Automobile designer and Maysville native J Mays is among eight honorees set to be inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame next week.
The 96th annual Oklahoma Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be Thursday, Nov. 16, at 7 p.m. at the Embassy Suites Norman Hotel & Conference Center.
Mays, who was raised in the Maysville area, is renowned for his more than four decades of design work with multiple prestigious car manufacturers, including Audi, Volkswagen, BMW, Jaguar, Land Rover, Aston Martin and Ford. A graduate of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, Mays spent more than four decades incorporating the latest trends in automobile culture with a unique intuitiveness for the emotional connection we have with our cars to create the most iconic models in automobile history.
He is responsible for Concept One, the precursor to Volkswagen’s New Beetle. Mays’ other creations, from the Aston Martin DB9 and the Audi TT to the Ford Mustang and F-150, run the gamut in design, technology, and function.
Mays has used his success as a platform to challenge the voice and thinking that traditionally has kept automobile designers separate from those that shape buildings, furniture, and consumer products. The BBC has spotlighted his career and achievements, he has been profiled by architecture critic Paul Goldberger in The New Yorker, and his work has been the subject of a major museum exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles.
Along with Mays, the 2023 Oklahoma Hall of Fame inductees include Dwight Adams, Edmond; John A. “Rocky” Barrett, Shawnee; Judith James, Pond Creek; Bill Lance, Sulphur; Madeline Manning Mims, Tulsa; and Barry Pollard, Waukomis. Mary Golda Ross, Park Hill, will be inducted posthumously.
This year’s Hall of Fame class joins 730 Oklahomans who have previously been inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.
“This year’s class truly shows the diversity of accomplishments unique to Oklahomans,” said Shannon L. Rich, president and CEO of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame and Gaylord-Pickens Museum. “Each honoree has proven themselves to be a trailblazer and are more than deserving of our state’s highest honor.”
Masters of Ceremonies and Oklahoma Hall of Fame members Sharen Jester Turney and Dr. Pamela McCauley will emcee the awards ceremony, which will streamed live on Facebook, Youtube, & Cox YurView at 7:15 p.m. The ceremony will include the presentation of each honoree and his or her acceptance remarks.
For more information about this year’s inductees or to purchase tickets to attend visit Thursday’s ceremony in-person visit OklahomaHOF.com.
The induction ceremony will also air on OETA Nov. 18 at 3 p.m. and Nov. 19 at 10 a.m.
The Oklahoma Hall of Fame was founded in 1927 with the purpose of honoring Oklahomans in their lifetime with the state’s highest honor and educating Oklahoma’s youth on the state’s rich history. The Gaylord-Pickens Museum, home of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, opened in 2007 with the intent of giving the public access to the stories of inspirational Oklahomans. For more information about the Oklahoma Hall of Fame or Gaylord-Pickens Museum, visit OklahomaHOF.com, or follow on social media at @ OklahomaHOF.
