The Great Gutowsky: Life & Death of an Edmond Oil Magnate

Kim Gutowsky van der Wal didn’t know much about her grandfather until Edmond erected a bronze statue of him at Mitch Park in 2014!

“In 2014, I got a call from a friend, Mark House, who told me about an oil derrick statue honoring Assaph “Ace” Gutowsky for discovering one of the largest oil finds in Oklahoma history,” Kim said. “I rushed over to see this huge statue, and sure enough, it credited him for producing the oil that helped the Allied Forces win World War II.”

Feeling shocked, Kim was determined to learn more about this influential, but unknown, relative from her past. What she found was akin to striking oil, because she uncovered a phenomenal story. Gutowsky’s life had all the elements of a blockbuster movie: an immigrant who took wild risks in order to strike it rich, rising to world power during wartime, and a seductress who undid him in the end.

“This was my grandpa, and I never knew about it!” Kim said. “I feel like I’ve been on a magical mystery tour for ten years as I uncover more and more about him. I’ve scoured newspapers, visited history centers, and interviewed relatives. Not only was he famous, his discovery of the West Edmond Oil Field dealt Hitler the biggest blow by providing enough oil to make D-Day possible.”

The Doodlebug Millionaire

In 1902, at the age of 16, Assaph fled Ukraine and arrived in America. He had only three cents in his pocket, but he came loaded with personality. Assaph heard about the fertile farmland in a new state called Oklahoma. He traveled there to embark on farming and raise four children with his wife, Augusta Ladwig. A few years later, Assaph caught “oil fever.” He traveled across the Midwest, making and losing small fortunes as he searched for black gold.

Augusta passed away unexpectedly in 1932, which left him devastated. In 1935, Assaph married again, to a seductive green-eyed siren named Marie, and then he began working like a man possessed. He was convinced that Edmond had oil, despite 30 years of geological testing that proved otherwise. He adopted the use of a mystical machine for finding oil, called a doodlebug, which operated much like a divining rod for finding water. Oil companies refused to support him, calling him a “crazy Russian,” but Assaph didn’t give up.

In 1943, after drilling deeper into the ground than had ever been done before, he hit a gusher. Oil shot into the sky, and Assaph’s reputation rose sky-high, too. He earned a new nickname, Ace, and a new title, King of the Wildcatters. Bank deposits jumped 50 million in 90 days, and the economic impact was felt immediately. By the war’s end, his drilling company was valued at 100 million dollars. Ace leased a fancy office in the newly-built First National Bank in downtown Oklahoma City, and he and Marie began living lavishly.

Then, mysteriously, Ace died of a heart attack in 1945. After multiple doctors pronounced Ace officially dead for 20 minutes—he awoke with new conviction. He decided to sell his industry, give the money to charity, and return to farming. He also became suspicious of Marie, whose five previous husbands had died from unusual circumstances, leaving her higher on the social ladder each time. A few years later, Ace died of another mysterious heart attack. And his millions disappeared.

Moving Toward a Movie

Assaph’s story is so riveting, that Kim, like her grandfather before her, has launched her own big dream; not to find oil, but to produce a Hollywood-quality movie. Kim’s career in horticulture did little to prepare her for such an undertaking, but her grandfather’s spirit of boldness runs through her blood too.

“I want to scream it from the rooftops, ‘This was my grandpa!’” Kim said. “I’m recruiting the right team of people to make this movie, and scriptwriting has begun. It’s uncanny how my journey into movie-making parallels Assaph’s journey of discovering oil. There are highs and lows—but there’s no ‘if’ in this for me. I will get this done. I’m his only remaining bloodline, so this is now my life’s work. Thanks to a statue in Mitch Park, I’m glad I’m finally getting to know my grandfather.”

Learn more by visiting TheGreatGutowsky.com.