinking about their own home movies. They went to their attics and garages, dug out their films, and loaned them to us for use in our documentaries. Some of these home movies date back as far the 1920s, and the quality is quite good. Here are some short clips of home movies that we have acquired from Tulsans
If you have films containing scenes of Tulsa or Oklahoma, we’d love to see them. Maybe they will even be used in one of our upcoming shows. We know your films are valuable, so here’s our arrangement. Allow us to view your home movies, and if we find something interesting that we would like to use, we will have your films professionally transferred to broadcast-quality master tape at no cost to you. You will then receive a copy of your home movies on VHS or DVD, whichever you prefer. Your original films can either be returned to you, or donated to the Tulsa Historical Society, where they will be properly stored, and well cared for.
She took many family films in the 1950's, but especially important are the ones she took of the last electric trolleys.
Taking home movies was her hobby in the 1940's and 50's. And we've used many of her movies, including shots of TU homecoming parades and the old airport terminal.
Gwen's father took many home movies as Gwen was growing up during the 1920's oil boom. Her films of gushers and early Tulsa let us see what the city looked like during the jazz age.
In the days before videotape became so dominant, people took home movies on either 16mm, 8mm, or super 8mm. To show them, they would have to put up a bulky projector and movie screen. Over the years, people ended up tucking their films away in the attic or the garage, which may be the worst place for them. There are many sites to help you understand how to properly care for and preserve home movies. One of the best sites is filmforever.org, where they aren’t selling anything, just trying to educate people about caring for their home movies.
"I just wanted to tell you what a great show we just watched. I grew up downtown, and even though I am only 41. I remember so many of the things that we included in the show. It was really great for my girls(11 &5) to see some of the history of Tulsa. My family has been downtown forever. We have Indian Lock & Safe. I just wanted you to know that you have touched my heart with your programs. There are some people who are from Tulsa, but have never been to 'downtown Tulsa'."
Thanks again. - Dee McElhaney
"I enjoyed your TV show-Fantastic Films of Tulsa. I really liked sharing the history of Tulsa with my 14 year old. She of course was amazed when she saw scenes from the "olden days" of the 1950's!!She could not believe we shopped downtown when I was a young girl. Many people that I talked with enjoyed all of the old restaurants and stores of the 50's and 60's. Someone mentioned there was a restaurant at Admiral and Memorial called Pudgey Burgers and it was very popular among the east Tulsa residents. I don't remember that one, but that is what is interesting. Keep them coming and keep up the good work."
Thanks again. - LaDonna Cunningham
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