A Few More Kicks on Route 66

In 2013, I posted a blog about an episode of the old TV series, Route 66, being filmed in Page. You can see that post >HERE<. If Route 66 was before your time, it was a show about two guys – Tod (with one “d”) and Buz (with one “z”) – driving the old Route 66 in a cool Corvette Stingray and doing stuff. You may know Route 66 as Interstate 40. Season One, Episode Nine of Route 66 was filmed in Page and at the Glen Canyon Dam site when it was under construction. This episode aired on November 2, 1960 and was entitled, Layout at Glen Canyon. Construction on the dam was in its early stages and the bridge dedication took place the year before.

In this post, I want to tease out a little more trivia by way of some still images I made of the show while watching it. Some of these are little blurry but clear enough to see what’s going on. Enjoy!

 

This first image above is one I used on the original post in 2013. They’re filming the scene where the women are getting off the plane. Click this image and enlarge it. Take a look at the all the details and notice the sign on the side of the truck. I’m not sure what the thing on the cart is. Careful leaning on that Corvette, people! We lived at the airport (literally) and this scene wasn’t too far from our trailer’s front door. But I don’t remember them making this show. Here are some stills from the show:

 

This early scene shows Tod (Martin Milner of Adam-12 fame) and Buz (George Maharis) in a deep discussion just before the models get on the bus to be escorted to where they are staying, which was a couple of trailers somewhere near where the “P” is painted along US89. You can see Manson Mesa in the background of the scenes filmed at those trailers if you watch the show. In the picture above, the line of trailers is P Street, the last street of the MCS trailer court, next to the airport. Our trailer was to the right of this picture right behind (literally!) the hanger. Here’s a wider shot of the same area:

 

The picture above is a wider shot of the trailers behind the airport along P Street. The dirt driveway that Tod and Buz are headed to was the entrance off of P Street to the airport and the driveway to our trailer to the right of this picture. Here’s another action shot of the same scene:

Route 66: Season One, Episode Nine

A scene from season 1, episode 9 of Route 66 filmed in Page.
Photographer and date unknown.
Source: Terry Edwards

There were a lot of movies and a handful of TV episodes filmed in the Page area in those early years. The ones that stand out to me while growing up there were The Greatest Story Ever Told, Planet of the Apes, Easy Rider, and later, The Outlaw Jose Wales. But who could forget the epic TV series, Route 66, starring Martin Milner of Adam-12 fame and…. that other guy. What was his name? Oh yea, George Maharis. In the series, they were Tod (with one d) and Buz (with one z). They drove the old Route 66 in that cool Stingray and did things.

Season 1, episode 9 was filmed in Page. The first picture below captured the filming of one of the scenes at or near the airport. The cool Stingray is sitting there, waiting for action. This episode aired on November 2, 1960 and was entitled, Layout at Glen Canyon. If this scene was shot at the airport, I lived a stone’s throw from where it was filmed. Check it out…

I grabbed the screen shot below from the IMDB web site when I searched for Route 66. It filled in some of the gaps for me. Unfortunately, I can’t find that episode anywhere. Netfix only has the first two episodes of season one. I sure would like to watch it. If any of you come across it, please let me know.

I know I said I wasn’t going to blog anything here until after December, but this was too good to wait. Enjoy!

-Mike