--- title: "This 7-Story Statue of Elon Musk Looks Absolutely Terrible" description: "To convince Tesla CEO Elon Musk to open a new factory in the city, a 75-foot statue in Tulsa, Oklahoma just got an Elon Musk makeover." date: "2020-05-22" modified: "2020-05-22" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/7-story-statue-elon-musk-looks-absolutely-terrible" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # This 7-Story Statue of Elon Musk Looks Absolutely Terrible ![To convince Tesla CEO Elon Musk to open a new factory in the city, a 75-foot statue in Tulsa, Oklahoma just got an Elon Musk makeover.]() *\Image: Tyler Butler via Facebook\* ## Musk Makeover To grab the attention of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the [*New York Post* reports](), a 75-foot statue in Tulsa, Oklahoma just got an Elon Musk makeover. The statue in question is the Golden Driller, a 43,500 pound likeness of an oil worker — the irony doesn't escape us — made from a steel frame covered in concrete and plaster. It's the [fifth tallest]() statue in the United States. Gaze upon its horrid visage. ## Tulsa Tesla Now, a giant red Tesla logo was painted right over the oil worker's chest, with the letters "Tesla" adorning his belt buckle. His face was even repainted to take on the likeness of the billionaire — though the sloppy caricature isn't going to fool anybody. The two groups behind the makeover, Tesla Owners Club of Oklahoma and Tulsa for Tesla, want the electric carmaker to build a factory in their city. [According to *The Drive*](), Tulsa enthusiasts also created the website [BigFuckingField.com]() to sing the praises of Oklahoma for Tesla's next factory. ## Lukewarm Litigation But is Tesla even looking for a new home? The news comes after Musk threatened to move his car company's California productions to Texas or Nevada after the local county wouldn't allow the company to resume operations amidst a global pandemic. Musk even decided to [sue]() the county earlier this month, but [dropped the suit]() on Wednesday. **READ MORE:** [Tulsa Paints Elon Musk's Face on Its Giant Golden Driller Statue in Hopes of Luring Next Tesla Plant]() \[*The Drive*\] **More on Musk:** *[TESLA LEAK DESCRIBES UPCOMING “MILLION MILE” BATTERY]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()