November 20, 2021 Issue, Page 1 of 12

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a)l a yy Serving ,v Western Oklahoma Since 1901 Weekend Edition Miss Elk City and Queen of the West Famed actor executive director welcomes the Antonio Sabato, Jr., community to 60th annual pageant begins the first of The pageant starts Saturday at 7 pm at the four films at the Kelli O’Hara Performing Arts Center Flying W Ranch Mikles, a 1971 graduate of Elk City High School, says that she was surprised when the longtime director Doris Music first asked her to serve as a contestant chaperone in 1975. “There was a girl from Elk City who was actually going to the Miss Oklahoma pageant as Miss SWOSU. So I went and stayed with her in the hotel and got her to all the events. That experience really got me hooked. I've been with it ever since,” she said. Mikles then competed her first time in Miss Elk City the fol- lowing two years. “I was in the pageant in 1976 and 1977, both times I was run- ner-up. In 1977, I was runner-up to Susan Powell. Now, we all know how important Susan Powell is to the pageant's history as she went on to be Miss America three years later. When she won Miss America, she had gone to Miss Oklahoma as Miss Oklahoma Left, pageant director Ronda Mikles says she and her 14 City. But, her start was out here in Elk City, and I always like to fellow board members spend countless hours to ensure joke that I was her forever runner-up,” Mikles laughed. that each pageant is top-notch. Right, former Miss Elk City Mikles joined the pageant board for the first time in 1978 and and Miss America Susan Powell will host and perform at served until she moved to Oklahoma City in 86. the pageants. Courtesy photo. “I was there for six years and moved back to Elk City in 1992,” Mikles recounted. “The year before that, I had been asked to em- By Shonda Little cee the pageant, and I was thrilled to do it. I was asked again in 1994 and did it for sixteen straight years before turning it over Elk City native Ronda Mikles doesn’t remember much of her to the ever charming and entertaining Lake Carpenter. Because Antonio Sabato, Jr., is involved in every aspect of the life before the Miss Elk City and Queen of the West pageants be- this is such a special year, our 60th, we have the special honor film. He and his cast are bringing the movie to life on came a central, driving passion. of having the great Susan Powell as our emcee. She will host and the picturesque set at the Flying W Ranch through top As achild, her mother, Juanita Shelton, would dress her in her perform twice. Lake, I, and the rest of the board have worked Sunday's best to attend the pageant. hard to put on a great pageant. We do that every year, but this technology, majestic costumes and world-class actors. “Lwas so excited!” Mikles exclaimed. “Getting to go to the pag- year we want to be extra special for two reasons: first, because of Photo by Nicole Terpening. eant was like a dream come true for little girls then. I saw these the significance of making it this long, and then to celebrate be- smart, poised, beautiful older girls, and it gave me inspiration for ing able to have the pageant after the entire pageant system lost By Shonda Little the young lady I wanted to grow into. This is now the oldest con- a year to Covid.” tinuous pageant in the state of Oklahoma. It started in 1962 in In addition to the world-renowned talents of Susan Powell, the home of Glenn and Mary Kelley and has grown through the Just a few miles west of Elk City off Highway 6, the Flying years into this.” See Pageant page 2. W Ranch is a few mere miles from the main road. Nestled in rolling hills and scattered trees making their annual Fall turn, the guest ranch is packed full of western Oklahoma's most significant attributes — horses grazing upon green and red Elk City Masonic Lodge #182 pastures, wildlife scurrying amongst them, and sunsets that rival anywhere else in the world. As longtime Hollywood megastar Antonio Sabato, Jr., and his production crew faced challenge after challenge on their donates check to Meals on Wheels New Mexico set, he believed that movie had to be moved to survive. “About that time, the Flying W actually found us,” Sabato ex- plained. “It was a perfect alignment — the timing, what we needed, all of it. So we came out and saw this place. We knew immediately it would work perfectly for what we envisioned.” And, what Sabato envisioned is unlike anything the movie world has ever seen, he says. As the famed actor and director came in out of the blustery Oklahoma wind, his bright yellow windbreaker looked much like the outerwear seen throughout Beckham County by those braving the elements for work. He’s soft-spoken but passion- ate about his project, the Trailblazers. When they found the new set for their movie, Sabato and the crew were excited to start in a new place. “This movie has been in planning for two years,” he explained. “We were attacked by a lot of darkness and forced to shut down many weeks. ‘There were things that happened through no fault of ours but were tragedies all the same. We could feel that darkness working against us and this project. We were out in New Mexico. After the last one, it would have been eas- iest for us to shut it down, but we all felt that this story had to be told. It was bigger than us. God is at the forefront of this movie, both in our efforts and the actual story itself. God is our main protagonist. Our plan is to make this action-adven- ture story and put God in the mainstream of movie-making.” ‘The plot of the movie came to him about two years ago. His descriptions are vivid but are also elusive in a way that seems strategic not to give away the plotline. The film appears to check numerous genres as a futuristic western set in a post- apocalyptic world. Sabato says it will have ninjas, samurais, and cowboys as one family fights forces of evil as warriors for God. Danny Mcclure, Mark Norton, Jerry Lasater, Donna Alford, Glenn Bledsoe and Bruce Byerly. Staff photo by D’Ann Brasuell. Co-written and produced by Deborah Twiss, the project fea- tures numerous world-renowned talents. Actors hail from ‘The Elk City Masonic Lodge #182 donated a $3500 check to ates by donations and by purchasing meals. Without donations multiple states, including New York, Florida, Texas, Idaho, the Elk City Meal on Wheels program on Wednesday. the program could be faced with the worst possibilities. and Illinois. With the COVID-19 pandemic, donations have been limited. If you would like to donate you may do so by sending a check “Costas Mandylor, a Greek-American actor, flew in from Por ‘The Meals on Wheels program helps provide food to many home- to: Elk City Housing Authority/Meals on Wheels 1510 W 9th St. bound and elderly people in our community. The program oper- Elk City, OK 73644. See Movie page 2. Mail delivery View online aT Te Weather tomorrow /39 Vol. 119, No. 93 75 cents, 12 pgs. 580.225.3000 elkcityoknews.com