Coffee With Jim

Cyrus Stevens Avery is known today as the Father of Route 66. But he was more, much more. Visionary highway commissioner, businessman, pioneering rangleand conservationist, and innovator. The legacy of the U.S. Highway 66 Association, a manifestation of Avery's genius and ability to build a network of cooperative partnerships,  lives on as the Route 66 renaissance.

On today's episode we visit with Joey Madia that is bringing the Cy...

Lots of inspiration and thought provoking discussion in today's conversation. Our guest taught art at Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey. And he spent ten years as an Emmy winning television graphics producer in New York City. That diversity is refelected in sculptor Donald Gialanella's  work.

He is an artist with unique vision, and a passion for using public art as a catalyst for community development. His ability to transform a...

The annual Miles of Possibility Route 66 Conference is about the business and preservation of Route 66. It is a one of a kind networking opportunity, and a lot of fun with friends and friends yet made. It is also a tangible link to the annual US Highway 66 Association conventions of the 1930s that played a pivotal role in the transformation of Route 66 from highway to icon. 

On today's program we talked with Cheryl Eichar Jett and ...

Today in the virtual diner that is Coffee With Jim we had a lively conversation about time machines, the illusion of time travel, Edsel Ford, the allure of the lowly Model A Ford, and the magic that is a road trip on Route 66 with Jackie Dunn of the Tulsa Model A Ford Club. And we talked about getting a younger generation hooked on the Model A and the great American road trip. 

Next week on Coffee With Jim, we will be visiting with...

Muffler men. The surprising history of miniature golf and it's connection to Rock City. A giant roadside duck. Politically incorrect roadside architecture. A motel drive in theater combination. South of The Border. A house shaped like a shoe with an ice cream parlor in the sole. 

On this special episode of Coffee With Jim, the weekly podcast from Jim Hinckley's America, author and humorist Jim Hinckley shares the story of iconic an...

Acclaimed documentary film producer John Paget, our guest on this episode, launched his career on Route 66 in 1994. That was the year he took to the road with with his camera and his 1969 Cadillac Coupe de Ville convertible. That was the first of several adventures on legendary Route 66 that were captured in Route 66: An American Odyssey and Route 66: Return to the Road with Martin Milner. Fittingly he has returned to the iconic hi...

You are assured a conversation filled with a healthy dose of inspiration as well as exciting news about Route 66 and the Route 66 centennial, grants, community development, and the great American road trip when Rhys Martin stops by for a visit. Rhys is the president of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association, manager of the National Trust for Historic Preservation Preserve Route 66 Initiative that is offering grants to Route 66 business ...

Take one high school built in 1929. Transform it into a 30,000 square foot antique shopping mall. Add the ambition and imagination of Tonia and Wayne Pickerill. The result is one of the quirkiest family fun stops on Route 66, The Pink Elephant Antique Mall in Livingston Illinois. An ecclectic collection of historic fiberglass giants, the Mother Road Fudge Factory and Candy Shop and The Twistee Treats Diner provide a glimpse at what...

Navajo code talkers. Route 66 as the quintessential American road trip. Small town America and big cities. The international fascination with Route 66, that highways future, and the endangered small business.

Our conversation with Jonathan Bullington, a Chicago Tribune senior reporter, on this episode of Coffee With Jim, the weekly podcast from Jim Hinckley's America, provides a different perspective on the Route 66 experience. Bul...

Except for the savvy Route 66 (or Jefferson Highway) traveler, Joplin, Missouri may not be the first place that comes to mind when you think of destination cities. But as we learned in this conversation with Patrick Tuttle, director of the Joplin Convention and Visitors Bureau, that is about to change. Just check out the Visit Joplin tourism website and discover why this charming old mining town is perfect for a memory making weeke...

Public art does more than add a splash of color. It is a catalyst for building a sense of community. And as acclaimed Missouri based mural artist Ray Harvey of Ray Harvey Art noted during this mornings conversation, it can also be used to transform a community into a destination. Harvey detailed the transformation of Concordia into the official Patriotic Mural City of Missouri as an example. 

There is always a healthy dose of inspi...

This morning we served up a double dose of inspiration and a healthy heapin' of thought provoking ideas provided by our guest Anthony Arno of the Route 66 podcast and innovative Route 66 scholarship initiative. Today's program was a deep dive into the changing nature of education, projects that instill a passion for learning, and ideas on how to share the American story by getting students excitied about road trips and Route 66. 

T...

Jenn Tramaglino has come full circle. And she has had her share of adventures from Amsterdam to Las Vegas and Burning Man. Now she has returned to her roots in Kingman, Arizona. And with Kingman Rental Bikes she is adding her infectious enthusiasm to the renaissance that is transforming the historic heart of this desert crossroads on Route 66.

In our wide ranging conversation we talked about the long and winding road that led Jenn ...

Cafes new and old (Lewis Cafe 1938 and Sweeetie Pies Amish Bakery & Cafe 2025), the Route 66 centennial (and bicentennial), vagabond life, fund raising challenges faced by non profits, social media pros and cons, the appeal of roadside kitsch, historic preservation challenges, inspiring a new generation to discover the magic of the great American road trip, the charm of Cuba (Missouri), and the appeal of Albuquerque. On today's...

Viva Las Vegas! You won't find Elvis impersonators, white tigers, and glittering casinos in the original Las Vegas. But you will find a very special version of small town America peppered with one of a kind diners and cafes, and nearly 1,000 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.

You will also find the last drive in theater in New Mexico. Hot springs. A tale of political eccentricity. A connection to Theodore Roosev...

If you are a fan of classic and vintage cars, automobile restoration, and love to hear about their history, this program is for you! Our guest today is Richard Lentinello, the former editor-in-chief of nine car magazines, including Hemmings Motor News, that recently launched Crankshaft, a quarterly publication, in August 2020. And in February 2023, he was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Antique Automobile Club of America...

Love them or hate them the electric vehicle is here to stay. And they have a history that is rather surprising. Did you know that the first pedestrian killed by an automobile in the US was struck by an electric taxi cab - in 1899? Did you know that the first car built by Ferdinand Porsche was electric? And that was in 1898! Did you know that in 1916 a company manufactured a gasoline/electric hybrid? 

But today's program is not just...

It made quite a stir when introduced in October 2014. Soon the musical road near Tijeras, New Mexico, a Route 66 community, that played a portion of "America The Beautiful" when driven over at a certain speed became quite an attraction.

But did you know that the idea of creating a musical highway is linked to the creative genius of Walt Disney? Surprisingly the concept is even older as the polyphon, a popular type of 19th-century d...