The Small Town in Oklahoma That Feels Straight Out Of Weird Al’s ‘UHF’

Now, I know what you’re going to say: Tulsa is NOT a small town in Oklahoma. And you’d be right. But you know what Tulsa does have that gives it the mark of a small town? Weirdness. And in the ‘80s, weirdness reigned supreme. I mean, one of the best (and funniest) musical artists of the era was a guy who played an accordion and sang parody songs. Yes, I’m talking about Weird Al Yankovic... the genius behind “Eat It,” “Like a Surgeon” and “I Love Rocky Road.” He wrote and starred in the 1989 film "UHF" (co-written and directed by Jay Levey), and guess what? It was set in and filmed all over Tulsa.

Picture this: you’re driving down a Tulsa street, past art-deco storefronts that look like they belong in an old magazine, past cafés that might’ve served the cast between takes, and you suddenly realize you’ve stepped into a world where a janitor can hijack a telethon and a “wheel of fish” becomes entertainment. In the movie "UHF", Weird Al’s character, George Newman, takes over Channel 62 (a low-budget TV station in this mock small-town world) and turns the place upside down. And the city of Tulsa was the stage.

Let’s wander around a few of the actual spots. One Tulsa building, now home to Knotty Pig BBQ, Burger & Chili House at 6835 E. 15th Street, once hosted the movie’s Big Edna’s Burger World. In reality, it was a location of the old Harden’s Hamburgers. Talk about mixing fast food nostalgia with cinematic oddity. Then there’s the building at 6655 S Lewis Avenue, which served as the exterior for Channel 8 Studios in "UHF." Today, it houses the Southwestern Power Administration. And don’t miss 6300 S Peoria Avenue: in the film it was Spatula City, where weird kitchen gadgets abounded... now it is home to an Italian restaurant, Mondo’s Ristorante Italian. These places may have changed names, signs, and menus, but the vibes remain the same. You’ll feel like you’re wandering through a relic of the 1980s, with Weird Al’s quirky fingerprints all over the city.

What gives Tulsa this strange hybrid of big-city energy and small-town weirdness? For one, you’ve got deep history: settled by the Lochapoka band of the Creek Nation in the early 19th century, incorporated in 1898, and still part of the territories of the Muscogee, Osage, and Cherokee Nations. Then you’ve got the “Oil Capital of the World” legacy, Route 66 lore, modern arts scenes, and neighborhoods that feel tight-knit rather than sprawling. All of that underpins a city that can host big league architecture and, at the same time, let a man in a janitor’s outfit hijack a live broadcast in an oddball film. For someone seeking up-front weirdness mixed with history and culture, Tulsa delivers.

And the movie references? Oh, they’re everywhere if you’re willing to look: the very concept of "UHF" (ultra high frequency) comes from those underdog television stations, and the movie revels in small-town television chaos: stunts, puppets, bizarre game shows. Tulsa’s streets, buildings, and affectionate weirdness all served as perfect backdrops for that. So when you walk down E. 11th Street or S. Peoria Avenue, there’s a secret smile waiting for you: yes, you may be in a city of 400,000+ people, but you might as well be in a tiny off-beat movie set where anything strange can happen.

If you’re visiting Tulsa, treat it like you’re on a road trip in a time capsule. Stop for the burgers, check out the old Burger World building, swing by the ex-Spatula City site, and take a selfie outside the old Channel 8 facade. Let yourself feel the oddball gulf between “normal city” and “Weird Al’s world.” The architecture, the history, the shifting identities all whisper stories of weirdness waiting to be found.

So yes, y'all are right, Tulsa may be the second-most-populous city in Oklahoma, but I’ll argue it’s got a small-town soul that thrives in its weird corners and ’80s nostalgia glow. If Weird Al ever needed a hometown to film his cartoonish televangelism of weirdness, this was it. Explore Tulsa with those small-town eyes, and let yourself fall into the fun. Grab your camera, bring your curiosity, and go find the scene that feels like lost footage from "UHF." See you in Tulsa: weird, wonderful, and unmistakably real.

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