Conversations on The Road

As the political crowd turned to the South (South Carolina and Florida) for Presidential primaries, so did we.

Our topic is kudzu – something, along with BBQ and Football, frequently in the thoughts of folks in the South.

There’s so much of this fast-growing vine in the Southeastern U.S., you might think it was a native plant. Actually, it has taken a lot of hard work to help kudzu spread so widely. Now that it covers over seven million acres of the Deep South, many people consider it a pest, but kudzu is used in ways which might surprise you.

Our guest, Max Shores is a producer/director in the Center for Public Television & Radio at the University of Alabama. He also serves as adjunct faculty in the department of Telecommunication & Film. He has produced a number of documentaries about life and culture in the Southeast, including one about Kudzu, The Amazing Story of Kudzu.

 

 Kudzu [13:15m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Just in case you missed it on the radio:

This is the intersting, never-before-fully- told story of how Theodore Roosevelt helped to save the game that would become America’s most popular sport.

In its infancy during the late nineteenth century, the game of football was still a work in progress that only remotely resembled the sport millions follow today. There was no common agreement about many of the game’s basic rules, and it was incredibly violent and extremely dangerous. An American version of rugby, this new game grew popular even as the number of casualties rose. Numerous young men were badly injured and dozens died playing football in highly publicized incidents, often at America’s top prep schools and colleges.

Objecting to the sport’s brutality, a movement of proto-Progressives led by Harvard University president Charles W. Eliot tried to abolish the game. President Theodore Roosevelt, a vocal advocate of “the strenuous life” and a proponent of risk, acknowledged football’s dangers but admired its potential for building character. A longtime fan of the game who purposely recruited men with college football experience for his Rough Riders, Roosevelt fought to preserve the game’s manly essence, even as he understood the need for reform.

In 1905, he summoned the coaches of Harvard, Yale, and Princeton to the White House and urged them to act. The result was the establishment of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, as well as a series of rule changes— including the advent of the forward pass—that ultimately saved football and transformed it into the quintessential American game. The Big Scrum reveals for the first time the fascinating details of this little-known story of sports history.

In this Journey into Hidden America we spoke with John J. Miller, author of “The Big Scrum: How Teddy Roosevelt Saved Football.” He writes for National Review, the Wall Street Journal, and other publications. “The First Assassin,” a Civil War thriller published in 2010, is his first novel. His nonfiction books include “Our Oldest Enemy,” “A Gift of Freedom,” and “The Unmaking of Americans.” The Chronicle of Higher Education has called him “one of the best literary journalists in the country.” A native of Detroit, he lives with his family in Prince William County, Virginia.

To learn more about John J. Miller and his work, visit his website at www.HeyMiller.com

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 How TR Saved Football [15:35m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Just in case you missed it on the radio:

In November, 2011 Chevy and parent General Motors were marking its 100th anniversary — the documents establishing Chevrolet were completed Nov. 3, 1911. Given its early uphill battles with richer Ford, and a century of other trials, many  historians and analysts of the automotive industry consider it nothing short of  remarkable that Chevy has survived this long,

At the time we spoke with David Kiley, Editor in Chief of AOL Autos about Chevrolet (He was recently a Left Jab guest on Jeep @ 70). The conversation is about its cars over the years, but also about its cultural impact…From “See the USA in Your Chevrolet” sung by Dinah Shore to “Baseball, Hot Dogs, Apple Pie and Chevrolet” and “The Heartbeat of America” – Kiley maintains that brand Chevy is an integral part of “Brand USA”.

 

 Chevrolet 100 [18:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In case you missed it on the radio:

David “Davy” Crockett (August 17, 1786 – March 6, 1836) -  folk-hero, frontiersman, soldier and politician. He is commonly referred to in popular culture by the epithet “King of the Wild Frontier”. He represented Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives, served in the Texas Revolution, and died at the Battle of Alamo.

Crockett grew up in East Tennessee, where he gained a reputation for hunting and storytelling. (At the time of his birth, however, the surrounding area was part of the autonomous territory known as the State of Franklin). After being elected to the rank of colonel in the militia of Lawrence County, Tennessee, he was elected to the Tennessee state legislature in 1821. In 1826, Crockett was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Congressman Crockett vehemently opposed many of the policies of President Andrew Jackson, most notably the Indian Removal Act. Crockett’s opposition to Jackson’s policies led to his defeat in the 1834 elections, prompting his angry departure to Texas shortly thereafter. In early 1836, Crockett took part in the Texas Revolution and was killed at the Battle of the Alamo in March.

Crockett became famous in his own lifetime for larger-than-life exploits popularized by stage plays and almanacs. After his death, he continued to be credited with brazen acts of mythical proportion. These led in the 20th century to television and movie portrayals, and he became one of the best-known American folk heroes.

A larger than life figure he once boasted, “I can run faster, walk longer, leap higher, speak better and tell more and bigger lies”.

In this Journey into Hidden America podcast, we spoke with Sally Baker of the Davy Crockett Tavern Museum about what was happening to observe the hero’s 225th birthday anniversary, and why Davy Crockett still means so much to so many (The 1950′s TV program and more).

 

 Davy Crockett [9:21m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In Newton, North Carolina they have been staging The Soldier’s Reunion (called the Old Soldier’s Reunion since 1930) for a long time.

In fact, the event is  one of the longest running events of its kind in the United States. Almost every year since 1889, during the third week in August, veterans gather together for a week of celebration. There are only two years during which the event was not held, 1944 and 1948, due to polio outbreaks.

In this Journey into Hidden America podcast, we chat with Wayne Dillinger from Newton about the Reunion, what takes place, and why it remains such an imprtant and powerful occasion.

 

 Old Soldier's Reunion [10:24m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In case you missed on the radio at the time:

Lucille Ball would have been 100 on August 6, 2011.

She was born on August 6, 1911 in Jamestown, New York – the same Jamestown known as  the childhood hometown of the fictitious Lucy Ricardo formerly Lucille McGillicuddy, her character on the popular I Love Lucy (CBS, 1951-1960).

Today Jamestown houses the Lucille Ball Museum and festival twice yearly, once in May and once in August

The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center is dedicated to the lives and careers of Lucy and Desi Arnaz. The museum officially opened in 1996 “to preserve and celebrate the legacy of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and enrich the world through the healing powers of love and laughter”.

The Center is located just minutes from Lucy’s childhood homes in Celoron and Jamestown, and her final resting place in the family plot at Lake View Cemetery. The Center consists of the Lucy-Desi Museum, housing artifacts and memorabilia of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, with a gift shop; the Rapaport Center, consisting of the Desilu Playhouse museum, the Tropicana Room, a gift shop, and offices; and a stand-alone gift shop. The Desilu Playhouse museum contains the replicas of the original “I Love Lucy” TV sets that were created for the show’s 50th Anniversary tour, and other artifacts related to the show and its creators and co-stars; the Tropicana Room is a recreation of Rickey Ricardo’s ‘s nightclub from the show.

‘Lucy-Desi Days’ which features several events including panel discussions with those closest to Lucy and Desi. In addition, an annual celebration of Lucille Ball’s birthday is held in August.

The center is a prime tourist destination and Lucy fans from around the world come to celebrate the life and legacy of Jamestown’s favorite daughter.

In this Journey into Hidden America, We spoke about Lucy, her place in Jamestown’s heart, the Lucy-Desi Center and what they were doing at the time to mark the centennial of Lucy’s birth (Includes a comedy festival brining the likes of Joan Rivers and Paula Poundstone to town).

 

 Lucy in Jamestown [18:54m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

What is A Georgeous Grandma and why is there a Georgeous Grandma Day ?

Listen to this podcast to find out for yourself.

For more you can also go to: http://www.gorgeousgrandma.com/

 

 Georgeous Grandma [17:44m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

After WWII, California sunshine and a love affair with automobiles spurred the growth of roadside businesses in the Golden State catering specifically to motorists. As America’s first major drive-through hamburger chain, Jack in the Box® restaurants (founded in 1951) helped pave the way for a delicious new dining experience.

Jack in the Box helps us remember their role in this past by promoting “National Drive Thru Day”, which is now staged annually, on July 24.

In this Journey into Hidden America, we spoke with Brian Luscomb of, Jack in the Box about the origins of the drive-in, Jack in the Box’s role and what the drive-in and National Drice Thru Day are all about these days.

For more on National Drive Thru Day, see: www.jackinthebox.com.

 

 National Drive Thru Day [9:39m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In case you missed it on the radio at the time, here is a podcast interview recalling Hubert Humphrey at the time he would have turned 100 in 2011.

HHH served under President Lyndon Johnson.  He twice served as a US Senator from Minnesota and served as Democratic Majority Whip. He was was a founder of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party and Americans for Democratic Action.He also served as Mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota from 1945 to 1949. Humphrey was the nominee of the Democratic Party in the 1968 presidential election but lost to Richard Nixon.

But Humphrey’s impact and legacy are far bigger than those titles. As Bill Moyers once said, “While we may not remember Hubert Humphrey’s name, (his) fingerprints are all over America today”.

In this Journey into Hidden America we spoke with Norman Sherman, one time Press Secretray to Hubert Humphrey. He later edited Humphrey’s autobiography.

We discussed the man, the times he lived in and his lasting legacy.

 

 HHH at 100 [29:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Most people seem to think that the US Interstate system was devised and begun during the Eisenhower administration. It was Eisenhower who approved and began the billions dollar project but planning had begun years before, as the automobile designs improved and costs went down, and people-in-cars took to the roads.

A man-made wonder, a connective network, an economic force, a bringer of blight and sprawl and the possibility of escape—the U.S. interstate system changed the face of our country. The Big Roads (Houghton Mifflin) charts the creation of these essential American highways. From the turn-of-the-century car racing entrepreneur who spurred the citizen-led “Good Roads” movement, to the handful of driven engineers who conceived of the interstates and how they would work—years before President Eisenhower knew the plans existed—to the protests that erupted across the nation when highways reached the cities and found people unwilling to be uprooted in the name of progress, Swift follows a winding, fascinating route through twentieth-century American life.

How did we get from dirt tracks to expressways, from main streets to off-ramps, from mud to concrete and steel, in less than a century? Through decades of politics, activism, and marvels of engineering, we recognize in our highways the wanderlust, grand scale, and conflicting notions of citizenship and progress that define America.

About the guest: Earl Swift, 52, has written for a living since his teens, and in the years since has been a Fulbright fellow, PEN finalist, four-time author and five-time Pulitzer Prize nominee.

More at: http://earlswift.com/

 

 Big Roads [19:33m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download