Current Tulsa broadcast TV stations and their histories

TV Guide Online for Tulsa - See what's on right now in T-town. This feature requires registration. (Yahoo! TV is an alternative that lets you select only the channels you want to see.) TV Guide has a large presence in Tulsa, occupying the former Kensington Galleria shopping mall at 71st & Lewis where Weird Al shot his movie, "UHF".

KJRH, Channel 2 (Cox cable channel 9) (NBC) - Jack Frank's Emmy award-winning "Oklahoma Memories" featured TTM. From Channel Changer 1: Channel 2 Photo Album. Read about Channel 2's early history as KVOO.

KOTV, Channel 6 (CBS) - Scott Thompson's "Oklahoma Traveler" is an Emmy award winner. News Now 53 (Cox 53) continuously replays KOTV's most current news broadcasts. Your webmaster was a guest on "Six in the Morning". From Channel Changer 1: Channel 6 page. Read about our first television station's early history.

KTUL, Channel 8 (ABC) - "Waiting Child" was created by Bob Hower and has been produced by anchor Carole Lambert, since 1990. More than 4,000 children have been adopted as a result of the program. From Channel Changer 1: "8's The Place" - great promo videos from the late 70s by Carl "Uncle Zeb" Bartholomew. Weather 24/7 (Cox 247) continuously presents KTUL's most current weather information. Channel 8 early history.

KOED, Channel 11 (PBS) - Tulsa's public television station under the Oklahoma Educational Television Authority. Enjoy the "OETA Movie Club" with B.J. Wexler, Friday at 11 pm and Saturday at 9 pm.

"Tulsa Times" can be seen Saturdays at 5 pm on OETA, and at 1 am Friday night/Saturday morning on commercial station KWHB, Channel 47. It can also be seen several times a week on the new OETA OKLA digital channel. Co-host David Crow visited GB 38 in 2000 while still a student. Your webmaster was a guest, 2/10/2007 (watch on Google Video).

Longtime OKC news anchor George Tomek (bio at the link) is now co-anchoring the statewide nightly newscast Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with Gerry Bonds at OETA's Oklahoma News Report desk. This 1961 Tulsa TV schedule shows that George started his career here in Tulsa (see Channel 6 noon news). Recently, George acted in an unusual movie made in the UK, "Tube Poker". Here is George's own web site.

OETA DT (Cox 111) is the new main digital channel; OETA OKLA (Cox 112) is reserved for state news, activities and history; OETA YOU (Cox 113) offers instructional programming; OETA KIDS (Cox 114) provides children's programming from 4 am to 10 pm, news and interview programs after 10; OETA HD (Cox 711) is High Definition programming 24/7. More details at Digital Television on OETA.

OETA's KETA studio in the early days. Read about Oklahoma educational TV history as of 1967.

B.J. Wexler, host of OETA Movie Club.	Susan Burch (Lowell's wife) with William Shatner, 1978

I remember zoning out after watching Monty Python on Channel 11 late Saturday evenings in the 70s; the "High Flight" sign-off alerted me to head for bed. OETA still runs it; the jet has been updated, but the soundtrack is the same. Ray Haas found the 60s version of this sign-off and is making it available on DVD. Check HighFlightProductions.com.

KOED sign-off. More TTM video in the Photo/video briefcase.

KDOR, Channel 17 (TBN) - Religious programming with California-based Paul and Jan Crouch. Read about an early, failed allocation of Channel 17 in Tulsa.

KQCW, Channel 19 (Cox 12) (CW) - Originally KWBT, Tulsa's Warner Brothers WB19, now CW12. Features The News on (Channel) 6 at 9 (pm).

KOKI, Channel 23 (Cox 5) (FOX) - Tulsa's first successful UHF station signed on as an independent, October 26, 1980. From Channel Changer 1: Tulsa23. The short-lived KCEB on Channel 23 was Tulsa's second television station in the early 1950s. Read more about KCEB history here and here.

KSBI, Channel 33 - (from Guestbook 166) Erick Church said:

Mike Bruchas mentioned Locke Supply Company's low-power stations. It started as one station, KSBI-52 in OKC in 1988. At that time, it broadcast a limited schedule of religious programming and tons of plumbing commercials. It later grew to air more syndicated (yet family friendly) programming. Mr. Locke died some years back, and last year his family opted to sell KSBI and all of its translator stations. It owns low-power stations in Ardmore, Edmond, Stillwater, Ponca City, Wichita Falls, and Sapulpa (broadcast Channel 33, which can be seen in Tulsa).

Because of this large coverage area, several major broadcast companies offered tons of money to buy the network, but the Lockes insisted that the station remain independent and air the same type of family friendly programming.

Enter Brady Brus, longtime OKC meteorologist and his sister Brenda Bennett, longtime OKC radio personality. They formed a company and purchased the network. Since then, they have become a very good source of statewide severe weather coverage. I would encourage everyone to strap on the old UHF loop sometime and tune to Channel 33 to see what they have to offer.

KRSC, Channel 35 (Cox 19) - From Rogers State University. "Discover Oklahoma" and "Local Flavors" can be seen Saturdays. Helmed by "Captain Alan" Lambert. Channel 35 was allocated as an educational channel, but was not in use as of 1967. (Read this section of the 1967 masters thesis on Tulsa TV history.)

KMYT, Channel 41 (Cox 10) (MyNetworkTV) - Now My41Tulsa; most recently, it was KTFO, part of the now-defunct UPN Network. From Channel Changer 1: Independent KGCT was the first station to broadcast on Channel 41 in Tulsa on March 18, 1981. Read about an even earlier, failed allocation of Channel 41, KWID.

KTPX, Channel 44 (Cox 4) (PAX) - Religious/family programming.

KWHB, Channel 47 (Cox 7) - LeSEA religious/family programming. This is where to see the Tulsa Drillers!

KGEB, Channel 53 (Cox 23) - ORU-owned; religious/family programming.

K69GO, Channel 69 (3ABN)- 3 Angels Broadcast Network; more religious/family programming.

Tulsa TV station list - including low-power, digital and translator stations.

Cox Communications - Tulsa's cable TV company. Cox channel 3 carries some local content.

HDTV in Oklahoma - Stay up-to-date about high definition TV in our state. According to its Tulsa forum, a $10 Radio Shack 15-1864 antenna is sufficient to pick up Tulsa digital TV broadcasts over the air.

Sources of Tulsa news on the internet

The TV stations with major network affiliation feature local news and weather on their web sites (top of this page).

As long as we're getting internet sources of local Tulsa news together in one place, here are a few more:

Tulsa World  newspaper (daily) - As of late April 2006, the site is free to all.

Urban Tulsa Weekly - Opinion/local features/entertainment.

1/19/2006: Hey, look who's #48 on UT's "Tulsa's Hot 100 List" by comic/writer Barry Friedman! Of course, there's no topping the likes of "Ganesh, Hindu elephant God" (#23), "Homeless guy at Route 66 Diner" (#37), or even "Hot Dog Guy outside of Lowe's" (#46). But I did place ahead of the Mathis Brothers (#86). Beats a poke in the I with a pointed schtick, for sure. 

GTR NewsOnline  newspaper (weekly) - Community news.

TulsaPeople  magazine (monthly) - Free online with registration. People profiles and consumer info.

TulsaToday local news service - Opinion, news.

TulsaNow forums - Uninhibited discussion of current local issues and events.

Here's a quick weather report:  

Tulsa Radio: Yesterday and Today - On this site, current Tulsa radio alternatives, plus a linked list of all current Tulsa radio stations.

Tulsa pop history/culture sites

 TulsaFilms.com - Jack Frank has produced  "Fantastic Tulsa Films Vol. 1", a DVD of historic Tulsa films that includes the TTM webmaster's 1974 home movie of George Harrison in Tulsa.

"Fantastic Tulsa Films Vol. 2" is Jack's latest collection of vintage films about Tulsa. Watch a promo on his site. It includes old film of Mr. Zing & Tuffy, the dedication of KVOO's Broadcast Central, some of Lee Woodward's home movies and other KTUL and KVOO stuff.

An abbreviated version will be shown on KOTV, Dec 3, 2007 at 7 pm. You will be able to order the DVD at Jack's site. The DVD's bonus materials will include a complete promotional 16mm film KTUL produced in the 1960s about the station, its equipment and and its people.

Lost Tulsa - (from Guestbook 187) Tom Baddley said:

I've finally started uploading a bunch of photos that I've taken around Tulsa for the past couple of years. There's a gallery of Mayo Meadow Shopping center photos taken in 2003, including some night shots of the neon signs.

Abandoned Tulsa - (from Guestbook 182) Alison Zarrow said:

Thought some of you might be interested in a newly started project taking a look at historically significant abandoned or forgotten buildings in Tulsa.

February 2006: a new book, Abandoned Tulsa by Alison. Read more about it at Furnace Press.

Signs of Tulsa - Photoblog about Tulsa signs.

Retro Tulsa Internet Museum has some great pictures, including Bishop's Drive In, Will Rogers Motor Court...also many pictures and postcards of early Tulsa landmarks.

The Buried 1957 Plymouth - A then-new Plymouth Belvedere and other artifacts were buried in a time capsule downtown in 1957. The capsule is due to be opened in 2007. More on this TTM page: Tulsa Car Dealers

Ma Barker's Personal History of Television Broadcasting - Ma worked as a director for KTUL in the early days.

Molly Murphy's House of Fine Repute - The seed of the MMHFR site was planted here (Guestbook 155) in a story by Jeffiee Tayar, former co-owner of the Tulsa Molly Murphy's. Here's an OKC/Tulsa MM site from the same "seed".

Tulsa Historical Society - Long-time KOTV anchor Clayton Vaughn was executive director until his recent retirement.

Jerry Pippin, formerly of KBIX-AM 1490 in Muskogee (which went off the air in early 2003; see Jerry's Memories of KBIX-AM Radio), often discusses local media history on his "Memories of the 20th Century" show. It is available 24/7 via Internet Radio On-Demand. Guests have included Mike Miller, Lee Bayley, Scooter Segraves, Steve Suttle and the webmaster of this site.

Reader Kirk Demarais' Secret Fun Spot site features a Flash animation involving Bell's Phantasmagoria ride; two items in the "souvenir shop" seen in this cartoon came from Tulsa TV Memories! Also, don't miss "Uncle Laff's Legacy" about the 7' "U-Control Monster", orderable from the back of a comic book. Great site!

Non-Tulsa, but related sites

I Remember JFK - (from GroupBlog 234) Ron Enderland said:

Hi, all. I saw I got some traffic from Tulsa TV Memories and wanted to express my appreciation.

I'm Ron Enderland, born in Miami in 1959, moved to NW Arkansas area in 1968. But I have a head full of great memories of Miami before they goofed up Main St. ;-)

Anyhow, I did a piece on picking up pop bottles for cash a while back and credited Tulsa TV Memories with some good pop bottle photos and stories. Someone returned the favor by mentioning my site.

Anyhow, thanks for the mention, and come check out my Boomer (and Oklahoma!) memories at IrememberJFK.com.

Wes Clark's "Avocado Memories" - Wes shows vintage photos of his family's house and writes entertainingly about growing up in Burbank, California in the 60s and 70s. Avocado was his parents' favorite color in their failed attempts at interior decoration. Wes showed me that the strictly local can be engaging. I also picked up his technique of responding editorially in the Guestbook. His site was an inspiration for Tulsa TV Memories.

Local Legends - an excellent local TV site for Los Angeles.

UHF Nocturne - Stylish site covering late-night TV in northern California.

Space Age Pop - Return to some "roots" music, if you grew up in the 50s and 60s. You'll meet a lot of old friends here. Did you know that the composer of the Andy Griffith theme, "The Happy Fisherman", Earle Hagen, also composed "Harlem Nocturne" and the themes for "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and "Perry Mason"? Earle did some of the whistling himself.

Discount Stores of the '60s - Look for Shopper's Fair, Gulf-Mart, T.G.&Y., Woolco...

Want more TV? Here you go:

TVparty! - Check out those network and syndicated shows you almost forgot and the commercials you could never forget! TVparty features an article about "Then Came Bronson", written for it by the TTM webmaster. The same article is on this site, but with more pictures and links.

The Toon Tracker Page - OK, this is the motherlode! If you've ever had a fleeting desire to hear again the themes to Mighty Mouse, Tom Terrific, The Mighty Hercules (sung by Johnny Nash, of "I Can See Clearly Now" fame), Felix the Cat, Heckle and Jeckle, Popeye, Top Cat, Huckleberry Hound, Mr. Magoo, King Leonardo, Supercar, Fireball XL5, Clutch Cargo, Dick Tracy, Lippy and Hardy, Astroboy, Lariat Sam, Deputy Dawg, or Spunky and Tadpole, you'll love this site. If not, you won't like it so much.

The Big Cartoon DataBase - The internet's largest searchable database of cartoons, episode guides and crew lists. I was looking for a Popeye cartoon with a live action kid and bully...I found it here (Adventures Of Popeye, 1935)

TV Horror Host Gallery - Mazeppa and Peter Hardt weren't the only ones in the U.S.

Sites by visitors to TTM:

Maui No Ka Oi - Karl was the very first signer of the TTM Guestbook in 1998. He changes the selections in his Rockin' Record Jukebox every week.

...from the mind of Maduko - Contributor Rex Brown was in a band named "The Insects" (later renamed "Radio Milan") in the early 80s. Their new wave performance was captured live at the Crystal Pistol circa 1982. Rex is also the webmaster of TulsaNow.org, a great Tulsa resource and forum.

Virtual Tulsa - By a Tulsa TV veteran.