Man Burns Rather Than Face Eviction
The incident last week near Oklahoma City was horrifying.
Oklahoma County deputies arrived to evict an elderly couple — Mary Goulding, 77, and Tony Goulding, 82 — from their longtime home near Lake Overholser. They knew the day was coming; Tony was in eviction court, representing himself, on March 11, when the landlord and his attorney won the case.
The Twist: The landlord, Tim Denny, is Mary Goulding’s son.
The Other Twist: Mary Goulding, who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease and Multiple Sclerosis and cannot walk on her own, gave Denny the 40-year-old, 1,333-square-foot home in 2013 and rented it back from him for $700 per month.
The Really Horrible Twist: When the deputies entered to force the Gouldings out of their home, Tony poured fuel in the hallway and bedroom and set the house on fire, engulfing himself in flames. The deputies dragged Mary to safety as the house burned.
While working on another story, reporter Heather Warlick encountered Tony Goulding at eviction court last month. She interviewed him and Tim Denny. Her story, which you can read here, provides context to the tragedy.
More worth reading:
Oklahoma’s Film Industry Has Texas’ Attention
Oklahoma’s film program grew to $30 million, slightly more money on an annual basis than what was being offered in the much larger state of Texas. Famous Texans noticed, successfully urging lawmakers last year to increase funding for the program to $200 million for the next two years, from $45 million. Now, Oklahoma is pursuing legislation that would more than double its offerings. [NYT]
Why States Have Spent Billions Subsidizing Hollywood
State governments use our tax dollars to build roads, fund schools and provide health care. In 38 states, they also ship money off to a high-gloss private industry: Hollywood. [NYT]
Prison Homicides Twice as High as Previously Reported
The number of recent homicides in Oklahoma prisons is twice as high as previously reported, new data from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections show. The number of homicides puts Oklahoma near the top of the region in inmate killings. [The Oklahoman]
Killers of the Flower Moon had an estimated production budget of $200 million and has so far grossed only $156.5 million.
Ciao for now,
Ted Streuli
Executive Director, Oklahoma Watch
tstreuli@oklahomawatch.org
