Meet Curran and Marymar Fudge, owners of Dead People’s Stuff, a 40,000-square-foot architectural antique shop in Oklahoma City. But don’t let the salvaged wares fool you — their Oklahoma story is anything but dusty. The Fudges have spun their love of antiquities into an umbrella of businesses, including a wedding venue, a leather goods brand, and soon, an Italian restaurant. In this episode of Flyover Stories, Curran and Marymar explain why they left California in the rearview to realize their dream in Oklahoma.
Curran:
I’m born and raised in Oklahoma City. I kind of bounced around for undergrad. I went to the University of Tulsa. I went to Oklahoma State University. I went and lived in Israel.
Marymar:
And I was born and raised in San Diego.
Curran:
[to Marymar] When I first told you I’m from Oklahoma, what did you think?
Marymar:
I thought people would ride horses to the grocery store. In San Diego, I see traffic. I see a lot of people. When I got to Oklahoma, I was like, ‘Where are the people?’
Curran:
Yeah, she’s like, ‘Is it a holiday? Where are all the people?’ I was like, ‘No, this is just Oklahoma. This is it. This is a busy day.’
“I thought people would ride horses to the grocery store.”
Marymar:
I love it here.
Curran:
There’s less chaos. It’s just a lot more tranquil.
Marymar:
Yeah, very tranquil.
Curran:
If we were to describe Dead People’s Stuff, I tell everybody it’s a 40,000-square-foot antique warehouse. It’s a life-size treasure chest that you can kind of get lost in. We got into this because we do historic preservation of old buildings, so we like to incorporate some old doors or fun light fixtures, good hardware.
We just finished El Sueño. It’s a 1930s Spanish mansion on seven acres in Oklahoma City. It’s just a cool wedding venue and Airbnb rental. There’s nothing really like it in Oklahoma. We’re kind of helping make the community a little bit cooler or prettier. I take pride in that, when we see our items around town.
Marymar:
What about Killers of the Flower Moon?
Curran:
Yeah, absolutely. Scorsese was in love with our door. We weren’t expecting to see it on the big screen, and it was just pretty cool. Dead People’s Stuff made Hollywood, and Leonardo DiCaprio helped our Instagram a lot. It was pretty funny.
Marymar:
When we started, it was just us. Now, we have a baby, and she’s amazing. She’s hilarious. We have so much fun. We take her to Scissortail Park every Sunday. It’s five minutes from here.
Curran:
Yeah, versus, when we were in San Diego, you drive…
Marymar:
Oh, I would drive an hour to work. With traffic. One way. And here, it’s five minutes.
Curran:
You know, it’s pretty wild just how easy life is. There’s just so much opportunity in this town.
Marymar:
And then, you can own a home. We grew up in an apartment in downtown San Diego. There, it was hard to own a home.
Curran:
I always knew I’d come back to Oklahoma. I knew this is where I wanted to raise my family.
Marymar:
I wouldn’t do it any other place. I really do love it here. I’m an Okie. Cali-Okie.
Curran:
That’s right.
