TV producers looking for a colorful Route 66 cafe September 12, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Restaurants, Television.2 comments
A development team is seeking nominations for a colorful Route 66 diner that will be featured on a reality TV show on a “major cable network,” according to a spokesman.
Here’s a news release about the project:
“Diner” will follow the lives of the staff (and of course the locals) of a home-town diner. We’ll face their problems, we’ll share their joys, we’ll believe in their dreams — and we’ll learn why to them, it’s not just a diner, it’s a refuge… a place of comfort that knows their secrets and keeps them hidden. In this real life “Alice,” “Diner” celebrates Americana, small towns, big dreams, and of course – home cookin’.
Casting directors are seeking diners throughout the country with at least four staff members of any age who have fascinating stories to tell. Candidates must be willing to participate in the project fully, with an open heart and a willingness to share their lives with us. On camera experience is not necessary nor is it preferred.
Adam M. Muggenthaler, in charge of development and casting for Metal Flowers Media, wouldn’t reveal what cable station is picking up the “Diner” show, only that it was a “major” one.
I’ve already given Muggenthaler my suggestions. You may have some of your own. If you do, call him at 323-309-1781. You also can nominate a Route 66 diner by e-mail once you get the information here. And Metal Flowers Media also can be found on Facebook.
Historic sign gets a partial face-lift September 11, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Motels, Preservation, Signs.1 comment so far
The sign at the historic Lincoln Motel in Chandler, Okla., received half a face-lift Saturday from Oklahoma Route 66 Association volunteers.
Jerry McClanahan and Emily Priddy scrape the peeling paint from the west side of the Lincoln Motel sign in Chandler, Okla.
I say “half,” because we only had time to scrape and repaint the sign’s west side. Volunteers are going to finish the sign’s east side tomorrow, starting at 8 a.m. until it’s done sometime in the afternoon.
The west side of the Lincoln Motel sign shines in the sunlight after it was refurbished and repainted on Saturday.
Come on out. Even if you’re not handy with a paint brush, volunteers can always use someone to help pass tools and other materials up the scaffolding. Or you can drop by to watch, or to provide some good cheer.
We’ll have more about this preservation event after it’s done. We’re pretty happy how it’s gone so far. And the Lincoln Motel’s new owners are happy, too.
New Route 66 book launches in Kingman next week September 11, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Books, Events, Vehicles.add a comment
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 and contributed an essay to “Greetings from Route 66,” will be there.
More about the book:
Greetings from Route 66 has a subtitle that says it all: The Ultimate Road Trip Back Through America’s Main Street. Illustrated with over 700 vintage photographs, postcards, travel decals, collectibles and other memorabilia and filled with essays and photography by renowned Route 66 authorities Jim Hinckley, Michael Karl Witzel, Russell A. Olsen, Kathy Weiser, Kerrick James, Lee Klancher and others, Greetings from Route 66 is the ultimate celebration of the “Mother Road”.
And more about the event next Saturday:
Special guest Bob “Boze” Bell, editor of True West Magazine and a former Kingman resident whose father, Al Bell, owned the Flying A gas station in Kingman (profiled in the book), will give away a signed copy of Greetings from Route 66 to one lucky winner. A special commemorative Greetings from Route 66 dash magnet has been created and will be presented to the owners of the first 200 vehicles sporting any Route 66 promotional material from bumper sticker, antenna ball, or home made poster to a Route 66 postcard, brochure or map. Additional prizes include free passes to the Route 66 museum at the Kingman Power House Visitor Center, and a signed Route 66 print by Jim Hinckley.
The Chillin’ with Beale Street event also includes a car show.
A look at Route 66 Days September 10, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Events, Vehicles.1 comment so far
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 September 10, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Motorcycles, Museums, People.add a comment
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., about 150 miles away.
Music duo embarking on partial Route 66 tour September 10, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Events, Music.add a comment
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 tour itinerary, they’ll play at the Blue Dome Diner in Tulsa on Sept. 15, the Golden Light Cantina in Amarillo on Sept. 16, at a Southwest Pickers Concert in Albuquerque, and finish their time on the Mother Road at Pickin’ in the Pines festival in Flagstaff, Ariz.
Jeff and Vida’s Facebook page is here. Samples of their music can be heard on their MySpace page.
(Hat tip: Amarillo Globe-News; photo courtesy of Jeff & Vida)
Using video to promote print September 10, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Books, History.add a comment
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 Sept. 20. Jett will have a book-signing on Sept. 23 at the Cozy Dog Drive-In in Springfield, Ill. She will also be at the International Route 66 Mother Road Festival in Springfield on Sept. 24-26.
The cutest little town in Carburetor County September 9, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Businesses, Movies, Railroad, Toys.2 comments
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 finished. He also painted some “Cars”-related murals in the room. Here are photos that he provided:
The 4-by-10-foot miniature set can be found at his business, Rapid Force Exhaust Technology LLC, in La Habra, Calif.
(Photos courtesy of Roy Martinez Jr.)
Scenes from a desolate desert September 9, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Movies, Photographs.1 comment so far
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 September 8, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Businesses, Gas stations, Museums, Restaurants, Vehicles.4 comments
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 found. This will become a very good pit stop for Route 66 enthusiasts.
This is what you see from outside of Russell’s. Except for the New Mexican accents, it’s mostly nondescript.
But the western statues outside the entrance provide some inkling that this place may be a wee bit different.
Once inside, you notice that Russell’s wants to appeal to those who grew up in the 1950s, which includes a fair number of Route 66ers.
Russell’s houses a small Subway restaurant, but also a nicely decorated, full-service diner. Bill Kinder, co-owner of the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, says the pot roast and meatloaf there are terrific.
Another big draw is going to be Russell’s car museum, which contains 22 vehicles ranging from a 1929 Model A pickup to a 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT. Seventeen of the vehicles come from the 1950s.
And, as you’ll see, the museum contains plenty of other memorabilia, too.
The museum was free when we went there, but a bucket near the entrance collected donations for charities — Faith City Mission in Amarillo and House of Hope in Tucumcari.
In addition to the services mentioned, Russell’s houses a tire shop, gift shop, a chapel, free Wi-Fi, and gasoline and diesel islands.
The selection of food, beverages and necessities turned out to be vast. The facilities were exceedingly clean. And Russell’s is much roomier than it first appears.
We were impressed. Considering that we regularly patronize the Tulsa-based and oft-praised QuikTrip convenience store chain, that is not easy to do.
We noted that Russell’s sprinkles Route 66 decor throughout the complex. This isn’t just lip service for tourists. Russell’s sits on the former Longhorn II site — a motel, service station and cafe built by Homer Ehresman after the nearby border town of Glenrio, Texas, was bypassed by Interstate 40 during the 1970s. The frontage road that runs directly in front of Russell’s served as Route 66 from 1952 to 1980.
The Ehresmans owned the Texas Longhorn Motel, cafe and service station in Glenrio for many years. You can still see the ruins of the complex in Glenrio, including the famous “First/Last Stop in Texas” sign. After the I-40 bypass, the Ehresmans moved their business a few miles northwest to the interstate. But that, too, eventually closed, and was abandoned for many years.
Even if you prefer to travel the old 1926-52 gravel section of Route 66 west of Glenrio, you can still visit Russell’s. At the ghost town of Endee, you turn north on New Mexico Highway 93 (also a gravel road) and go north less than three miles. Russell’s is at the Highway 93 and Interstate 40 intersection.