The Orange Show is one man’s vision of what a monument to the orange would look like. All of it is hand-built and adorned with what most people consider trash. It looks like a house and functions like a house but it is a piece of art, and a thought-provoking reminder of what one person can do when they set their mind to something.

For one dollar, you can see…

Metal wheel rims from bicycles, wagons and old tractors are featured everywhere. They line the balconies and stairwells. They float in the air on the roof. They are multi-colored and of all different sizes. And don’t forget seats – rows of tractor seats – to sit in. And a wishing well so that you can get your wishes fulfilled too. Everywhere you look there are quirky signs, statutes and intricate tile work that includes colored glass and bottle caps.

The intricacies and details of the Orange Show reveal a lot about the character of the man who built it. A plaque inside tells the story of two frogs that fall into a butter churn. They can’t get out. One gives up and drowns. The other one kicks and kicks until the liquid around him turns into solid butter and he climbs out.

Twenty-five years of persistence by mailman, Jeff McKissack (1902-1980), to build the 3,000 square foot Orange Show is pretty amazing in itself. But when you consider he did all the intricate ironwork and tile work himself, you can see that sometimes there’s more to people (and things) than meets the eye.

Most of the Orange Show’s display is on the outside of the house. McKissack made ample use of the roof space and courtyard for most of his display. It is definitely an outside show. Anyone passing by will see it. It is impossible to miss. It was his bigger than life tribute to the humble orange.

It is also a testament to what one person can do when given enough time and no money to do it. Drilling software was like that for many years. Engineers who needed information simply had to find a way to get what they needed with no time or money to develop it. Today engineers have PVI’s MUDPRO software – a comprehensive mud reporting and data management system. It takes all the broken glass and used bottle caps of mud drilling and pours it into a database capable of handling daily well reporting data, engineering calculations, mud mixtures, operational functions, cost graphs, end-of-well recaps and more.

It literally is a little of everything all in one place.

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Visit The Orange Show at:
2401 Munger Street, Houston, Texas, USA
Phone: 713-926-6368
Directions: I-45 South, exit Telephone Road, bear to the far right, turn right on Munger Street (just before Telephone Road). The Orange Show is on the left.