Reviews for tonight's Lincoln Highway program

October 29, 2008

Reviews have been coming in for the PBS program A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway.

South Bend Tribune

Central NJ newspapers group

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Toledo Blade, and The Truth Newspaper in Elkhart, IN, all used the Scripps story

So did Salt Lake City’s Deseret News, which missed a great opportunity to interview three leading LH historians in its area, two of them prominently featured in the program

Pittsburgh Tribune Review commented on the show and its music

Detroit Free Press and Lansing State Journal among others used the same text and made it tonight’s Must-See

Our friend Ron Warnick reviews it on his site, Route 66 News

Finally, USAToday compliments the show but it’s obvious the reviewer skipped the preview DVD when he writes, “Sebak sometimes allows his passion for roadside stands to overwhelm the road itself.” Once you’ve seen it, you too will wonder “what roadside stands??” and then guess that the reviewer made an assumption based on past shows.

The above images are from producer Rick Sebak. Learn more about the show here.

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Outtakes & extras from Lincoln Highway program

October 28, 2008

Rick Sebak and his crew filmed dozens of hours but only had room for about 15 stories in A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway. Five stories that were finished but couldn’t fit in the hour-long program will be on the DVD as extras. And starting today — not only are they available online but so are 21 more outtakes from the show.

The five feature stories are on Woodine Iowa’s Brick Street Station, a bookstore in North Platte NE, a garage-turned-tavern in Lyman WY, a woman in Morrison IL with a yard full of lawn ornaments, and a farmer’s market in Belle Plaine IA.

The 21 outtakes cover a wide range of people and places, from Bernie Queneau recalling his Boy Scout life-saving demonstrations on the famed 1928 safety tour to Michael Wallis describing the genesis of Radiator Springs for the movie Cars and how it represents towns not only on Route 66 but along any old 2-lane. You’ll also see familiar faces from the LHA as well as folks from along the road who you’ll meet in the program.

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Posted in highways, history, Road trip, roadside, travel | 2 Comments »

PBS Lincoln Highway DVD available for pre-order

October 27, 2008

It won’t ship till after the show airs nationally, but A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway DVD is available for pre-order from PBS.

The DVD includes 5 extra segments as listed on the back cover below plus we’ll have more information about them later this week. Above is a screen shot from the end of the program; note the cover has changed slightly since the program was finished, as seen in these images provided by producer Rick Sebak.

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Posted in food, highways, history, lodging, Road trip, roadside, signs, souvenirs, transportation, travel | 1 Comment »

South Bend’s Lincoln Highway & ’09 conference

October 24, 2008

A story in Thursday’s South Bend Tribune recalled the Lincoln Highway across Indiana and discussed plans for the 2009 LHA conference in South Bend next June.

On the evening of Oct. 31, 1913, some 3,000 people and 500 automobiles paraded from to Springbrook Park in South Bend.

There, in the park that later became Playland Park and is now property owned by Indiana University South Bend, a huge bonfire was set ablaze — the flames could be seen for 20 miles. It burned simultaneously in a line of bonfires across the country from New York to San Francisco.

For miles across Indiana, farmers lit Jack-0-Lanterns on fence posts. It wasn’t to drive witches out on Halloween.

Instead, the “monster parade,” according to The Tribune, celebrated the dedication of Lincoln Highway, America’s first transcontinental highway.

The article included the above photo, provided by the Mishawaka-Penn-Harris Public Library, which “shows a gas station believed to be at the northwest corner of Cedar and Lincoln Way in Mishawaka, illustrating how businesses catered to tourists along the Lincoln Highway between 1913 and 1928.”

The LHA conference is set for June 16-20, 2009, headquartered at Century Center, South Bend.

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Lincoln Hwy's Williamson — new book on old dogs

October 23, 2008

Brand new from Simon & Schuster is Old Dogs: Are the Best Dogs by photographer Michael S. WIlliamson, co-author of The Lincoln Highway: Coast to Coast from Times Square to the Golden Gate (2007). The $19.95 hardcover runs 160 pages. Williamson’s photos are accompanied by Gene Weingarten’s writing. Michael told me, “We are having a big opening at the Smithsonian here in D.C. on Oct. 30th — just a day after the LH documentary telecast so it’ll be a good week to be an author! A couple of the doggies in the book live on the Lincoln Highway so I guess that makes the two projects a teeny bit connected.”

From the publisher:

If you’ve known a favorite old dog, you’ll find him or her on these pages. Your dog might go by a different name and have a different shape, but you’ll recognize him or her by the look in an eye or the contours of a life story. There is the dog who thinks he is a house cat; the herder, the fetcher, the punk and the peacock, the escape artist, the demolition artist, the patrician, the lovable lout, the amiable dope, the laughable clown, the schemer, the singer, the daredevil, the diplomat, the politician, the gourmand, and the thief.

The Smithsonian launch and lecture will be at the Ripley Center, 1100 Jefferson Dr SW, Oct. 30 at 7pm. Tickets are $25 or $15 for members; call (202) 633-3030.

Old Dogs is available in bookstores or on Amazon for $13.57.

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Reviews starting for PBS Lincoln Highway show

October 22, 2008

Reviews are starting for Rick Sebak’s A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway, airing next week. I’ll tell you more about what’s in it in the coming days, but here’s a review from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette‘s Rob Owen that went out on the Scripps wire. An excerpt: “Fans of Sebak’s love letters to Americana won’t be disappointed as he visits both ends of the highway – at Times Square in New York City and next to a bus stop in San Francisco – and many locations in between…. Unlike past Sebak productions, ‘Lincoln Highway’ offers more of a historical focus with less emphasis on oddball Americans (or maybe Lincoln Highway enthusiasts just aren’t prone to saying wacky things).”

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Posted in highways, history, roadside, transportation, travel | 1 Comment »

Huskies on Parade features Lincoln Highway dog

October 21, 2008

Our friend RoadDog wrote about a public art project celebrating the bond between Northern Illinois University and the DeKalb/Sycamore communities. More than 50 fiberglass painted Huskies were sponsored by individuals, businesses, and organizations. Each came as a pair: a 40-inch tall dog and a 20-inch pup.

On Thursday took a trip out to Dekalb and Sycamore and enjoyed looking for them. This was based on Chicago’s Cows on Parade. Really liked the Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition’s “Lincoln on Lincoln” with the fiberglass Huskie sporting a Lincoln beard. Also liked “Paw McCartney” complete in Sgt. Pepper’s uniform and mustache.

Here’s an image of Lincoln at the state fair from the ILHC, and below is Paw from huskiesonparade.com/. ILHC director Diane Rossiter says:

ILHC sponsored “Lincoln” and “Abe” as part of this project. Lincoln is 40″ tall and is standing proud on the corner of 1st Street and Lincoln Highway in DeKalb. Abe is 20″ tall and is allowed to visit many places throughout Illinois. He has gone to the Illinois State Fair in Springfield and was on exhibit in Freeport, Illinois for the celebration of the Lincoln/Douglas debates. Keep an eye out for Abe at future outings!

Huskies on Parade culminated during NIU’s Homecoming weekend when the dogs rode in the Homecoming Parade. The Huskie pups will be auctioned off, with all proceeds going to the February 14 Scholarship Fund. You can still check the Lincoln Highwy for Lincoln and 300 E. Harvestore Drive for Paw. For more info contact info@huskiesonparade.com or (815) 753-0835.

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Posted in highways, roadside, travel | 3 Comments »

PBS Lincoln Highway video premier: stars & cars

October 20, 2008

Saturday night saw the official premier of the new PBS program A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway. Attending were soundtrack musician Buddy Nutt, the Altizer family (owners of Lincoln Motor Court near Bedford, Pa.), and the often unsung stars—the crew who helped film and edit the production.

The screening was at the Sewickley Car Store, where guests got to snack and mingle with beautiful automobiles thanks to owner Joe Scarfone, above with Producer Rick Sebak. The video was shown on a big screen in HD and elicited some laughs and aww’s, especially for LH couple Esther and Bernie Queneau, who is seen driving around Ohio at 96!

Sebak advised everyone to watch the final two scenes after the video ends. First is a promo for the DVD that’s a funny interaction with cows in Wyoming. Then the credits roll and we hear Buddy Nutt singing “Goin’ All the Way on the Lincoln Highway.” Then came the roar of applause.

Here’s Rick in back along with his brother-in-law Bill Scott, sister Nisey Sebak, and mom Sebak. Up front are good friends Dave and Mary Beth Miller, and Sarah and Brian Butko (that’s me).

Above is On-Line Editor Matt Conrad with his girlfriend Bridget, cameraman Bob Lubomski, musician Buddy Nutt, and Liz “Ukulizzy” Hammond.

The Altizers, owners of Lincoln Motor Court, include Debbie, Bob, Rachel and her husband (who in the video make a quick appearance outside a cabin), Rick Sebak, and Carissa who has some great scenes in the show.

We can’t forget the stunning cars, all new except for this classic 1-cylinder, 12-hp, mid-1950s BMW Isetta microcar.

Everyone got a bag filled with cool stuff including DVDs of the show, each signed by Sebak. You can also read a fun blog post by jomama about the evening HERE.

A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway premiers at 8pm on your local PBS station on October 29, and repeats at 10 pm October 31.

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Posted in film/video, highways, history, Lincoln Highway | 4 Comments »

North Platte video features Buffalo Bill's ranch

October 17, 2008

This video about things to see in North Platte, Nebraska, includes the world’s largest railroad classification yard, its famous WWII Canteen, construction of the 9-story-tall Golden Spike tower, and Buffalo Bill’s Scout’s Rest Ranch, long a Lincoln Highway attraction.

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Posted in highways, history, transportation, travel | 2 Comments »

Great Race US-only event to launch Saturday

October 16, 2008

Following up on my posts of February 17, 2008 and July 8, 2008, the delayed commemorative re-run of the 1908 New York-to-Paris “Great Race” will come to life later this week. Since the race was delayed in May (now set to start April 25, 2009), Luke Rizzuto and other fans have organized a US-only event called The Longest Auto Race Centennial. Riding with Luke will be Jeff Mahl, great-grandson of George Schuster, winner of the grueling 1908 race. Here is a great video of Luke Rizzuto and his 1918 Chevy:

The 3,700-mile cross-country event will start in New York City on October 18, 2008, and finish in San Francisco on November 8. Much of the 21-day route will follow the Lincoln Highway from coast to coast — click HERE for a full itinerary. All are invited to log onto their website and join the tour for even one day with no fees or rigid regulations.

Luke’s wife Joan-E Rizzuto wrote me, “The excitement and momentum are building significantly, considering we only took over the organizational part of it six weeks ago. Who knew? It must be that this race is NOT about money or glory, but was born out of people’s desire to authentically and respectfully honor those early-day automotive pioneers. Those participants had no roads, AAA service, gas stations or auto parts stores to make their journey less challenging. If you read the accounts of what George Schuster encountered, it is truly humbling.”

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