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The Oklahoma History Center, in conjunction with the development of Tulsa-based OKPOP, is opening, on May 15, an 8,000-square foot museum exhibit titled Oklahoma @ the Movies.

This celebration showcases the creativity and innovation of Oklahomans and their legacy of creating, starring in, and watching motion pictures on the silver screen. Historic theaters bridging decades of change will be featured, including the Coleman in Miami, the Poncan in Ponca City, and the many ornate marquees that still grace the streets of Oklahoma’s towns and cities. These historic theaters of Oklahoma will be the highlight of the “in front of the screen” section of the exhibit. The theme will explore our “shared memories,” taking people back in time to those magical moments when reality was suspended for a short time.

Filmmakers, including all roles of crafting a movie, will populate the “behind the screen” part of the exhibit. These stories will focus on film industry pioneers such as cinematographer Buss Boggs (Oklahoma City); film editor Elmo Williams (Lone Wolf); public relations executive Stan Rosenfield (Oklahoma City); producer Gray Fredrickson (Oklahoma City); writer S.E. Hinton (Tulsa); art director K.K. Barrett (Tulsa); and academy award-winning directors Blake Edwards (Tulsa) and Ron Howard (Duncan).

Oklahoma’s vast number of actors will provide the magic of the “on screen” section of the exhibit. This creative talent ranges from early cinema heroes such as Tom Mix and Will Rogers to the current roster of stars. Hundreds of stories, many told by the stars themselves, will include the Oklahoma roots and Hollywood careers of Joan Crawford (Lawton), Gene Autry (Berwyn), James Garner (Norman), Tony Randall (Tulsa), Hopalong Cassidy (Tulsa), Kay Francis (Oklahoma City), Mary Kay Place (Tulsa), Dudley Dickerson (Chickasha), Gary Busey (Tulsa), Lon Chaney, Jr. (Oklahoma City), Vera Miles (Boise City), Ben Johnson (Foraker), Ed Harris (Oklahoma City), Jennifer Jones (Tulsa), Robert Knott (Oklahoma City), Alfre Woodard (Tulsa), Wes Studi (Nofire Hollow), Jeanne Tripplehorn (Tulsa), Brad Pitt (Shawnee), Tim Blake Nelson (Tulsa), and Chuck Norris (Ryan).

The exhibit will also explore film stories about Cowboys and Westerns, American Indians and Hollywood, African American movies filmed in the state, the film industry in Oklahoma, and the “Oklahoma Image” on screen.

December 7th, 2011 marks the 70th anniversary of the United States’ entrance into World War II with the simultaneous attacks on Wake Island, Guam, the Philippines, & Hawaii. “Oklahoma and the Day That Will Live in Infamy” is a new exhibit that explores that fateful day and the Oklahomans who experienced the devastation. Featured in the exhibit will be a Japanese flight suit and naval uniforms; artifacts that went down with the USS Oklahoma; interviews with veterans of Pearl Harbor, Wake Island, and the Philippines; and personal letters. Free admission to veterans and active duty military.

For more than 80 years, the Junior League of Oklahoma City has been organizing volunteers and developing projects designed to improve the community.

Now the organization is celebrating its rich history with a special interactive exhibit at the Oklahoma History Center.

The Junior League's kiosk is a comprehensive compilation of projects and partners dating back to 1927.

The kiosk at the history center recently opened and will be on display at the history center for five years.

The Junior League of Oklahoma City kiosk and exhibit are on the third floor of the Oklahoma History Center. Hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The museum is at 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive, just east of the Capitol.