Staying Gold : The Oral History of the Outsiders

The definitive oral history of the 1967 novel for teens, turned blockbuster film turned Tony-winning musical, and commemorated with a newly opened museum. This groundbreaking story has managed to stay gold for nearly sixty years.

*Includes interviews with Rob Lowe, Ralph Macchio, C. Thomas Howell Leif Garrett, David Arquette, Dennis Quaid, and more!

When a story resonates with audiences generation after generation, it reaches “classic” status. Francis Ford Coppola saw that potential in S. E. Hinton’s novel about two rival groups in 1960s Tulsa and knew it was meant for the silver screen. Now, in this definitive oral history, we’re given a rare glimpse into the filmmaking process: How Coppola’s team recruited unknown actors destined to become household names. How a film that could have easily been shot in a Hollywood studio was instead produced on location where the original novel was set. How an author who could have stood in the shadows came to be a major influence on the film, the actors, and the director himself. This oral history explores the legacy of The Outsiders, defining its historic impact since first arriving on bookshelves sixty years ago. Over a series of fascinating interviews with actors, casting directors, and others close to the project, it swiftly becomes clear how The Outsiders has managed to—as the adage goes—stay gold.

Jimmie Tramel is a feature writer at the Tulsa World, covering pop culture. A former Oklahoma sports writer of the year, he has written books about former OU coach Barry Switzer and former OSU coach Pat Jones. 
@JimmieTramel

Danny Boy O'Connor is the executive director of The Outsiders House Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and a founding member of the 1990s rap group House of Pain. In 2016, he acquired the house used in the 1983 film adaptation of The Outsiders and turned it into a museum, preserving memorabilia from the book and the Coppola film. @officialdannyboyoconnor