Get Your Kicks on Route 66
Route 66 appears in many cultural works over the course of the 20th Century.
John Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath" was made into a Movie which documents and dramatizes the plight and flight of poor workers from Oklahoma travelling west along Route 66 in search of a better life.
A TV series [Route 66] from CBS ran from 1960-1964 was inspired by Route 66.
1960s "Easy Rider" with Peter Fonda, tells the tale of a duo of biker-hippies was shot along Route 66. In the 1990s "Thelma & Louise" was also based along the famous highway. Many other theatrical and literary works incorporate route 66 into their plots to varying degrees.
History of Route 66
Route 66 was one of the original Interstate highways in the U.S. It was established in 1926, and soon became one of the most famous roads in America. Route 66 originally snaked from Chicago, Illinois, through Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona ending in Santa Monica, California, nearly 2,500 miles.
Route 66 served as a the main route for those migrating westward after the late 1920s, especially during the Depression and Dust Bowl. People residing along the route prospered, these are the same people who justifiably fought to keep the highway alive in the face of the growing threat of being bypassed by the new Interstate Highway System. Try and find a mom and pop shop business on the new Interstates, there aren't any, not even a diner. Starbuck, Burger King, and so forth dominate the trail. The future belongs to the ruling class Corporate America !
In 1985 it was removed entirely from the Interstate Highway System. Some states incorporated bypassed sections of Route 66 into their state road networks as 'State Route 66'. The corridor is also designated as U.S. Bicycle Route 66, a Bicycle Route that was developed in the 2010s ... well la de dah.
Route 66 Song
"(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66" is a popular rhythm and blues song, composed in 1946 by American songwriter Bobby Troup. The lyrics follow the path of U.S. Route 66 (US 66), which traversed the western two-thirds of the U.S. from Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles, California. The song became a standard, with several renditions appearing on the record charts. [1]
The Lyrics are as follows
If you ever plan to motor west
Travel My Way , take the highway that is best
Get your kicks on Route 66
It winds from Chicago to L.A.
More than 2000 miles all the way
Get your kicks on Route 66
Now you go through St. Looey, Joplin, Missouri
and Oklahoma city is mighty pretty
You’ll see Amarillo, Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona don’t forget Winona
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernadino
Won’t you get hip to this timely tip;
When you make that California trip
Get your kicks on Route 66
