In Memoriam – Will Ogletree

The entire Oklahoma City comedy scene is in shock by Will Ogletree’s death from a head injury in the square circle. He was only 25. I’m so old I don’t even remember age 25. For me, it meant lots of beer. For Will, it meant working and living with his best friend Alex Sanchez, running a trivia night, co-hosting a mixed open mic, and watching lots of goofball stuff. Will had already been through the formation and breakup of a good band and his standup had risen to the level of opening for Nick Thune and getting accepted to festivals.

But his dream was to be a pro wrestler. Once, we went to a low-rent wrestling event with some pals. It was in the dark corner of a mall with lots of space to rent. His excitement and love of the guys in the ring was real. He could recap stories on any wrestler in the last 20 years. Watching it with him made you as enthusiastic as he was.

I was in a small Facebook group chat with Will and friends. We talked inside baseball on comedy (local and national), riffed on silly and surreal subjects (e.g., vape-themed anime), and roasted each other. Do you know what we gave Will grief about? How women loved him. Yes, that was all what we could come up with to really give him the goods.

Will’s comedy reflected his personality. It wasn’t the usual rant against society or shock humor. He wanted you to laugh with him about the things he loved, be it nature docs, his family, or pro wrestling. He enjoyed the theatrical and larger-than life, but he also loved people. And he made everyone around him feel better.

It’s the world’s loss he’s gone.

Editor’s note: Will Ogletree died after sustaining an injury in an unlicensed wrestling match in Oklahoma City on
August 27. He was scheduled to perform at Blue Whale Comedy Festival.