Eight Iconic Pop Culture Locations on Route 66-- Part 1

From the RoadTrippers magazine by Alexandra Charitan.

John Steinbeck was the first person to designate Route 66 as the "Mother Road" (no, it wasn't Michael Wallis), but he was far from the last to recognize the route's cultural significance. In his 1939 novel "The Grapes of Wrath," Steinbeck describes  the east-west highway as a "long concrete path across the country, waving gently up and down on the map... 66 is the mother road."

Decades after Steinbeck's words were published-- and the 1940 film adaptation they inspired-- countless other books, movies, TV shows and songs have featuredthe landmark route.  While "The Grapes of Wrath" and "Easy Rider" might appear to share little more than Arizona's Old Trails Bridge, both movies embody the sense of possibility and freedom that still spurs travelers in search of their kicks to motor west.

I'd also like to add the movies "Vacation" and "Rain Man" as movies about life on the road.  They had parts along 66.

--RoadDog