The Painted Desert Inn, which was built in the 1920s amid what is now the Petrified Forest National Park, reopened on Memorial Day weekend, reports the Arizona Daily Star. Here's the news release from the National Park Service about it.

It's no longer used for lodging, but as a museum. Fixing up the place wasn't easy:

Ironically, the soils that characterize the mottled Painted Desert posed the biggest challenge to the inn's restoration.

"They are two of the worst soils you can build on," Baiza said, referring to the absorbent and active clay and bentonite in the area.

Ultimately, the shifting substrate led to severe roof problems, and with 19 separate roofs, the complications only multiplied.

The Western Archeological Conservation Center in Tucson had a role in refurbishing the original Civilian Conservation Corps light fixtures. The hammered-tin lamps from the late 1930s have been cleaned and rewired, giving off brighter light than they used to. The long outmoded plumbing and electrical wiring is now up to code. The restored skylights feature motifs found in nearby petroglyphs.

Historic photos couldn't convey the vivid colors that Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter used when she redesigned the building in the late 1930s, but park historians were able to recover the original colors from a dining room chair. Under layers of paint, they found the bright coral, turquoise and lemony yellow that Colter adopted for the interior.

Scotty's Route 66 Restaurant in Hamel, Ill., was inducted into the Route 66 Hall of Fame. So it celebrated Saturday with fried chicken, burgers and beer, according to the Belleville News-Democrat.

Here's something I would have liked to have seen:

Four signs of past restaurants in the building were the centerpieces for the party in Scotty's rear parking lot. First there was Tourist Haven, opened in 1936, then the Village Inn, Earnie's and Scotty's Route 66 Bar & Grill.

…

The Allens own all the building's historical signs, except Tourist Haven. Former mayor and Madison County Board member Bill Meyer found the Tourist Haven sign he remembers from childhood on the flip-side of another sign.

Scotty's plans to make the celebration an annual event.

The reports about "Cars," which opens in moviehouses Friday, are coming in hot 'n' heavy:

• The Tulsa World interviewed local resident Michael Wallis about his Sheriff part in "Cars" and the making of the film.
• The Los Angeles Daily News reports on the challenges of making "Cars."
• The Toronto Sun interviewed "Cars" director John Lasseter at the Carolina premiere.
• The Chicago Sun-Times talked to "Cars" star Bonnie Hunt, who portrays Sally the Porsche.
• The Montreal Gazette has a far-ranging interview Paul Newman, who portrayed Doc the Hudson in the film. His first car, by the way, was 1937 Packard.
• The Toledo Blade has an excellent interview with Lasseter.

Inspired by the song "Route 66," Roy and Anna Williams of Florence, Ky., are planning a 4,400-mile road trip across the country in a 1929 yellow Ford Model A, reports the Cincinnati Inquirer.

The story's a little vague on whether the couple is planning to drive Route 66 much on their trip to the West Coast and back. It seems like they're going to follow their nose, which is OK in a long road trip. 

Reviews are coming in from people who saw early screenings of "Cars."

• Red Fork Hippie Chick saw it this afternoon at a special charity screening in Oklahoma City. "Go. See. It. This is the most visually stunning film ever made," she says.
• Read Sheila Roberts' review on Movies Online. She loved it.
• Luxo Jr. at the Upcoming Pixar blog also posted his review. He loved it, too.

Here are some other "Cars"-related stories.

S. Muralidhar of The Hindu Business Line has seen promos of "Cars" and is getting excited about it. Alas, the film doesn't open in India until early August.

The New York Post reports about Pixar's mind-set for creativity that included a road trip on Route 66 to do research on "Cars":

"We had three Cadillacs, 10 people, nine days," says production designer Bob Pauley. "We went from Tulsa, to Kansas, to Kingman, Arizona. We would pick things up off the road and make these kind of 'Road Warrior' hood ornaments. At the end of the trip, we took some of them and buried them behind a bush, and said a few words."

Car nuts from all over the country will descend to Michael Dingman's estate in Kensington, N.H., next weekend. That's because Dingman, the former director for Ford Motor Co., amassed a huge collection of vintage cars and other highway memorabilia.

The big treasure, according to the New Hampshire Union-Leader, will be a 1940 Lincoln-Zephyr Continental Cabriolet onced owned by Babe Ruth.

Dingman also had a huge neon sign collection, including one from the Thunderbird Motel along Route 66 in Miami, Okla. Here's what it looks like:

Here's the description from the auction house:

This stunning example is a relic of the storied Route 66. For years, it welcomed people to the Thunderbird Motel in Miami, Oklahoma. When lit, the plumage of the mighty Thunderbird was visible to weary motorists for miles. This monumental work of art is an absolute showpiece and embodies all the kitschy glamour of the age of neon. Almost certainly one of a kind, it would be a fitting centerpiece to any collection that celebrates the golden age of cross country travel. A photo of the sign as it was originally mounted in Miami, Oklahoma, is available on our website. Surface is glossy and clear, white lettering shows minor weathering. Several instances of inpainting are visible upon close inspection, but it is professionally executed and unobtrusive. Sides: Single-sided Authenticity: Original Material Type: Porcelain Mounting Style: Wall Size: 192X96X6.5 # of Colors: 5

Estimated value is $15,000 to $20,000.  

Not only are people going to become more curious about Route 66 because of the "Cars" movie that opens Friday, but the Route 66 bicycle trail that's being developed in Illinois will help, too, reports the Bloomington Pantagraph.

The article also plugs the Illinois Route 66 Association's Motor Tour next weekend.

UPDATE: The Pantagraph also printed an article about the memories of old-timers who work and live on the road.