TULSA, Okla. — Ask a parent or grandparent who grew up in Tulsa, and they are sure to remember the Big Bill and Oom-A-Gog show. It was one of the most popular children's television shows with its nerdy science guy host and giant robot. Fifty years after it was almost tossed in the trash, that large silver robot has found its way home to 2.
Big Bill and Oom-A-Gog were so popular, they often appeared in parades and at stores. Old photos are all that's left of the show that aired live on 2 from 1959 to 1964.
"The Historical Society was doing an exhibit on Tulsa TV," said Drew Barker, senior editor at 2 News Oklahoma. "They reached out and asked if we knew anything about it. And we started looking then."
After hours of searching through station and newspaper archive, as well as social media, Barker tracked down the Hargis family in Houston. He hoped they still had it tucked away.
"This is the suit!" said Billy Hargis III.
Billy Hargis III did, in fact, have the robot suit from his father's favorite childhood show. He told us his father grew up watching the dynamic pair on 2.
"He watched the show here in Tulsa when he was a kid," Hargis said. "So, he was very connected to it."
Billy's father was doing his own show at Channel 2 back in the 70's. One day he was looking around the warehouse and spotted some employees clearing out old props.
"And he saw the suit," Hargis said. "They were just going to throw it away. So, he was like, 'can I have it?'" And they said, 'Sure.'"
So Oom-a-Gog became a part of the Hargis family and, when they moved from Oklahoma, ended up in Texas.
"I remember in the 90's when I was little, he fixed him up because he had fallen into bad shape. The last time I tried to put this on I think I was probably 11 or 12 years old and it did not smell good in there," Hargis said with a laugh. "I would not recommend putting it on!"
Billy Hargis II had kept Oom-A-Gog in his apartment for years. When he passed away eleven years ago, the family moved the robot into Mrs. Hargis' garage. That is where Oom-A-Gog stayed until 2019, when our senior editor decided to find the popular silver television star.
"And when Drew reached out about it, I was like, 'Why not? He's just sitting in the garage," Hargis said. "And I thought, why not give him a home where people can appreciate him?"
While the 2 News Oklahoma studios look vastly different after nearly more than six decades, there are still silver smudges on that door date back to the Big Bill and Oom-A-Gog show.
"So he had silver paint on his hands and he would lean on the studio door and look through the window to figure out when to go in," said Ann Bruun, Chief Engineer of 2 News Oklahoma. "There's still silver on those studio doors."
In no time, the robot drew a crowd of 2 News engineers all eager for a closer look at the bulky silver costume that many Oklahomans still remember today. With Oom-A-Gog's return, the team is already making plans to dust him off and restore this part of the station's history.
"Tucked in a closet. Tucked in a garage. It's wonderful that the family took such great care of it," said Karen Larsen, 2 News Oklahoma evening anchor.
"Oom-A-Gog lives on."
With a smile, Drew Barker agreed, "He lives!"
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