Telling stories for fun and profit has entered a new era. This week I was introduced to NotbeookLM, a game changer for the ancient art of storytelling. I took it for a test drive using some of the materials written for the Kingman Tours project. This is the innovative narrated self guided Kingman, Arizona and Route 66 corridor walking tour developed as a partnership between Talisman Magic Marketing and Kingman Main Street.

There were a few glaring errors in the audio recording. But I am confident that these can be overcome by twekaing the text for each point of interest. And there will also be improvement as NotebookLM is perfected, and as I become more familiar with the program.

Telling Stories

Telling stories is what I do. It is the foundation of Jim Hinckley’s America. So, I decided to delve deeper into NotebookLM, and to see how it could be used to share America’s story. And I was curious about how it could be used to help me tell stories for fun and profit.

As the first attempt was using materials from the Kingman Tours project, that seemed a good place to start. To set the proper mood I grabbed a music mix off YouTube that started with the song L.A. Freeway by Jerry Jeff Walker and some tunes from Mean Mary. Then I examined the point of interest files.

Kingman’s Story

As it is mentioned in the song about getting your kicks on Route 66 first recorded by Nat King Cole in 1946, Kingman is known throughout the world. But Route 66 is just one chapter of the Kingman story.  This dusty crossroads has a rich and colorful history.

It was a desire to share that history, and to use that history as a catalyst for fostering development of a deeper sense of community that inspired the directors of Kingman Main Street to develop the self guided walking tour. To take it from dream to marketable attraction required the technological skills and vision of Steve LeSueur of Talisman Magic Marketing.

When asked to be the storyteller, the narrator for this innovative project that is developed as a virtual tour, a physical tour using QR codes, and as a visitors guide, I eagerly joined the team. It was an endeavor that was tailor made for me. Through the publication of more than twenty books, countless feature articles, presentations made throughout the United States and Europe, community education programs, and work as a tourism and tour development consultant, Jim Hinckley had earned the moniker of America’s storyteller.

Strings Attached

But there were a few strings attached to the project. Kingman Main Street wanted to include a public arts component to the initiaitve. So, some of the points of interest are murals where the artist is profiled. That didn’t pose a problem.

But they also wanted to add public art in the form of a life sized bronze statue of Jim Hinckley! Needless to say, I was humbled and honored. This was magnified when internationally acclaimed sculptress J. Anne Butler was selected.

The dedication on National Road Trip Day was truly surreal. That feeling hasn’t lessened. To see people taking selfies with the statue or including the plaza as a stop on a Route 66 tour seems very odd. It often seems as though I am a guest at my own funeral.

America’s Storyteller

Long before launching Jim Hinckley’s America folks told me that I had a gift for telling people where to go. Aside from a passion for sharing road trips, I was possessed with an obsession to learn more about the dramatic societal and technological transition in the years between 1880 and 1945.

As Kingman is my adopted hometown, the Kingman Tours project was ideally suited for sharing my fascination with that period of transition. And it was also a perfect venue for the telling of Kingman’s story.

Before its establishment as an Atlantic & Pacific Railroad construction camp in the early 1880s, the springs in the Cerbat Mountain foothills had served as oasis for legions of travelers. First for travelers on a Native American trade route that connected villages in eastern Arizona and in New Mexico with villages on hte coast of what is now California. That trade route was then followed by the expedition chronicled by Father Garces in 1776.

In the mid 19th century American expeditions by Captain Lorenzo I. Sitgreaves,  and Lieutenant Joseph Christmas Ives, followed the ancient trail. And then there was the expedition led by Edward Fitzgerald Beale that included a camel caravan. That led to creation of the Beale Wagon Road, the first federally funded road in the southwest.

My pa liked to quip that it was better to fill the head with useless knowledge than no knowledge at all. With that in mind, the fellow that authorized the testing of camels on the Beale expedition was Secretary of War Jefferson Davis. A few years later he became the President of the Confederate States of America.

Telling Stories

The Kingman Tours project is chock full of fascinating stories. And we are just getting started. To date there are nearly forty points of interest. But its size and scope is only limited by the imagination.

Included in phase one is the story of Henry Lovin and the Palace Saloon, now the Sportman’s Club, that opened in 1906. The origins of the iconic Mr. D’z Route 66 Diner that opened in 1940 as the Kingman Cafe and a Shell station is also shared.

And as Kingman is a Route 66 community, it should come as no suprise to learn that are automotive stories as well. Dunton Motors, now Dunton Motors Dream Machines, is a one family owned business that opened in 1946. But the family association with Route 66 dates to the era of the National Old Trails Road. This is also a story of Edsels, the presidential campaign of Senator Barry Goldwater, and of Mr. D’z Route 66 Diner.

A Celebrity Connection

Sports stories are also a part of the Kingman story, and the Kingman Tours project. On March 31, 1917, a published article noted that, “People came to Kingman from all parts of the county yesterday to attend the ball game between the local team and the Chicago Cubs. Chloride, Oatman, Hackberry, Yucca, Sandy, McCracken Mine, Frisco camp, Union Pass and Stockton Hill all contributed to make one of the largest crowds ever assembled in Kingman.” The Chicago Cubs won with a score of 22 to 4.

This wasn’t the last time the field was used for a major sporting event that attracted record crowds and put Kingman on the front page of newspapers throughout the country. In March 1924 it was announced that the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates would be playing an exhibition game in Kingman on the first of April. An article published on the 21st of March credited George Grantham for arranging the game.

On September 20, 1922, Grantham made his major league baseball debut as a second baseman. Before ending his career in 1934, Grantham played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, and New York Giants between 1922 and 1934. He played in the 1925 World Series. Grantham hit over .300 every season from 1924 to 1931.

Then there is the lengthy celebrity association with Kingman. Clark Gable and Carol Lombard married in Kingman. Senator Barry Goldwater held some of his first presidential campaign meetings in Kingman. Buster Keaton filmed a movie here. The Route 66 corridor is named for character actor Andy Devine (his father owned the Hotel Beale). Pamela Anderson had an issue during a Playboy photo shoot. Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart were guests at the Hotel Beale.

A New Era

As with all new technologies I am fascinated. I am also apprehensive and excited. This is the dawn of a new era for the storyteller. And I am eager to see how it can be used to enhance the Kingman Tours project before the Route 66 centennial. And I bet that it can help me share America’s story.

Stay tuned. I will keep you apprised of what is learned. To paraphrase a bit of classic literature., it was the best of times. It was the worst of times.