On Thursday May 4, 7 p.m. at the Altus Public Library, John Hinkle, actor, storyteller and puppeteer, will show you the many sides of Oklahoma's ninth governor through a “living history” presentation of his life and times.
William H. Murray, “Alfalfa Bill”, was known for many things: an agronomist, trying to help farmers nourish their soil and livestock; the lawyer for the Chickasaw Nation fending off false claims for land grabs; secretary to the Indian Territorial Sequoyah constitutional convention; president and legal mind in formatting our own Oklahoma constitution; Speaker of the 1st elected house of Representatives of Oklahoma; U.S. Senator during World War I; leader of a utopian society in Bolivia; governor during the depression and the dust bowl; and “The Red River War.” In his last years he was plagued by dementia and defamed for his anti-Semitic and racist views.
Hinkle's comment is, “To say Alfalfa Bill was colorful is an enormous understatement. Oklahomans either loved him or hated him. He is a hero and villain, he is good and evil. I think that he is worthy of a Shakespeare play because he's so complex.” The performance is written for adults and Oklahoma history students.
John has been encouraging a handlebar mustache for a couple of years, but he has shaved off his soft white beard by which Oklahoma children identify him as a puppeteer. “I've bought white shoes and short white socks, gotten a bad haircut, purchased a pocket watch, had a white suit made with the pants too short, gone almost the whole route with black sleeve garters, black suspenders, and a rocking chair. However, I've drawn the line at chewing tobacco. It gives me violent hiccups.”
The Thursday evening event at the library is free and open to the public. The presentation is designed for adults and secondary history students; and is not appropriate for younger children. Hinkle will also present the program at WOSC, Altus High School and Hollis High School during his two-day visit to southwest Oklahoma. WOSC history students will see the presentation on Friday morning; and Altus High School history students will hear the performance on Friday afternoon. The program is also being presented to the Hollis High School history students on Thursday morning.
John went to every library in the state when he was a library consultant at the Oklahoma Department of Libraries and has performed as story teller and puppeteer over the past 49 years in every Oklahoma county but three. “When I grow up I want to paint watercolor portraits and play Irish music on the streets of Bricktown,” the 71 year-old sighs.
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