Home movies of a 1950 road trip

A reader alerted me about this home-movie footage of a family vacation in 1950 that was preserved by the Prelinger Archive. The Route 66 material doesn't start until about the three-minute mark, when the family starts to cross the Chain of Rocks Bridge in St. Louis. You'll also see footage along the Mother Road in … Continue reading Home movies of a 1950 road trip

Trio launches fundraiser campaign for full-length Route 66 documentary

A young trio launched a Kickerstarter fundraising campaign a few days ago to produce a full-length, high-definition documentary film about Route 66. We'll let Jesse Urrutia, Sylwia Gorajek, and Jakub Gorajek explain: Longtime readers may remember the leggy Sylwia Gorajek in an well-produced (but unofficial) music video for Depeche Mode's version of "Route 66" last … Continue reading Trio launches fundraiser campaign for full-length Route 66 documentary

“American Giants” video series coming to YouTube

This looks like fun. Stone Baker soon will launch "American Giants," a series of online films about Muffler Men -- the tall fiberglass figures that graced roadside America during the 1960s and '70s. Baker uploaded a teaser video about his project: https://youtu.be/MUCZyAs0fAo The unique Gemini Giant at the Launching Pad restaurant on Route 66 in … Continue reading “American Giants” video series coming to YouTube

Retro car-rental company adds cheaper option to travel Route 66

Blacktop Candy's, a company that gained notice a few weeks ago for offering rentals of classic cars on which to drive Route 66, announced it has added an option that's more flexible and cheaper. Company president Scott Shinn says the new Standard option goes for $7,490 for two adults. The details: 19 days of car … Continue reading Retro car-rental company adds cheaper option to travel Route 66

Jim Hinckley stars in an upcoming travel video series

Longtime readers will know of Jim Hinckley, an author based out of Kingman, Ariz., who wrote "The Route 66 Encyclopedia" and other related books. This video popped up in my feed over the weekend. Apparently Hinckley is getting into video as well: https://youtu.be/guH1CnEjaxM The video was uploaded by Norman Fisk of Diamond Valley Productions, which … Continue reading Jim Hinckley stars in an upcoming travel video series

“Route 66 RV Adventure” preview

You may remember John Holod, who was shooting a documentary about Route 66 in 2011 for his "RV Adventure" DVD series. Holod has posted a generous 30-minute preview of his "Route 66 RV Adventure: Exploring the Mother Road" film, which is 90 minutes total. https://youtu.be/dzi_h_H80GA The DVD can be ordered here for $19.95.

Route 66 in a hand bike

Longtime readers may remember Norberto de Angelis. The Italy native was a football player who became paralyzed in a car accident. After his recovery, he decided to pedal the length of Route 66 in 2009 using a specially equipped hand bicycle. This 26-minute video documents his journey. The narration is in Italian, but it should be … Continue reading Route 66 in a hand bike

Fun with mounted cameras

As the quality and portability of high-definition video have gotten better, we're seeing more of such clips show up on the Internet from the Mother Road. This video, which included mounted angles, comes from Poland: Route 66 clip from meedia.pl on Vimeo. The song is "Route 66 Revisited," by Jimmy LaFave. The song can be … Continue reading Fun with mounted cameras

“Pipes & Sticks on Route 66” teaser trailer

Filmmaker John McDonald posted a four-minute teaser trailer about his latest work, "Pipes & Sticks on Route 66," which documents last spring's tour of the Mother Road by five world-class Scottish musicians. https://youtu.be/JkD78Kt-OXU McDonald is still looking for financial support to finish his film. He's launched a Kickstarter campaign to help raise the funds.

Route 66 in six minutes

Motorcycle tour guide Gary Behr posted this video of a series of quasi-time-lapse photos from Richard Alexander's mounted GoPro camera. The images come from Route 66 (and a side trip or two) from Chicago to Victorville, Calif. -- about 2,600 miles worth. https://youtu.be/cOPH1Pc-X2c Behr has a blog here.