Mummers Theater / Stage Center
In 1970, the curtain rose on downtown Oklahoma City's Stage Center, sparking a new era in state theater history. Internationally acclaimed architect John Johansen designed the modern theater, with Seminoff Bowman & Bode as associate architects, and the innovative structure received the prestigious American Institute of Architects Honors Award for it idiosyncratic, "anti-geometric" design. Architects and students from around the world made the trek to Oklahoma City to tour the building, which was considered among the century's finest examples of modern architecture. Johansen's original model is on display in New York City's Museum of Modern Art.
The Mummers and other theater companies called Stage Center home until the building closed in 1986. One year later, the Arts Council of Oklahoma City purchased the facility and renovated it for $2 million. The rehabilitation work was done by Rand Elliott, FAIA of Elliott + Associates Architects and Stage Center reopened in 1992. In the 2000s, Stage Center operated as a multi-use facility for the arts and was home to Carpenter Square Theatre, Inner City Dance, and the Oklahoma Visual Artists Coalition.
A 2010 flood closed the building for good and it was demolished in 2014. Go here to read more about Stage Center.
1991 – Renovation plans by Elliott + Associates
Stage Center, 2013:
Being demolished:
Morrison – Kerr House
Located in the heart of Nichols Hills, this home was originally designed for W.P. Morrison, but either during the design phase or construction, it appears that the Morrisons backed out and Robert S. Kerr, Jr., purchased the home. He and his family lived here for over three decades, and the home remains very original today.
morrison-kerr house – raymond carter notes
morrison-kerr house – wp morrison house
morrison-kerr house – list of sheets
morrison-kerr house – exterior elevations
morrison-kerr house – elevations
morrison-kerr house – elevation
morrison-kerr house – elevation 2
morrison-kerr house – finish schedule
morrison-kerr house – front door
morrison-kerr house – foundation plan
morrison-kerr house – foundation plan 2
morrison-kerr house – foundation plan – footing sections
morrison-kerr house – floorplan
morrison-kerr house – floorplan – master bedroom
morrison-kerr house – floorplan – guest room
morrison-kerr house – floorplan – gallery library drawing room
morrison-kerr house – floorplan – family vestibule
morrison-kerr house – electrical symbols
morrison-kerr house – electrical
morrison-kerr house – electrical plan – second floor
morrison-kerr house – door schedule
morrison-kerr house – bedroom and balcony
morrison-kerr house – door schedule
morrison-kerr house – east overhang of master bedroom
morrison-kerr house – overhangs
morrison-kerr house – profile section
morrison-kerr house – typical wall section
Bretz House
Local firm Berlowitz & Commander designed this home for hydraulic engineer, C.E. Bretz and his wife Mamie, on five wooded acres that once belonged to the Borne Dairy Farm. The home is perfectly sited atop a hill overlooking the acreage, which also includes a century-old rock horse barn.
Bretz House – map of acreage 1
Bretz House – map of acreage 2
Bretz House – Berlowitz & Commander stamp
Bretz House – floorplan and terrace
Bretz House – club room fireplace
Bretz House – bathroom tile plan
Bretz House – sections AA BB CC
Fox & Horn
Image provided by Gary McCowen
The stunning organic modern building that housed Fox & Horn restaurant made the eatery a true destination spot in Oklahoma City. Soon after its opening in 1974, The Oklahoman called the new dining spot “one of the most beautiful restaurants in the city,” and the design was so integral to the success of the establishment that the building was included in early advertisements for the restaurant.
After becoming a variety of restaurants over the years, the 9,400 sf building was auctioned off in 1991 and became medical offices. In the May 2013 tornado that swept through SW OKC and Moore, the building sustained damage, and the old and still glamorous Fox & Hound building was demolished in the summer of 2015.
Fox & Horn Restaurant – upper level – club
Fox & Horn Restaurant – lower level – mail level plan
Fox & Horn Restaurant – dining expansion – preliminary drawings
Kennedy House
Engineer Garth Kennedy designed this home for himself and his family on a heavily wooded lot overlooking a creek, and he remained in the home until moving to an assisted living center in 2016. A buyer purchased and all of its contents the home the same year and recently completed a thoughtful and sensitive restoration of the house and outdoor spaces.
Garth Kennedy these site studies in the 1950s, likely during the design process for the home.
Bainbridge House
This home was designed for Jewell Bainbridge, who was the second wife of movie star, Tom Mix, and it was featured in the April 1948 issue of American Home magazine.
Papahronis House
Architect John Bozalis designed this mid-century modern home in Edgemere Park for Johnny Papahronis, who owned the beloved Lunch Box restaurant in downtown Oklahoma City.
Oklahoma Museum of Art Gate
Frank and Merle Buttram constructed their grand, 30 room mansion in the heart of Nichols Hills in 1937 and after their deaths, a group purchased the estate in 1975 and donated it to the Oklahoma Museum of Art. In 1989, the museum merged with the Oklahoma Art Center to form the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, which is now located downtown. This gate was designed to advertise the Oklahoma Museum of Art and it is still in place, even though the former museum is once again a private residence.
OKC Museum of Art Entrance Gate
(photo courtesy of the Oklahoma History Center)
Dannold House
The first two pages of the following plans belong to the Dannold House, which is located in Quail Creek in Oklahoma City.