ROAD TRIP OF FAME

BY GREG ELWELL

BEGIN IN MCALESTER at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary, where Tom Joad, played by Henry Fonda, is released from prison to find his family's been evicted. From there, The Grapes of Wrath takes the Joads to California.

» 1301 North West Street in McAlester

THOUGH THE EL Reno motel that stood in for Amarillo in the film Rain Man was demolished, fans will want to stop by Cogar, home of the abandoned W.S. Kelly General Merchandise gas station, where Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman’s characters made a phone call.

» State Highway 37 and State Highway 152 in Cogar

Plenty of stars came from Oklahoma to Hollywood, and even more came from Hollywood to Oklahoma to make films. Here are some fun stops that set the scene for Sooner State movies and movie stars.

NOT ALL MOVIES are big-budget affairs, as guests at Skeleton Creek Productions and Simpson’s Old Time Museum in Enid can attest. Rick and Larry Simpson make their own classic-style Westerns as Stormy Lane and Texas Clapsaddle using props and sets in the museum. » skeletoncreekproductions.com

FILMING FOR THE movie Twister took place all over the state, but pivotal scenes were shot in Wakita, which was destroyed by an F5 in the film. That town now houses The Twister Movie Museum » twistermuseumstore.com, twistercountry.com

AT THE BEN Johnson Cowboy Museum in Pawhuska, get to know the Oscarwinning star of The Last Picture Show. Downtown also was a filming location for Killers of the Flower Moon and August: Osage County.

» 201 East 6th Street in Pawhuska, benjohnsoncowboymuseum.com

DANNY BOY O’CONNOR of House of Pain loved The Outsiders so much that he moved to Tulsa in 2016 and purchased the house where the Greasers lived and turned it into a museum to preserve it for future generations.

» 731 North St. Louis Avenue in Tulsa, theoutsidershouse.com

TULSA HOSTED WEIRD Al Yankovic’s star turn as the filming location for UHF Stop at Knotty Pig BBQ, Burger & Chili House to see where Yankovic’s character worked as a cook at the fictional Big Edna’s Burger World. » 6835 East 15th Street in Tulsa, facebook.com/knottypig

THE FIRST AND last name in Oklahoma film belongs to Will Rogers, at one time the biggest movie star in the world. Rogers’ life and career are immortalized at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum in Claremore and the Will Rogers Birthplace Ranch in Oologah. » willrogers.com