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Heeelloooo, _flossers! I’m back from my whirlwind road trip to Florida. I think we spent more time in the car than we did actually in the Sunshine State, but that’s OK. I managed to get some good road trip stops in, so that’s what I’m going to share with you today. I think my friend and my husband stopped letting me drive, because every time I did, the car would mysteriously find its way to exits with signs like “See the giant Superman!” They complain, but secretly they love me for it… I think. Here are seven places I made them go and three that got slashed from the agenda.
1. Tennessee Williams’ grave in St. Louis, Mo. People who _floss regularly already know that I have a weird fondness for cemeteries. I could easily take a cross-country trip and just stop at old graveyards with crumbling stones and obscure celebrities. I don’t know if I could talk anyone into going with me, though, so I have to settle for squeezing in one or two here and there. On this trip, we visited the final resting place of Mr. Thomas Lanier Williams – better known as Tennessee. When I stopped to ask the cemetery office for a map to the Pulitzer Price-winning author’s grave, the guy behind the counter gave me a knowing look and asked, “Writing a paper?” I’m nearly 10 years past high school at this point, so I was a bit amused by this. Anyway, after he died from choking to death on the lid of an eye drop bottle in 1983 (he put the cap in his mouth and tilted his head back to put the drops in his eye), Tennessee ended up at the Calvary Cemetery – against his wishes. He wanted to be buried at sea near the same place that one of his greatest influences, author Hart Crane, had allegedly killed himself. Poor Tennessee. This way, though, he’s buried next to his sister Rose, whom he was very close to when they were alive. Mental health problems plagued her all of her life and she was the inspiration for Laura in Williams’ The Glass Menagerie. In fact, her small stone next to his bears the inscription, “Blow out your candles, Laura.” Tennessee isn’t the only luminary to be buried in Calvary and the adjacent Bellefontaine Cemeteries – a tour around the historical boneyards would also turn up Sara Teasdale, Dred Scott, Kate Chopin, William S. Burroughs and William Tecumseh Sherman. Crap, I missed all of those? We’re so going back. But we didn’t have time to search too long, because we had to get to our next destination…
2. The Giant Superman in Metropolis, Ill. When DC Comics declared Metropolis the hometown of Superman on January 21, 1972, the real Metropolis wasted no time capitalizing on it. On June 9 of the same year, the Illinois State Legislature passed a resolution to legally give the town the “Hometown of Superman” nickname. Just a few references to the man in blue tights include a 30-foot statue, the Super Museum, and the Metropolis Planet newspaper, a take on the fictional Daily Planet from the comics. And, oh my God, in researching Metropolis, I just discovered that the Birdman of Alcatraz is buried in Metropolis. ARRRGH. I missed all kinds of cool graves on this trip! Oh, there’s a backstory to why this was an important stop to make: in 2003, four of us decided to do Spring Break at Disney. Yeah. Most college kids hit up Cabo or San Padre; we were all over Disney World. On the way home from our time with the Mouse, my car broke down in Paducah, Kentucky (right next to Metropolis). After sitting at a mechanic/gas station/restaurant for an entire day only to be told that my car couldn’t be fixed there, my friends and I were, um, not in the greatest of moods. Plus we had just been with each other for about seven days straight and we were probably all ready for a little space. So when a local helpfully said, “Why don’t you borrow Eddie’s truck and go into town to see the giant Superman?” the poor guy was met with four sets of eyeballs searing holes through his skull. I’ve been curious about giant Superman ever since, though, and now I can say I’ve finally experienced all of his glory.
3. Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge in Nashville, Tenn. Tootsie’s is one of the most historic honky-tonks in Nashville. We stopped because I have a friend in Nashville who kindly gave us room and board for the night; it just so happens that she also has all kinds of Nashville connections so we got to sit in the “World Famous” front window that people usually pay big bucks to sit in. Or maybe not. I don’t really know how much it costs. Tootsie’s was the local favorite of a bunch of country music veterans you might be familiar with: Patsy Cline, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Waylon Jennings and Mel Tillis, among them. In fact, according to Tootsie’s web site, Willie Nelson was offered his first songwriting gig after performing onstage at Tootsie’s.
4. Jack Daniel’s Distillery in Lynchburg, Tenn. It’s true – Moore County, where Lynchburg is located, is a dry county. So no free samples, friends. I think I got drunk anyway – there was a point on the tour where we got to smell the whiskey soaking in charcoal and our tour guide told us to stick our noses right down next to the barrel while he fanned the lid for us to smell. Now, I pretty much lack a sense of smell altogether, but let me tell you, I smelled this. It went up my nose and straight to the back of my throat where I could taste it. Whoo! Some other facts about Jasper Newton Daniel – he was only 5’2” and had size four feet. His feet were so tiny that when they built the life-sized statue of him for the distillery, the only part that wasn’t to scale were his feet. His size fours wouldn’t have supported the rest of the statue if they had left them the proper size. This picture to the left is the safe that killed my buddy Jack. This story is pretty legendary, but I’ll repeat it just in case you haven’t heard it. Mr. Daniel came to work one morning and tried to open his safe, but had forgotten the combination, which he was always doing. He kicked the safe in frustration, but since it was iron it didn’t exactly yield to his foot. He broke his toe, which eventually resulted in infection and blood poisoning. It was the blood poisoning that eventually killed him.
5. The “Unconditional Surrender” statue in Sarasota, Fl. You know the famous picture from Life magazine, and you probably know that it occurred on V-J Day in Times Square. For the geographically-challenged, that’s Manhattan, not Sarasota. Even after reading about it, I’m still not entirely sure why it’s in Sarasota. It was first erected in front of Marina Jack’s on Highway 41 in 2005 but was dismantled in the spring of 2006. It wasn’t gone for good, though – it popped up 2,500 miles away in San Diego. I would have liked to see that thing going down the highway on the back of a truck. Anyway, the good people of Sarasota raised the money to bring it back, if only on a temporary basis. To get it in Sarasota permanently will cost $750,000, which a non-profit group is working on raising. I guess time will tell if “Unconditional Surrender” will stay in Sarasota; for the meantime, I’m glad we got to see it. And for the record, if you look up her skirt, you don’t actually see anything. Nice try, though.
6. Cà d’Zan, the Ringling Mansion. Sort of. We drove by, anyway. Me: “I think that’s it… I’ve only ever seen it in cake, though.” Everyone else in the car: “…” For the record, it was on one of those Food Network Challenges – the cake artists had to recreate a famous American Mansion out of candy and cake. Um. Anyway, the Ringling estate also includes Mabel Ringling’s Rose Garden and the Ringling Museum of the American Circus. This is one of the primary reasons we didn’t go in – there’s no way I could deal with a bunch of clown memorabilia. But the architecture was gorgeous – even better than the white and milk chocolate rendition I saw on T.V. (Disclaimer: This is not my picture.)
7. The World’s Largest Peanut Monument in Ashburn, Ga. We actually passed this on the way down to Florida and said, “Hey, a giant peanut!” Then when I was looking for places to stop on the way home, I spotted this gem and decided to make an actual stop. In a nutshell: the giant peanut monument wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. I’m sorry; I’ve made that joke about five times now and it makes me giggle every time I write it. Ashburn is nicknamed the Peanut Capital of the World, so I guess the monument is pretty self-explanatory.
And a couple that got cut from the itinerary:
8. Johnny Cash’s grave in Hendersonville, Tenn. Boo. We were going to swing through Henderson on our way into Nashville on Wednesday night, but by the time we got there it was getting to be pretty late and the cemetery gates closed at dusk. But we might be going back sometime this summer anyway… my husband thinks he needs a pair of cowboy boots now and wants to spend some time at Opryland. This is a guy who falls asleep listening to Slipknot, by the way.
9. The Whistle Stop Café in Juliette, Ga. Aww. Another casualty due to time. I don’t see myself passing through Juliette any time soon, but if anyone has sampled the fried green tomatoes there, be sure to share with us in the comments.
10. Graceland! I was definitely a little bummed about this one, but we were passing through Memphis somewhere around 4 a.m. and didn’t really want to wait around for five hours for Elvis to get out of bed and show us his digs. Because he’s alive, you know. I was also interested in stopping in Holly Springs, Miss., to see Graceland Too. We could have had ourselves a whole Elvis-themed road trip back: we also passed through Tupelo, his hometown. Alas, it was not to be. At least not this trip.
I thank you all for your wonderful suggestions and hope to hit more of them up sometime this summer. The City Museum in St. Louis sounds pretty awesome, and that’s not so bad of a road trip from where we are. I think we might have to make a long weekend out of it in the next few months.
Next up? Milwaukee and Chicago in a couple of weeks, and the L.A. area over Memorial Day. I’d love to hear your suggestions for stops, as always. Comment or hit me with a Tweet and let me know where I should force my friends and family to stop! You can also check out my blog for more Road Trip goodness such as the Mark Game.
Comments (34)
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Oh so many places you can go in MKE and Chicago! First…in Milwaukee you *need* to see the statue of the Fonz. Also, the Safehouse, which is a spy themed restaurant. You’ll need to know the password.
On your way in between the cities, you could stop at the Mars Cheese Castle in fabulous Kenosha, WI or the Bong Recreation Area, which despite its’ name is just a campsite.
You could see Michael Jordan’s house in Lake Forest, Illinois, which is coincidentally where you can also find the house that is linked to “The Great Gatsby” although I forget how.
The movie Groundhog Day was filmed in the suburbs of Chicago, as well as all those 80’s classics, Breakfast Club, etc.
Lots of exciting stuff! Enjoy!
posted by SunniD806 on 4-15-2009 at 4:24 pm
When my family took a trip that included the Ringling museum, I, too, was not thrilled at the prospect of extensive clown memoribilia. Little did I know that in addition to the circus stuff, the Ringlings were enthusiastic art collectors. Included among other masterpieces is the largest Reubens collection outside of Europe (if memory serves). And you’re right, the mansion is a work of art as well. Kudos to my parents for dragging us there, it was a great and memorable trip.
posted by cousin on 4-15-2009 at 4:36 pm
You should have made the stop in Tupelo to see Elvis’s childhood home/museum. The house is tiny. The sidetrack would have tacked maybe 15 minutes onto your trip.
posted by 8rustystaples on 4-15-2009 at 5:00 pm
@8rustystaples, I should probably have added that we were passing through Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and Arkansas in the wee hours of the morning… I think Tupelo was around 3 a.m. :(
posted by Stacy Conradt on 4-15-2009 at 5:09 pm
Your husband isn’t going to have a very good time at Opryland, considering it was torn down 12 years ago.
posted by Patten on 4-15-2009 at 5:17 pm
@Patten – maybe I meant the Grand Ole’ Opry. You can tell I know next-to-nothing about country music.
posted by stacy on 4-15-2009 at 5:30 pm
When you visit Milwaukee, you HAVE to visit the art museum!
posted by Traci on 4-15-2009 at 5:36 pm
Regarding #5, my parents were just in San Diego last month and have a picture of that statue! There must be two, I guess.
posted by lindseydl on 4-15-2009 at 5:43 pm
I’m from Milwaukee and was also going to suggest the Safehouse (a staple for anyone’s visit to the Milwaukee area) and the statue of the Fonz (on the river, just a few blocks from the safe house). Some other places worth seeing while in Milwaukee include Lucille’s Rockin Pianos (an awesome bar with dueling pianists playing amazing covers, taking requests, making parodies, and creating songs off the tops of their heads), Miller Park (home of the Brewers), the Miller Brewery Tour (awesome stops in the brewery, bottling rooms, and the caves where they used to store beer back in the days before refrigeration. plus plenty of free samples…mmmm). There’s also the new Harley-Davidson museum (with tons of cool history on the bikes and more), Discovery World (a cool hands-on, interactive museum dealing with a wide range of interesting science topics). You could also stop off at Captain Frederick Pabst’s Mansion, America’s Black Holocaust Museum, or the Milwaukee Art Museum with its amazing panoramic views of Lake Michigan. Lots to do in Milwaukee
posted by Jon on 4-15-2009 at 5:46 pm
@SunniD and Jon: LOVE the safehouse. And Burt Reynolds ;)
posted by stacy on 4-15-2009 at 5:49 pm
Info for the next go ’round: Graceland Too is open 24/7! Such a weird place, but brilliant.
posted by Juliet on 4-15-2009 at 6:00 pm
I’ve seen the statue in Sarasota and I think that it being there has something to do with the Ringling School of Art & Design. There are some other sculptures near it and I was under the impression they were student projects or something.
Really blew my mind when I saw it. Very sureal. (Florida is all about getting it’s geography wrong considering the Dali Museum is in St. Petersberg and not um…Spain)
posted by Meaghan on 4-15-2009 at 6:07 pm
In L.A., I highly recommend the Grave Line Tours. They take you around to the sites where a lot of famous people died. (When I first did it, years ago, they actually took you around in a hearse. Now, because of volume, I think they use a van, but it’s still great.) Also, it’s worth the bucks for the behind-the-scenes tour at Warner Bros. You get to see lots of great stuff
posted by Ken on 4-15-2009 at 6:09 pm
City Museum in STL is AWESOME!!! You should defiantly go! I remember when it first opened…I was in middle school and it was the coolest field trip ever! The Everyday Circus is worth seeing as well: its all original, and the original music composition is written by the husband of a co-worker of mine.
posted by Mary on 4-15-2009 at 6:20 pm
Well, if you do make it back to Memphis, Jackson is only 40 minutes east of the city. We have Casey Jones Museum stuff. It’s also the birthplace of Carl Perkins and rockabilly music. And we have a spare bedroom. :)
posted by Tracie on 4-15-2009 at 6:56 pm
OMG Tracie, you’re from Jackson???I live in Lexington and work in Jackson!!! How cool is that!?
And she’s right, you DO have to come and see Casey Jones’ house and Casey Jones Village and eat at the Old Country Store restaurant. Come in May (I think it is) and you can come to CelticFest!
posted by Amanda on 4-15-2009 at 7:08 pm
I can’t believe you skipped the Ringling! The clowns are in a different building from the most amazing collection of Renaissance Masterworks in the US! I’m a little sad for you that you missed it! It’s incredible, as is the ca d’zan! Honestly, I’ve been 3 times and never seen a clown.
posted by t-girl on 4-15-2009 at 8:09 pm
Hey Amanda, nice to meet a fellow West Tennessean! Yay for Casey Jones!
posted by Tracie on 4-15-2009 at 8:21 pm
wow i live in san diego and i saw that statue!!! its right next to the fish market restaurant and this other monument of soldiers
posted by ariela on 4-15-2009 at 8:45 pm
I can vouch for the City Museum in St Louis. Although sometimes touted as a Children’s Museum I think that it is beyond cool for anyone of any age. Jack Daniels was very cool when I visited about 14 years ago. I am not a big whiskey drinker but that distinctive JD aroma just envelops you and it seemed to stay with me for a week (a good thing IMHO).
posted by B on 4-15-2009 at 9:10 pm
The City Museum is one of the coolest places I have ever been. Plan to spend all day there, wear jeans and tennis shoes.
posted by Jeff on 4-15-2009 at 9:44 pm
You have to head up I-95 and hit South of the Border, you’ll have no difficulty finding it.
And Ron-Jon’s Surf Shop in Cocoa Beach.
posted by PartiallyDeflected on 4-15-2009 at 10:00 pm
By the way Amanda you posted on Carl Perkins he was born and grew up in a small town 100 miles north of Memphos called Tiptonville (Reelfoot Lake area) he move to lived and died in Jackson tho. Also Stacy Shilo National Park (few miles east of Memphis) is a great civil war park check it out next time through.
posted by Mike Callens on 4-15-2009 at 11:38 pm
When I went to San Diego last summer, I had my aunt take a picture with “Unconditional Surrender!” Let me tell you, it was very difficult to get the entire statue in the frame with her. We took a boat tour, and you could see it from pretty far out.
posted by Madelyn on 4-16-2009 at 1:09 am
The Ringling house made me of a house near where I grew up, both are quirky. Its nicknamed the Pyramid House by locals, basically its a gold plated pyramid shaped home, with a 60 foot statue of Ramses in front. It is located in Wadsworth IL, which right off the highway between Chicago and Milwaukee.
posted by Lauren on 4-16-2009 at 3:24 am
I’ve been to Cash’s grave, in 2005. Though I hadn’t planned it, the day was Johnny’s birthday. There weren’t a lot of other people around, but a woman who I later determined was his daughter paid a quick visit. It was an amazing experience.
posted by Dave on 4-16-2009 at 8:07 am
City Museum in STL is fantastic! If you wear jeans, wear your stretchy ones that you don’t care if they get ripped…lots of small holes and tight corners but incredible amounts of fun! Make sure you see all of City Museum, not just the mazes/tunnels/slides.
In Chicago, if you’re interested in architecture, the Chicago Architecture Foundation does walking tours of both Historic and Modern skyscrapers which are a lot of walking but fantastic! (I took a class in architecture last fall and we took a weekend and went up to Chicago, it was a blast!) You can also do boat tours of most of the same buildings and see the grounds of the 1893 Colombian Exposition. Also, I highly recommend going to the Hancock Building at night and going to the top floor, getting a drink (once you go up there, you have to get something but the view is SO worth it!) and using the restroom…the view is the best from the women’s restroom!
posted by Rebecca on 4-16-2009 at 9:38 am
I concur on the City Museum, fun and interesting. Wear play clothes!
Also like the Safe House in MKE.
reCAPTCHA: walloped rears
posted by Dustin on 4-16-2009 at 10:17 am
Hey,
I live here in middle Georgia and was thrilled to see Julliette, GA on your list. It is more than a little bit out of the way but a pretty cool place to visit.
I have not been there in a couple of years but they used to have a functioning Whistle Stop cafe there that did indeed serve fried green tomatos but no BBQ. (Like fried okra, it is only good when it is still hot from the frier.)
The rest of the town was nothing but facades. It is also next to a Georgia State Park that is fun to visit and just hang out.
posted by Phrank Loyed on 4-16-2009 at 10:33 am
While I’m all up for your graveyard trip (cause I do that, too), I have to say that “obscure celebrity” strikes me as an oxymoron.
And this from someone currently writing an article about Ben Turpin.
posted by Steven on 4-16-2009 at 10:42 am
And for Milwaukee, I’d second the Safehouse. And if you look for the Fonz statue there, you need to also look for the Bob Hartley (from the Bob Newhart Show) in Chicago.
Also, one of the lesser known, and odder things, in Chicago is the cowpath that still runs across Michigan Avenue and through a building in Chicago.
On the South Side of Chicago is Stephen Douglas’s grave (which can be seen from the Dan Ryan), and on the North Side you have the amazing cemeteries of Rosehill and Graceland (the latter should really be on your itinerary, it includes the baseball shaped gravestone of first NL President William Hulbert, Charles Dickens’ brother’s grave, George Pullman’s grave (buried in a sleeper car, inside a cement vault, banded with steel cables to keep it from being stolen and vandalized).
posted by Steven on 4-16-2009 at 10:51 am
You really need to go see the University of MS or Ole Miss as we call it! Its pretty close to Holly Springs and to Memphis. It has a confederate grave yard- but the stones were removed so they could clean and mow the lawn but they forgot where they went so now there is just a memorial. The Lyceum is a must and the Grove is also pretty popular. You can also see Rowan Oak- which is William Faulkner’s house… So much to see in our sleepy little college town!
posted by Michelle on 4-16-2009 at 11:33 am
Shame you didn’t actually tour Ringling. John and Mabel’s are finally buried on site. The museum is made of three parts in three seperate buildings. The house with its beautiful lead glass windows, the art mueum with the cast of David which is the symbol for the City of Sarasota and the Circus museum. The Circus covers all aspects of the circus with emphasis on costumes. The clothes General Tom Thumb was married in are usually on display.
posted by Mamamo on 4-16-2009 at 1:10 pm
I know how much you love cemeteries, and Chicago and it’s suburbs are filled with some great ones. You should check out Graceland Cemetery in Chicago. It’s just down the street from Wrigley Field. If you get out to the suburbs, you should stop by Hillside, IL and visit Mt Carmel and Queen of Heaven cemeteries. They are located right next to each other. Mt Carmel is the final resting place of Al Capone. Several of the victims of the St Valentine’s Day massacre and other notorious mob bosses of the day are also buried in the adjoining cemeteries.
Other must see venues in Chicago include the Art Institute, Field Museum (across the street from Soldier Field), and the Hancock Building. The view from the Hancock Building is much better than the view from the Sears Tower. That’s my opinion anyway:)
posted by Melinda on 4-17-2009 at 4:11 pm