Skulls Unlimited in the News
(Articles are listed by date of publication)
Skulls Unlimited International has been the subject of numerous newspaper and magazine articles as well as radio and television interviews. Click on the links below to view these various articles and programs.
Skulls Unlimited has been featured in shows such as. MSNBC Investigates, Ripley's Beleive it or Not, Discovery's Dirty Jobs to name a few.
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Sep 1, 2010
Where in Oklahoma can you see the fully-articulated skeleton
of a 40-foot humpback whale? This nearly 2,500-pound skeleton
(which was featured on the Discovery Channel's program
"Dirty Jobs") can only be found at the new Skulls Unlimited
Museum of Osteology (which means the study of bones, skulls
and skeletons).
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May 27, 2009
Jay Villemarette said his professional success isn’t so unusual – other entrepreneurs have formed businesses with the initial goal of supporting their related hobbies. But he had no idea that his love of skulls would take him so far ahead in the industry. Villemarette is founder of Skulls Unlimited International Inc., an Oklahoma City-based company promoted as the world’s leading supplier of osteological specimens.
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Jay Villemarette, founder of Skulls Unlimited International, between ape skeletons at his public museum.
(Photo by Maike Sabolich)
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Nov 19, 2008
A museum that's truly one of a kind is under construction in Moore. The displays have nothing to do with art or history and everything to do with skeletons.
Jay Villemarette is the owner of Skulls Unlimited International in Moore. Right now, his crews are assembling the skeletal remains of varies species, including a humpback whale, for display in his new museum.
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The Biggest Skeletal Collection in the World Right Here in Moore Olahoma
Oct 1, 2008
When Jay Villemarette receives a shipment, it often arrives from a far corner of the world and almost always contains bones. Often those bones are in the form of a dead animal's carcass, maybe a monkey, an elephant or even a huge whale. Whatever the case, they all contribute to Jay’s unusual business, Skull’s Unlimited. Located on Sunnylane Road, Skull’s Unlimited is the world's largest purveyor of osteological specimens, better known as bones.
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Bare-Bones Operation
Oct 1, 2007
Cleaning skulls: It's a dirty job, but somebody's got to do it. Good thing Jay Villemarette and his "skeleton crew" at Oklahoma City-based Skulls Unlimited are more than willing to oblige. Billing itself as the world's leading supplier of osteological specimens, Skulls Unlimited cleans more than 20,000 animal and human skulls a year, some for clients but most for sale to the public.
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Bone Cleaner
May 1, 2007
In this day and age, there are all sorts of collectors. Men and women across the globe collect personal treasures ranging anywhere from stamps and dolls, to cars and art. In March 2007, Jay Villemarette unearthed one of his own largest collection pieces to date — the skeleton of a 55-foot fin whale.
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Apr 2, 2007
When most people think of a family business a butcher store, flower shop or restaurant comes to mind. But Jay Villemarette's company is not your normal neighborhood firm. He owns and operates Skulls Unlimited International, a company that cleans, sells and stores skulls. Business is so busy he can hardly keep up with demand.
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Skull supplier's museum to offer 'educational experience'Remains of rare Javan rhinoceros, manatees, whales are among future displays.
Mar 26, 2007
The skeletons of rare animals are so common among collection items for a planned Museum of Osteology, it's easy to forget they're endangered. Or were endangered. The collection includes one of a black rhinoceros, of which only a few thousand are left in the wild, a Hawaiian monk seal and a killer whale. The collection is being held at Skulls Unlimited in southeast Oklahoma City, which is owned by the future museum's founder.
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Jay Villemarette, president and owner of Skulls Unlimited, stands among some of the full-body animal skeletons that are stored at his company in southeast Oklahoma City. (Photo by Jim Beckel, The Oklahoman)
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Feb 16, 2007
A dead 52-foot fin back whale is missing.
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Feb 2, 2007
Jay Villemarette cleans skeletons--mostly animal and human skulls--for a living. He owns Skulls Unlimited International and insists there's never a dull moment at the office. We'll take his word for it. After all, his company might be cleaning a gorilla skull one day and that of a chipmunk, a giraffe or a human the next.
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At Skulls Unlimited, things can get kind of gross, no bones about it
Oct 30, 2006
On one table, a worker places the final touches on a human skeleton, with the head still separated from the rest of the bones. In another corner sit three large whale skulls, one weighing about a ton.
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Oct 25, 2006
Jay Villemarette started collecting skulls when he was 7 years old. He found a dog skull and brought it home. Soon after that discovery, he found a cat skull. Intrigued by the similarities and differences, he began to bring bones home whenever he found them.
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Oct 25, 2006
Gap-toothed grins surround Jay Villemarette, and he's selling them off for $395 to $795 a head.
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Jay Villemarette has a crazy idea - an entire museum devoted to skeletons, from tiny shrews to boxcar-size whales. Sounds ... great. When the heck does this thing open?
Jul 1, 2006
AS A SPECIMEN, JAY VILLEMARETTE is fairly unremarkable, though when he's viewed from the front, his cranial radius does seem a bit large. Other than that, as the 40-year-old stands before you with his largish head, blue eyes, and goatee, there's nothing to suggest he's the king of the bone business ...
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Illustration by Joe Ciardello
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Feb 23, 2006
The owner of the hippo skull has been found. Chickasha Lumber Company manager Steve Smart said the news coverage surrounding their shipment of gloves that included the skull of a hippopotamus has connected them with the organization that sold the piece.
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Feb 22, 2006
When Chickasha Lumber Company employee Jeannie Douglas opened a shipment of gloves for the store Tuesday morning, she expected to find 480 pairs of gloves. Instead she only found 48 pairs of gloves thrown on top of what is believed to be the skull of a hippopotamus.
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Oct 1, 2005
In our search for happiness and fulfillment, many of us seek out a job that allows us to do what we love. Joey Williams has found the perfect fit in a career that combines his hobby (collecting skulls and bones) with work that he enjoys (wildlife and environmental education). “This job ties it in a knot for me,” said Joey.
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Bringing the skeletons out of the closet
Jun 8, 2005
The owner of a business that sells skulls and skeletons is fleshing out a museum devoted to the study of bones.
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Photo by Roger Klock, The Oklahoman
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Jan 3, 2005
The 20-year dream of one Cleveland County business owner to open a non-profit museum to give back to the community is slowly becoming a reality.
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