Photon - 48th & S. Memorial

I had recently turned 21 years old when I first heard the following words:

"Welcome Photon Warriors, commence strategic maneuvers at audible command signal. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, BEGIN." [6.3MB .MP3]

All of a sudden, I'm scrambling for cover in a carpeted bunker off a long corridor. The white smoke is so thick that it makes it hard to even see my friend Glenn, who's less than 15 feet away. The large green helmet strapped to my head does nothing to help visibility. Jumping at every movement out in the murky distance, pulsing, throbbing ambient sounds fill my ears...then out of nowhere ZAP! I'm hit! My weapon temporarily disabled, I streak across an open area and dive behind a wall as we make our way steadily towards our goal, the Red Base. Six minutes later, we're walking out of the arena exhausted, drenched in sweat and grinning from ear to ear.

For less than 5 years in the late 1980s, before Q-Zar, Laser Quest or any other number of offshoots, there was Photon, The Ultimate Game on the Planet Earth. Unique in its use of reverse-IR that allowed such features as targeting lock-on and instant hit/miss feedback, Photon's technology was advanced even by today's standards. It also allowed non-participants to practice their aim from the phaser stations on the observation deck without affecting the game's scoring or outcome. Everything gets relayed back wirelessly to a central computer, which displays real-time scores and rankings on strategically positioned monitors throughout the facility.

I can remember Glenn and I riding double on my Kawasaki to Photon for afternoons of exhilerating gameplay and drainage of the wallet. I even managed to talk Brent into joining us one day. I don't think he was prepared for the amount of physical activity that took place on the field, as he never came back with us (still glad you came with us, bud). This was one of the last years that I was really able to act like a kid. A year later, I was married and moving from Tulsa to N. Texas to embark on a exciting career in wireless communications. In the end, Photon went out with a whimper. The corporate office went out of business in 1989, even though they avoided bankruptcy. Without the technical support from corporate and other business issues, most Photons were unable to remain in operation and shut their doors. Tulsa's Photon closed down in late 1989.

I've heard rumors that some of the playfield still resides inside the old Tulsa Photon building...but I have my doubts, particularly since it spent some time as a country nightclub after Photon closed. I imagine that it was gutted. I have been in contact with Jim Strother, a Tulsan who also remembers Photon from its glory days. He's gone as far as to start collecting original Photon equipment and is working on getting it all working. If things come together, he'd like to open up a gamefield in Tulsa using the original Photon hardware. He has licensed the Photon trademark, and you can buy t-shirts from his web site. He also has some great pics from an incredible find, a garage full of vintage Photon equipment in Phoenix (Pictures->New Equipment). I offered to be a "beta tester" if he ever needs a warm body to test the equipment out.

The pics in the Photon gallery are not all mine. I included some extra photos from unknown sources that show the interior of the lobby, observation deck, staging areas and the playfield itself. Although none of these were of the Tulsa Photon, they look remarkably similar, as most arenas were built from the same plans. If anyone knows the photographers of these pics, please let me know so I can give full credit.

"Congratulations Photon Warriors. You have successfully completed your strategic maneuvers. Disperse to exit. Disperse to exit. Disperse to exit...."