New Route 66 book launches in Kingman next week

A new book from Voyageur Press, "Greetings from Route 66," will be launched on Sept. 18 during the Chillin' on Beale Street event in Kingman, Ariz. The book-launch event is sponsored by the Kingman Route 66 Association, and will be from 5 to 10 p.m. that day. Kingman resident and author Jim Hinckley, who's written several books … Continue reading New Route 66 book launches in Kingman next week

A look at Route 66 Days

Last year, the Flagstaff Convention and Visitors Bureau had a prime view of the Route 66 Days car show in town, as you will see. The Flagstaff Route 66 Car Club is hosting the event this weekend. More than 400 entrants will be there.

A tour of Route 66 Vintage Iron

Here's a video of someone walking through the Route 66 Vintage Iron Motorcycle Museum in Miami, Okla. The most fascinating part, in my opinion, is the accounting of Evel Knievel's many broken bones, including his X-rays. If you like motorcycle museums, I'd be remiss to not mention the Seaba Station Motorcycle Museum in Warwick, Okla., … Continue reading A tour of Route 66 Vintage Iron

Music duo embarking on partial Route 66 tour

The Nashville-based duo Jeff and Vida are going on a partial Route 66 tour this month to promote their new album, "Selma Chalk." Jeff Burke and Vida Wakeman, who are husband and wife, play all-acoustic music that's described as bluegrass, old country and Americana. Four supporting musicians are part of the band. According to their … Continue reading Music duo embarking on partial Route 66 tour

Using video to promote print

We've been seeing this a lot more in recent years, and it will continue to grow more popular -- using video to promote books. In this case, it's Cheryl Eichar Jett for her upcoming books from Arcadia Publishing, "Route 66 in Springfield" and "Route 66 in Madison County." Both books will be in stores on … Continue reading Using video to promote print

The cutest little town in Carburetor County

Roy Martinez Jr. began in January 2009 to build a miniature version of the fictional Route 66 town of Radiator Springs, as depicted from the hit 2006 animated film "Cars," as part of a model train set. Except for some shrubbery and foliage he'll add later, Martinez reports that his own version Radiator Springs is … Continue reading The cutest little town in Carburetor County

Scenes from a desolate desert

Ry Cooder's slide guitar score from the movie "Paris, Texas" -- and these desert photos, many from Route 66 -- cast a desolate but lovely mood in this video.

A refreshing stop at Russell’s

During trips this past year to eastern New Mexico, we noticed the construction of a massive truck stop and travel center at the Endee exit, off Interstate 40. A few weeks ago, Russell's Truck & Travel Center opened. We stopped there during a recent journey to Tucumcari, and we were pleasantly surprised by what we … Continue reading A refreshing stop at Russell’s

Swing time

Here's a fresh arrangement of Bobby Troup's "Route 66" by the Beantown Swing Orchestra. UPDATE: The video has been removed. However, one of the band's members directed me to another of its performances of this tune: https://youtu.be/jvi5z-LO7Vs

Thoughts on film

Jim Luning, director of the "Route 66: Ten Years Later" documentary that will screen Thursday at the Portage Theater in Chicago, was interviewed on the Steve and Johnnie Show on WGN radio about the film this week. ---