The Oklahoma Museum of Popular Culture (OKPOP) in the Tulsa Arts District across from the historic Cain’s Ballroom is working to showcase countless stories of Oklahoma Creatives who have impacted the worlds of music, movies, television, radio, comics, animation, literature, and more. OKPOP staff uncover new and interesting Oklahoma connections to pop culture history every day.

Watch the “Profiles in Pop” series to meet the OKPOP people working behind the scenes to build a world-class museum that will make the state proud. See the newest staff profile video that features OKPOP’s storytelling coordinator, Caelyn Musgrove. She started at OKPOP as an intern and is today a vital team member who is the museum’s MVP of research, spreadsheets, and puns. Musgrove is an expert on niche Oklahoma trivia and puts her whole heart into everything she does. Follow OKPOP on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about what’s going on behind the scenes.

TURN OVER A NEW LEAF

From the Stacks: Readings from the Carnegie Library

The Oklahoma Territorial Museum and Carnegie Library in Guthrie will offer the evening educational program, From the Stacks: Readings from the Carnegie Library that will examine various book titles. The series will take place at 6 p.m. on the third Thursday of January, February, March, and April inside the Carnegie Library. OTM curator/registrar Michael Williams will lead the discussion, exploring the historical context in which the authors lived and wrote the works.

Save the dates below, which list the books and authors chosen for the program.

• January 18 - Leaves of Grass (1885), Walt Whitman
• February 15 - A Son of the Middle Border (1917), Hamlin Garlin
• March 21 - Ben Hur: A Tale of Christ (1880), Lew Wallace
• April 18 - With Walker in Nicaragua: Or, Reminiscences of an Officer of the American Phalanx (1909), James Carson Jamison

Admission is free, but donations are accepted. The Oklahoma Territorial Museum and Carnegie Library is located at 406 E. Oklahoma Ave. in Guthrie. For more information, please call 405-282-1889.

EXHIBIT GRAND OPENING!

Encountering John Brown

The traveling exhibit, Encountering John Brown, will have an official grand opening at the Honey Springs Battlefield Visitor Center on Saturday, January 13, at 1 p.m.

The opening will be celebrated with light refreshments and is included with paid admission. The exhibit material uncovers the history of the man who helped ignite the American Civil War. The display will also provide meaningful historical connections between John Brown and those who later fought at the Battle of Honey Springs on July 17, 1863.

Encountering John Brown was developed, designed, built, and toured by Overland Traveling Exhibits from North Newton, Kansas. Founding institutions include the Watkins Museum of History in Lawrence, Kansas. For more information, call 918-617-7125 or email honeysprings@history.ok.gov.

OPENS JANUARY 25

Oklahoma-Built Excellence: GM OKC exhibit 

Oklahoma-Built Excellence: GM OKC, a new exhibit at the Oklahoma History Center Museum, will open to the public on Thursday, January 25. Using a timeline, archival newspaper prints, physical artifacts, photos, and informational signage, the exhibit aims to tell the story of the Oklahoma City General Motors Assembly Plant and its employees.

Visitors will learn the history of the plant and its contribution to the economic growth of Oklahoma City and Oklahoma as a whole. At its peak, the Oklahoma City plant was estimated to provide 7,500 local jobs outside the plant, with an additional 2,600 jobs inside. The exhibit looks at the growth provided by General Motors in the metro area and what happened to its employees following its closure. This exhibit will be located in the Curators’ Corner area of the Noble Gallery on the third floor of the Oklahoma History Center Museum.