Chris McGreal of The Guardian newspaper in London is retracing the Route 66 path of the Joad family from John Steinbeck's seminal novel, "The Grapes of Wrath." Day Two of his journey includes a lot of material from Adrian, Texas, and the ghost town of Glenrio on the Texas-New Mexico border. Be sure to check … Continue reading In the footsteps of the Joads
Category: People
A tour of Jim Ross’ property
Oklahoma Route 66 historian and author Jim Ross gives a tour of his house, the design which was inspired by Phillips 66 cottage-style gas stations from the 1930s. Ross also built roadside-based guest cabin on his property, which sits on a piece of land where two alignments of Route 66 run nearby. I've been to … Continue reading A tour of Jim Ross’ property
Teen named grand marshal of Duarte parade
The City of Duarte, Calif., has named a 17-year-old boy who doesn't even have a driver's license as grand marshal of the annual Route 66 Parade next month. He's not just any teenager, though. Zac Sunderland of nearby Thousand Oaks is the youngest person to ever sail around the world. According to the Pasadena Star-News, … Continue reading Teen named grand marshal of Duarte parade
Return to Route 66 — Part 7
Jim Luning has posted Part 7 of a video series of his and Tim Steil's trip on Route 66 earlier this summer -- on the 10th anniversary of their first trip to research their "Route 66" book. This video focuses more on Steil and how he's changed since that first journey.
Arizona roadie dies
Vincent M. Salmon, a founding member of the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona, died Aug. 9 at age 81, according to an obituary in the Kingman Daily Miner. He was a longtime educator and served in the Army during the Korean War. But here's the stuff that's most relevant to roadies: Dr. Salmon has … Continue reading Arizona roadie dies
Guitar man passes on
Think about having this on your resume -- you created a number of innovations that spawned thousands, if not millions, of rock, country and pop-music acts over the decades. One of those innovations was the solid-body electric guitar. Without it, it'd be hard to fathom Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Van Halen, Joe Perry, Stevie Ray Vaughn, … Continue reading Guitar man passes on
Cheesecake for the Route 66 Pulse?
While surfing the Web tonight, I stumbled onto this little item -- apparently the Route 66 Pulse newspaper will be the beneficiary of a contest for prospective female models. From The Sustainability Ninja: Think you’re hot? Like wearing sustainable clothing? Well you’re in luck. Project Green Search is a new modeling competition seeking models to … Continue reading Cheesecake for the Route 66 Pulse?
Mickey Mantle’s widow dies
Merlyn Mantle, 77, the widow of New York Yankees baseball star Mickey Mantle, died Monday from complications of Alzheimer's disease. Mickey died of liver cancer in 1995. Merlyn's obituary in Newsday has an excerpt of interest to Route 66 fans: Mickey and Merlyn met two years before he debuted in the major leagues, while both … Continue reading Mickey Mantle’s widow dies
Oklahoma firm producing film about Cyrus Avery
Deep into a story from Indian Country Today about an Oklahoma film company acquiring the rights to a novel about major-league baseball's first American Indian player is this: Mike (Marshall) has been involved in Oklahoma television for more than 20 years as a production manager and field producer. He has produced more than 200 hours … Continue reading Oklahoma firm producing film about Cyrus Avery
Voice of the Dodgers set to retire after next season
After the close of the 2010 maj0r-league baseball season, it appears that a living legend will finally hang up the microphone after more than 60 years. Summers in Southern California will never be quite the same. Reported Phil Rosenthal of the Chicago Tribune noted that Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully gave himself a little … Continue reading Voice of the Dodgers set to retire after next season