On the Mother Road with “On the Road’s” director

Rebecca Keegan of the Los Angeles Times talked about the upcoming film “On the Road” with its director, Walter Salles. The film is based on the famed Jack Kerouac novel of 1957.

In what had to be a memorable experience, the reporter conducted the interview with Salles driving a 1949 Hudson on Route 66 in West Hollywood, heading to Santa Monica.

Salles reveals the script was based on the original 120-foot-long scroll on which Kerouac wrote “On the Road” — not the final manuscript. Apparently the original text was more melancholy than the final volume.

The whole story is worth reading, but this section of Salles describing the film’s production stuck out:

Among the chief difficulties while shooting was avoiding Wal-Mart and McDonald’s.

“If you take the exact same path as Kerouac took, you drive 1,000 miles and you see the same fast-food shops every here and there,” Salles said. “You have to go further and take the smaller roads, those that are not in the map. When you do that, you end up understanding that there is still a world out there that is genuine and raw and unspoiled. You can still find it, but you have to go much further.”

Those genuine and raw and unspoiled sections can still be found in many rural and even small-town sections of Route 66 today.

By the way, you can find the 1949 Hudson used in the film at The Beat Museum in San Francisco. The museum’s curators wisely kept the road dirt on the car.

“On the Road” often is described as a quasi-Route 66 novel, although little of Kerouac’s trip in 1947 that inspired the book occurred on the Mother Road (this map drawn by Keroauc shows his path). Regardless, the novel has inspired millions to find their own adventures on the road, Route 66 included.

Here’s the trailer for “On the Road”:

“On the Road” will roll out in U.S. theaters on Dec. 21.

3 thoughts on “On the Mother Road with “On the Road’s” director

  1. Ron,
    I wasted a lot of time wondering how to put this on here, use the Mac, cut and paste so it would look perfect after editing, then realized it’s a comment.

    This year before I left for the “California Dreamin Route 66 International Festival” in Victorville CA, I read “On The Road” I put off reading it until I saw they were making a movie. Since Jack Kerouac was from my state I researched him finding everything I could without taking a 30 Minute ride to Lowell. BTW I believe I found out from you and your blog. Anyway after I left Victorville I visited a friend in San Diego for two days and stopped in LA to see my brother in-law who gave me the idea of taking a different Route home. I got on the I-40 going to Victorville stopping at the Midpoint and the Blue Swallow. But going back I was within 20 Miles of Route 6 which I believe to be the road Jack Kerouac took on his last trek to NYC in the book.

    I was dying to see the movie and now it’s here. Too bad whoever cast the movie did not get Johny Depp.

      1. Then maybe someone who is Johny Depp-ish. 50 eh? “Jump Street” came out when? You are right again, Ron. I did feel younger driving those old roads 66 to 6 from BTW.

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