Each year at the International Route 66 Festival awards banquet, "Route 66: The Mother Road" author Michael Wallis makes a "State of the Road" speech. Save for a time when it was streamed live, I'm not aware anyone has ever posted video of Wallis' Route 66 speeches on the Internet. Wallis owns a great baritone … Continue reading Michael Wallis’ “State of the Road” speech
Category: Books
The Road Crew wins big award at Route 66 banquet
The Road Crew music group won the inaugural Bobby Troup Artistic Award during the 2011 International Route 66 Festival awards banquet Saturday night at the Galleries at Sunset Center in Amarillo, Texas. David Wickline, an author and Route 66-themed restaurant owner, won the Route 66 Roadie Award. And Alan McNeil and his mother, Marianne, were honored … Continue reading The Road Crew wins big award at Route 66 banquet
Notes from the Route 66 festival
A lot is going on this weekend at the International Route 66 Festival in Amarillo. But Friday, most of the newsworthy stuff Friday could be found at the artists and authors exposition, housed in the San Jacinto Christian Academy cafeteria. The inside of the cafeteria provides a good indication why it was used. Check out all … Continue reading Notes from the Route 66 festival
Book about Wagon Wheel Motel published
An illustrated book about the history of the Wagon Wheel Motel in Cuba, Mo., has just been published. Riva Echols, sister of the motel's owner Connie Echols, wrote "The History of a Route 66 Icon: The Wagon Wheel Motel on Route 66" (102 pages, $15.99, paperback). According to the news release about the book: Riva … Continue reading Book about Wagon Wheel Motel published
Former Route 66 Cafe, motel put up for sale
The former Route 66 Cafe and adjacent Belvidere Motel along old 825 Old Route 66 South in Litchfield, Ill., have been put up for sale for $150,000. The restaurant's operators left the property a few years ago, telling me at the time that the landlord hadn't fixed the roof. But, according to the listing for … Continue reading Former Route 66 Cafe, motel put up for sale
Photographer launches Route 66 promotional project
Christian Gideon, a photographer who hails from Springfield, Mo., is undertaking a "Is Route 66 Dead?" multimedia project in an effort to draw more young people to the Mother Road. Here's a video he created that introduces us to the project: https://vimeo.com/24544556 Gideon's Kickstarter project seeks to raise $15,000 in 90 days. He writes: Myself … Continue reading Photographer launches Route 66 promotional project
Book review: “Ghost Towns of Route 66”
Ghost town -- a once-flourishing town wholly or nearly deserted usually as a result of the exhaustion of some natural resource. -- Merriam-Webster dictionary The term "ghost town" conjures images of abandoned, dusty, and tumbleweed-strewn buildings in a once-bustling Wild West town founded in the 1800s. However, in the case of historic U.S. 66, ghost towns are … Continue reading Book review: “Ghost Towns of Route 66”
Pearls of news items
Today, I was asked to attend the Route 66 Archives and Research Collaboration at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa. The event was organized by the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program. I made my pitch for the ample online news archives of Route 66 News. But, as is typical of such gatherings, I heard a few pearls of … Continue reading Pearls of news items
From the trail of “End of the Trail”
Dan Rice of 66 to Cali on the Santa Monica Pier is traveling down Route 66 to the Midwest to promote his new book, "End of the Trail." Here's his interview yesterday with host Pat Campbell on KFAQ-AM in Tulsa. Rice mostly talks about his recovery from traumatic brain injury, but he also talks about … Continue reading From the trail of “End of the Trail”
66-to-Cali owner going on a book publicity tour
Dan Rice, owner of the 66-to-Cali souvenir booth on the Santa Monica Pier, will start a book-publicity tour next week for his new biography, "End of the Trail." "End of the Trail" (The Way Things Are Publications, 242 pages, $24.95 retail) tells of Rice's eight-year ordeal to recover from traumatic brain injury incurred during an … Continue reading 66-to-Cali owner going on a book publicity tour