The full “Two Lane Blacktop” May 17, 2013
Posted by Ron Warnick in Movies, Road trips.add a comment
If you’ve never seen the 1971 film “Two Lane Blacktop,” now’s your chance. Someone has posted the entire movie on YouTube.
According to a Wikipedia article about the film:
Two-Lane Blacktop is notable as a time capsule film of U.S. Route 66 during the pre-Interstate Highway era, and for its stark footage and minimal dialogue. As such, it has become popular with fans of Route 66. Two-Lane Blacktop has been compared to similar road movies with an existentialist message from the era, such as Vanishing Point, Easy Rider, and Electra Glide in Blue.
I’ve spotted several Route 66 landmarks in New Mexico and Texas in the film.
Story about Blue Whale becomes a short film May 12, 2013
Posted by Ron Warnick in Attractions, Movies.3 comments
In 2011, Craig Teicher wrote a short fiction piece for Tulsa-based This Land Press that revolved around the Blue Whale of Catoosa, Okla.
Later, the essay was adapted into a short film:
Imaginary Oklahoma – The Blue Whale of Catoosa from THIS LAND PRESS on Vimeo.
Cow Bop leading another music tour of Route 66 May 8, 2013
Posted by Ron Warnick in Events, Movies, Road trips.add a comment
The California western-swing and jazz band Cow Bop is leading its fourth musical tour of Route 66 in July, and other music acts are invited to participate in the fun.
The “Licks on Route 66 2013″ tour starts July 19 in Chicago and will continue until it reaches the Pacific Ocean around July 30.
Cow Bop leader Bruce Forman is calling the tour a “linear festival.” According to the website:
The event will consist of concerts, performances in night clubs, bars, restaurants, roadhouses and impromptu on-street shows, with convergences of artists who are traveling the road and who live along its route. Fed by media outlets, social media and word of mouth, the event will celebrate the ingenuity, vigor and irrepressible nature of independent artists, and honor the people who continue to keep the road a vibrant linear community. [...]
Other bands also join in, sharing a central social media site that all can post to via sharing. It will be up to each group to set their route, schedule, and mode of transport, and to find their own sponsors. This enable the event to grow in an organic fashion, will add an authenticity to each bands’ music and help energize the economy of the road. To support themselves, bands will book gigs, busk, sell CDs, set up virtual busking via the web. Bands will also build their fan base and get exposure to the other bands’ fan-bases through a shared social media site.
Forman also said the University of Southern California, where he is teaching, also is providing participants and assistance to the tour. So this should be quite a 2,200-mile party.
Former 4 Women on the Route should reopen this month May 6, 2013
Posted by Ron Warnick in Attractions, Businesses, Gas stations, Movies.2 comments
Cars on the Route, formerly known as the 4 Women on the Route in Galena, Kan., should reopen sometime in May after months of renovations, reported the Joplin (Mo.) Globe newspaper.
We previously reported on the overhaul of the Route 66 landmark in March. At the time, principal owner Renee Charles hoped to have the former gas station reopened by mid-April.
The newspaper said:
When it is finished, Cars on the Route will feature new restrooms, new concrete, a new asphalt parking lot, an improved kitchen, a revised menu, neon signs, and an expanded section of memorabilia and Route 66 items for sale.
Out front, Charles is planning additional cars that play off the Pixar movies “Cars” and “Cars 2.” One of the business’s biggest draws has been Tow Tater, a rusty, antique tow truck from which “Cars” director John Lasseter drew inspiration for the character Tow Mater. Schoolchildren and other visitors often pose for photos by the truck.
“He’s getting company,” Charles said. “We are going to get a car like Sheriff’s, Red the Fire Truck will get a face-lift, and we are working on a Doc Hudson.”
Melba Rigg, one of the original 4 Women, will continue to help run the business.
Father-daughter Route 66 documentary to be honored at film festival April 18, 2013
Posted by Ron Warnick in Movies, Road trips.add a comment
Longtime readers may remember Amber McKenzie, who was producing a documentary about a Route 66 journey that she and her father took together in June 2011. The film was titled “Father, Daughter, Mother Road.”
On Wednesday evening, McKenzie delivered some fresh news about the film via email:
It has been selected by the Honolulu Film Awards to receive an Aloha Accolade Award. Only ten documentaries a year are chosen to receive this award. I will be attending the awards banquet and ceremony with my father (the star of my film) and my mother, in Honolulu on May 4th. My father and I will be accepting the award.
A new trailer for the film has been cut. It provides additional intrigue, namely in the form of Amber’s back story:
McKenzie said she hopes the publicity from the upcoming honor will help her film land a distribution deal.
A Facebook page for “Father, Daughter, Mother Road” is here.
Disabled boy’s wishes are granted on Route 66 April 4, 2013
Posted by Ron Warnick in Attractions, Movies, People, Road trips.1 comment so far
The Joplin Globe yesterday published a touching story about sixth-grader Andy Shepherd getting a big dose of Mother Road hospitality as part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Andy has suffered from cerebral palsy since infancy. Despite a grim prognosis and numerous surgeries, he’s continued to develop cognitively more than anticipated.
Andy wanted to meet the real-life inspiration to Tow Mater from the 2006 Disney-Pixar film “Cars” and travel along Route 66.
Because the 1951 International boom truck that inspired Mater was in Galena, Kan., many of Andy’s wishes were fulfilled in that small town.
Police Chief Larry Delmont and Cherokee County Sheriff David Groves agreed to escort Andy and his family into town on Route 66 from the Missouri state line, and they did so with lights on the patrol cars flashing.
Renee Charles and Melba Rigg, sisters who own Four Women on the Route, arranged for Andy to see Tow Tater, the old rusty tow truck parked outside the restored service station. The local icon was the inspiration for the Pixar movie character Tow Mater, but it cannot go by that name because of copyright rules.
Mike Wallis, the voice of Sheriff in “Cars” and an active Route 66 historian and advocate, sent his autograph, which Gourley presented to Andy upon his arrival Wednesday afternoon. Mayor Dale Oglesby presented Andy with a silver badge that read “Official Route 66 Tourist,” and a Route 66-themed key that he said belonged to Tow Tater.
Danny and Kathy Anderson, who own the Streetcar Station on Main Street, agreed to host a small Lightning McQueen-inspired party that Gourley put together, and the Galena Dairy Queen contributed a custom-made “Cars” ice cream cake bearing the message, “Have a great adventure, Andy!”
The youngster then headed a few doors north to LaTurner Barbershop, where Bob LaTurner gave him an official Route 66 haircut — a flattop — and helped him add his signature to his wall, a tradition for visitors from as far away as Spain.
The Globe produced this video of Andy getting his flat-top:
Andy also was set to catch a flight from Kansas City to go to Cars Land — also inspired by Route 66 — at Disney California Adventure Park.
4 Women on the Route undergoing significant changes March 19, 2013
Posted by Ron Warnick in Gas stations, Movies, Preservation, Restaurants.5 comments
The 4 Women on the Route restaurant and souvenir shop on old Route 66 in Galena, Kan., has undergone significant changes in recent weeks — including a name change.
The former Kan-O-Tex gas station at the corner of Front and Main streets has seen renovations to its exterior — including adding a restroom — and repaving the parking lot.
Renee Charles, one of the original four women of 4 Women on the Route, in a phone interview Monday said she owns the station along with one silent partner. One of the other “4 Women” charter members, Melba Rigg, will continue to help operate the business.
One of the big changes is 4 Women on the Route will be renamed Cars on the Route — a reference to the station’s history of sparking one of the key characters of the 2006 Disney-Pixar movie “Cars.”
The name change not only was prompted by the station’s ownership change, but also due to one of its charter members, Betty Courtney, dying at age 79 in 2010.
Charles said Cars on the Route has phased out the restaurant part of the business. It would still offer snacks, drinks, and perhaps sandwiches to visitors. Much of the space inside will be devoted to Route 66-related souvenirs.
“We’re not going to do a lot of changes,” Charles said. Tow Tater, the 1951 International boom truck that inspired the Tow Mater character in “Cars,” will stay on the property indefinitely. Charles said a firetruck and a police car also will be repainted in the colors of Red and the Sheriff of Radiator Springs from the film and parked at the station.
Charles said she hopes to have all the work done at the station by mid-April. Eventually, Charles says she hopes to add architectural neon lighting to the station’s exterior.
Cars on the Route is directly across the street from the revitalized Galena’s Murder Bordello — a former 19th-century house of prostitution that was owned by the murderous Ma Staffleback. The owners of the Murder Bordello hope to have the house finished within the next 90 days. Cars on the Route is partnering with the Murder Bordello to sell tickets for tours of the home.
(Photos courtesy of Dan Imming)