In the past day or so, Discover America -- aka Brand USA, an official public-private corporation that encourages travel in the United States -- uploaded videos about Route 66 in Illinois. This is the American version of a well-produced clip about the Mother Road from Chicago to Springfield, Ill. https://youtu.be/or-cjmMuMDs Discover America also uploaded versions tailored … Continue reading Discover America posting videos about Route 66
Category: Road trips
Elvis driving old Route 66 in Arizona
There's not much of a description to this video, except we know it's primarily Elvis Presley visiting Meteor Crater off Route 66 in Arizona in June 1967. All of the footage appears to be home movies. You'll also see glimpses the American Indian souvenir shops -- including Chief Yellowhorse's -- at the New Mexico-Arizona state line, … Continue reading Elvis driving old Route 66 in Arizona
Book review: “By Mopar to the Golden Gate”
What would it be like to travel the length of the Lincoln Highway, then return home on much of Route 66, in a classic car? Denny Gibson, a longtime aficionado of historic roads and an occasional commenter on this website, provides the answer in a new book, "By Mopar to the Golden Gate" (140 pages, … Continue reading Book review: “By Mopar to the Golden Gate”
Comparing Cars Land to Route 66 landmarks
AttractionsMagazine.com has put together a video that compares Cars Land at Disney California Adventure to real-life landmarks on Route 66. https://youtu.be/ExGmfv_-Qeo There's more than what's in the video, of course. I suspect the source material came from this very popular post from Route 66 News in 2006. (A nighttime image of Cars Land by HarshLight … Continue reading Comparing Cars Land to Route 66 landmarks
All of Route 66’s towns
An enterprising YouTube user has assembled city-limit signs, welcome signs, or other landmark signs of each town on Route 66 and put them onto one video: https://youtu.be/8DBmhPj2EeQ A few dinky or ghost towns are missing, and the 1920s alignment in central Illinois isn't covered. But this clip is remarkably comprehensive. (Image of Glenrio at the … Continue reading All of Route 66’s towns
Religious imagery and “The Grapes of Wrath”
Frank Gifford of rt66pix.com recently was interviewed by Susan Olasky of WORLD radio, which is part of a Christianity-based multimedia group. Gifford explained how he found Christian imagery in John Steinbeck's seminal novel, "The Grapes of Wrath," much of which takes place on Route 66 during the Depression: WORLD radio also linked to this University … Continue reading Religious imagery and “The Grapes of Wrath”
On the Mother Road with Freeway Jim
A fellow on YouTube by the name of Freeway Jim takes a lot of video of his travels. A few days ago, he posted "Off the Beaten Path" videos of sections of Route 66 that were bypassed by Interstate 40. Although they're high-definition, the speeded-up videos aren't remarkable by themselves. What's interesting are the annotations, … Continue reading On the Mother Road with Freeway Jim
Where Cars Land got its inspiration
This video shows how Disney engineers (they're called Imagineers) traveled Route 66 to research and figure out the right look for a life-size fictional town of Radiator Springs for Cars Land at Disneyland California Adventure. https://youtu.be/dKYi8gbbIn0 Route 66 author and "Cars" actor Michael Wallis led the trip about five years ago. My story about that … Continue reading Where Cars Land got its inspiration
Frenchman travels length of Route 66 on special bicycle
French cyclist Thierry Suptil last month became the first person to travel the 2,400-mile length of Route 66 in an ElliptiGO, an elliptical bicycle. According to a news release from the bicycle company: Averaging 47 miles per day, it took him just 52 days of riding to travel from Chicago, Illinois to Los Angeles, California, ending … Continue reading Frenchman travels length of Route 66 on special bicycle
Chinese tourists’ take on Route 66
This is fascinating. These two videos from the China-based Blue Ocean Network contain interviews with a Chinese couple that recently traveled Route 66. Those in the tourism industry should take notes. Part 1: https://youtu.be/AwFC0cVlj5g Part 2: https://youtu.be/bccQAT3wmfk The number of Chinese tourists in the United States reportedly will reach 100 million a year by the … Continue reading Chinese tourists’ take on Route 66