Press Release
April 24, 2015
Contact: Larry O'DellOklahoma Historical Society
Office: 405-522-6676
lodell@okhistory.org
www.okhistory.org
Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center Celebrates the Opening of the Patti Page Exhibit
On April 30 at 6:00 pm the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center in Enid will host an event to kick-off their new exhibit, "Patti Page: Once upon a Dream." Recording artist Darla Z will perform some of Patti's hits, and members of the Page family will reminisce about her life. Dr. Bob Blackburn will lead the ceremony. The evening is free and open to the public.
A series of exhibits on Patti Page, who died at age 85 on Jan. 1, 2013, will be displayed by the Oklahoma Historical Society at four sites across the state to help develop the Oklahoma Museum of Popular Culture (OKPOP) in the Brady Arts District of Tulsa.
"The OKPOP will be presented in a 75,000-square-foot building dedicated to the creative spirit of Oklahoma's people and the influence of Oklahoma artists on popular culture around the world," said Dr. Bob Blackburn, executive director of OHS. "Patti Page embodies the spirit, art and influence of these Oklahoma artists."
The other Patti Page exhibits will be at the Pioneer Woman Museum in Ponca City, the Oklahoma Route 66 Museum in Clinton, and the Claremore Museum of History. Each exhibit will display and focus on different aspects of Patti Page's long career.
Darla Z has opened for musicians such as Willie Nelson and Wayne Newton. She has starred in three network television specials and recently was seen in public television's Darla Z's Christmas Round the World. She will be accompanied by gifted pianist Alyssa Sue Kozlowski, a soon to be graduate of the UCO School of Music, was also pianist in the public television special, Darla Z's Love Songs Round the World. On guitar, Dwight Ham, from Ponca City, who also attends UCO School of Music. Both artists frequently perform and travel with UCO's jazz ensemble.
Admission to "Patti Page: Once upon a Dream" is included in museum admission. The Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday and tells the story of the settlement and development of northwest Oklahoma. For more information on the exhibit, please contact the Heritage Center at 580-237-1907 or www.csrhc.org. The Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center is located at 507 S. Fourth Street in Enid.
The Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center is a division of the Oklahoma Historical Society. The mission of the Oklahoma Historical Society is to collect, preserve and share the history and culture of the state of Oklahoma and its people. Founded in 1893 by members of the Territorial Press Association, the OHS maintains 31 museums, historic sites and affiliates across the state. Through its research archives, exhibits, educational programs and publications the OHS chronicles the rich history of Oklahoma. For more information about the OHS, please visit www.okhistory.org.
