>> THIS PROGRAM IS PART OF WQED'S PITTSBURGH HISTORY SERIES.

>> WELL, THE ROAD HAS BEEN BUMPY AT TIMES, AND THE SPEED HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE, BUT WE'VE MADE IT TO PROGRAM NUMBER TEN.

THIS PROGRAM IS GOING TO BE AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT, A FANCY VIDEO THANK YOU NOTE, A TIP OF THE HAT TO A PITTSBURGHER WHO HAS HELPED AND INSPIRED AND GUIDED ME AND MY CREWS ON SEVERAL DIFFERENT DOCUMENTARIES OVER THE YEARS HERE AT WQED.

THIS PROGRAM IS A CELEBRATION OF A FRIENDSHIP, AND A GUSH OF GRATITUDE.

IT'S ABOUT OUR SEVERAL ENCOUNTERS WITH MR. BRIAN BUTKO, WRITER, HISTORIAN, DINER AFICIONADO, LOVER OF ISALY'S, HIGHWAY ENTHUSIAST.

AND WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT A LOT OF CLIPS.

WE'RE HERE AT THE HEINZ HISTORY CENTER BECAUSE BRIAN WORKS HERE.

HE'S THE EDITOR OF "WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA HISTORY" MAGAZINE, AND WE'RE GOING TO BOTHER HIM IN HIS OFFICE, THEN WE'RE GOING TO TAKE HIM ON A LITTLE ROAD TRIP.

THIS PROGRAM PREMIERES MARCH 23, 2011, BUT MAYBE YOU WILL CATCH A REPEAT.

WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT HIGHWAYS AND GOOFY BUILDINGS AND DINERS, THESE THINGS HAVE A CERTAIN TIMELESS QUALITY.

MAYBE YOU WILL SEE IT STREAMING ONLINE, MAYBE YOU'LL FIND IT BY WE'RE HERE AT THE HEINZ HISTORY CENTER BECAUSE BRIAN WORKS HERE.

HE'S THE EDITOR OF "WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA HISTORY" MAGAZINE, AND WE'RE GOING TO BOTHER HIM IN HIS OFFICE, THEN WE'RE GOING TO TAKE HIM ON A LITTLE ROAD TRIP.

THIS PROGRAM PREMIERES MARCH 23, 2011, BUT MAYBE YOU WILL CATCH A REPEAT.

WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT HIGHWAYS AND GOOFY BUILDINGS AND DINERS, THESE THINGS HAVE A CERTAIN TIMELESS QUALITY.

MAYBE YOU WILL SEE IT STREAMING ONLINE, MAYBE YOU'LL FIND IT BY ACCIDENT ON YOUR LAPTOP IN A MOTEL ROOM.

THE NAME OF THIS PROGRAM IS "IT'S PITTSBURGH AND A LOT OF OTHER STUFF."

TONIGHT THERE'S SOME LOCAL, SOME REGIONAL AND SOME NATIONAL STUFF.

MY NAME IS RICK SEBAK.

I'M YOUR HOST AND TOUR GUIDE.

AND YOU COULD CALL THIS A BRIAN BUTKO BONANZA.

>> "IT'S PITTSBURGH AND A LOT OF OTHER STUFF" IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE BUHL FOUNDATION, SERVING SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA SINCE 1927.

>> IT'S ODD BUT I DON'T REMEMBER EXACTLY WHO TOLD ME FIRST THAT I SHOULD MEET BRIAN BUTKO.

BUT UNDOUBTEDLY IT WAS WHEN THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY WAS STILL OUT IN OAKLAND, AND I THINK SOMEBODY HEARD THAT I WAS DOING A SHOW CALLED THE PENNSYLVANIA ROADSHOW, AND THEY KNEW THAT BRIAN KNEW A LOT ABOUT HIGHWAYS AND PUT TWO AND TWO TOGETHER.

AND SO I SET IT ALL UP, AND THE NEXT THING I KNEW WE WERE DRIVING OUT ROUTE 30 THROUGH GREENSBURG TO BEYOND.

AND I WAS LEARNING A LOT ABOUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY.

THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, ROUTE 30, COMES ALL THE WAY ACROSS PENNSYLVANIA.

BUT IT WAS JUST PART OF THE FIRST TRANS-CONTINENTAL HIGHWAY IN AMERICA, ESTABLISHED AND NAMED IN 1913, LONG BEFORE ROADS HAD NUMBERS.

>> PENNSYLVANIA'S SECTION OF THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY PROBABLY HAS THE GREATEST AMOUNT OF INTERESTING BUILDINGS.

>> BRIAN BUTKO IS A HISTORIAN FROM WEST MIFFLIN, PENNSYLVANIA, AND HE'S WORKING ON A BOOK ABOUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY IN PENNSYLVANIA.

>> THE IDEA OF A CROSS-COUNTRY HIGHWAY WAS NEARLY LAUGHABLE AT THE TIME THERE WERE NO MAPS AND, OF COURSE, THERE WAS NO MARKING SYSTEM, BUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY CAME UP WITH A RED, WHITE AND BLUE IDEA WITH A BLUE "L" INSIDE IT, AND THEY WOULD PLACE THESE MARKERS ALL OVER THE PLACE ON TELEPHONE POLES MAINLY THEY WOULD PAINT THE RED, WHITE AND BLUE BUT IT WAS JUST AS LIKELY TO BE FOUND ON A BARN OR A STICK OR A FENCEPOST.

>> SOON LOTS OF HIGHWAYS BEGAN GIVING THEMSELVES NAMES AND SPECIAL MARKINGS.

THEN, IN THE MID '20s, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DECIDED ON A HIGHWAY NUMBERING SYSTEM TO HELP ELIMINATE SOME OF THE HIGHWAY MARKING CONFUSION.

BUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY GOT SPECIAL PERMISSION TO KEEP ITS ROUTE MARKED IN MEMORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

>> SO, IN 1928 THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY WAS MARKED ONE LAST TIME WITH CEMENT MARKERS THAT WERE PLACE APPROXIMATELY ONE PER MILE.

>> ALTHOUGH THERE WERE ONCE HUNDREDS OF THESE GREAT OLD CONCRETE POSTS IN PENNSYLVAN ONLY ABOUT A DOZEN OR SO REMASE >> MOST OF THEM WERE HIT BY TRUCKS OR ELIMINATED WHEN THE ROADWAY WAS WIDENED SO THEY CAN USUALLY ONLY BE FOUND ON ABANDONED SECTIONS OF THE HIGHWAY.

>> BRIAN KNOWS WHEN TO GET OFF ROUTE 30 TO FOLLOW OLD SECTIONS OF THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY.

>> IN PENNSYLVANIA IT'S PRETTY EASY BECAUSE A LOT OF TIMES THE OLD ROAD WILL ANGLE OFF THE NEW ONE, AND IT'S USUALLY PRETTY SKINNY, AND IT WOULD TAKE A LOT OF HILLS AND DIPS, AND THE NEW ROAD, OF COURSE, GOES THROUGH MOUNTAIN CUTS.

>> PENNSYLVANIA'S LINCOLN HIGHWAY WAS NOTORIOUS FOR STEEP MOUNTAIN CLIMBS, AND EARLY MOTORISTS HAD TO STOP AT THE TOP OF EVERY HILL TO COOL DOWN, ADD WATER, MAYBE GET SOMETHING TO EAT.

THAT'S WHY THERE'S USUALLY AN OLD PLACE, A GAS STATION, OR SOUVENIR STAND AT THE OF TOP OF ALL THE SUMMITS ALONG ROUTE 30.

>> AT GRAND VIEW POINT, THERE HAS ALWAYS BEEN A TERRIFIC VIEW.

POSTCARDS HELP TELL THE TALE.

DRIVERS HAD TO STOP HERE, AND A MAN NAMED HERBERT PAULSON BUILT A ROADSIDE PLACE HERE THAT KEPT GETTING BIGGER AND BIGGER AND BETTER AND HE EVEN PUT A GAS STATION ACROSS THE STREET AGAINST THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN.

>> BUT HE HAD BIGGER PLANS, AND IN FACT HIS NICKNAME WAS CAPTAIN PAULSON BECAUSE HE LOVED THE SEA SO MUCH AND HE TRAVELED ACROSS THE OCEAN.

AND HE WANTED A NAUTICALLY THEMED BUILDING.

SO HE FINALLY SETTLED ON A SHIP-SHAPED BUILDING.

AND THAT'S WHAT IS STILL HERE TODAY 60 YEARS LATER.

AND THE SHIP OPENED MEMORIAL DAY APPARENTLY OF 1932.

AND FOR THE NEXT HALF CENTURY HUNDREDS OF CARS PER HOUR STOPPED TO SEE THE VIEW OF THREE STATES AND SEVEN COUNTIES.

>> YOU COULD ALSO STAY OVERNIGHT.

IT WAS A SHIP HOTEL WITH A RESTAURANT AND ROOMS.

>> THERE'S 12 ROOMS UPSTAIRS.

ORIGINALLY THOSE WERE CALLED FIRST CLASS ROOMS.

AND THEN THE WORKERS LIVED ON THE BOTTOM FLOOR WHICH THEY JOKINGLY CALLED THE STEERAGE.

>> THE SHIP HOTEL WAS THE MOST FAMOUS STOP ON THE ENTIRE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, BUT IT'S CHANGED.

IN THE '70s, THE WHITE EXTERIOR WAS COVERED UP, AND THE PLACE RENAMED NOAH'S ARK.

IT'S NOT IN SHIP-SHAPE RIGHT NOW, BUT THE CURRENT OWNERS SAY THEY HOPE TO REOPEN IT SOMEDAY SOON AS A HOTEL AND RESTAURANT AGAIN.

IT MUST STILL BE FULL OF GOOFY SURPRISES THAT YOU'D NEVER FIND IN A CHAIN MOTEL.

>> SO THAT WAS BITS OF MY FIRST INTERVIEW WITH BRIAN BUTKO.

1992.

OUT NEAR BEDFORD AT THE SHIP HOTEL.

>> YEAH, WE DROVE OUT ON A SUNNY SUMMER DAY IN MY CONVERTIBLE.

>> ACTUALLY, I CAN REMEMBER, YOU KNEW SO MUCH ABOUT HIGHWAYS AND DINERS AND THINGS, I WAS ASTOUNDED.

>> YEAH, WE KEPT POINTING OFF TO THE SIDES WHERE THE OLD ROAD WOULD BRANCH OFF OR COULD SEE TOURIST CABINS.

>> YEAH, AND THERE WERE A LOT MORE THEN, WEREN'T THERE?

>> OH, YEAH, YEAH.

>> YEAH, IT'S ASTOUNDING EVEN WHEN YOU LOOK AT, I MEAN THE SHIP HOTEL WAS THERE!

>> RIGHT.

>> IT WAS NOAH'S ARK BUT IT WAS STILL A MAGNIFICENT THING.

YOU KNOW, SINCE THEN, BRIAN'S DONE THIS BOOK CALLED THE SHIP HOTEL.

2010.

>> YEAH, RIGHT.

>> IT INCLUDES A LOT OF THOSE POSTCARDS THAT WE USED BACK THEN.

>> YEAH, ALL THE ONES WE WERE COLLECTING THEN, AND THOUGHT THE SHIP WOULD BE THERE FOREVER.

>> WELL, I'M -- IT'S ALWAYS HARD TO INTERVIEW A FRIEND, BUT FOR THE SAKE OF EVERYONE ELSE, WHERE DID YOU GROW UP?

WHERE DID YOU GO TO SCHOOL?

>> I'M A LIFE-LONG WEST MIFFLIN RESIDENT, WENT TO SCHOOL THERE AND WENT TO PITTSBURGH INSTITUTE FOR AERONAUTICS AND POINT PARK AND DUQUESNE UNIVERSITY FOR MY MASTERS.

>> MARRIED?

KIDS?

>> YEP, MARRIED TO SARAH ALL THESE YEARS, AND THREE KIDS.

>> WERE YOU MARRIED IN 1992 WHEN WE WENT TO THE SHIP HOTEL?

>> I WAS, BECAUSE I THINK WE REACHED BEDFORD ABOUT THE SAME TIME I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HOME THAT DAY.

>> I CAN REMEMBER THAT THERE WAS PHONE CALLS TO SARAH, AND WE WERE SO LATE.

IT WAS AMAZING.

>> PROBABLY ON PAY PHONES.

>> ALL RIGHT.

SINCE 1993, WE WORKED WITH THE HISTORY CENTER, WE CO-PRODUCED A SHOW ABOUT PENNSYLVANIA DINERS, AND I REMEMBER I THOUGHT A DINER WAS ANY PLACE WITH A COUNTER AND STOOLS, BUT YOU WANTED IT TO BE A PRE-FAB BUILDING.

>> RIGHT, BUILT IN A FACTORY AND TRANSPORTED THE SITE.

>> THE BIG STAINLESS STEEL SERRO'S LEFT IRWIN IN 1976, AND IT'S UP NEAR BUTLER, PA, ON ROUTE 422 NOW.

IT'S CALLED MORGAN'S EASTLAND DINER.

AND THE FIRST SERRO'S DINER, THE PORCELAIN O'MAHONY ONE, WAS MOVED IN 1958 TO JUST SOUTH OF GREENSBURG, ON ROUTE 119, TO A PLACE CALLED WILLOW CROSSING.

THE OUTSIDE WAS COVERED UP WITH A NEW ROOF AND FACADE, AND IT WAS RENAMED THE WILLOW DINER STATION.

JOHN ROLKA OWNED AND OPERATED THE WILLOW FROM 1960 UNTIL 1992 WHEN HE DECIDED TO RETIRE.

>> LIKE I SAY, I'M 67.

IT'S GETTING TIME TO SLOW UP.

THE OLD KNEES ARE STARTING TO BOTHER ME PRETTY GOOD.

>> NOW THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA IS GOING TO SAVE THE WILLOW DINER THAT STARTED OUT AS SERRO'S DINER AND MAKE IT PART OF THE NEW PITTSBURGH REGIONAL HISTORY CENTER.

SAVING THE OLD DINER WAS THE IDEA OF BRIAN BUTKO, WHO ALSO WORKS FOR THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY.

>> THIS DINER WILL BE RESTORED TO AS IT LOOKED WHEN IT CAME FROM THE FACTORY IN 1938 WHEN IT CAME FROM THE O'MAHONY FACTORY IN NEW JERSEY.

>> THE SERROS AND THE ROLKAS SEEM REALLY HAPPY THAT THIS OLD DINER WILL BE GIVEN PLACE OF HONOR IN A MUSEUM.

NOW BRIAN BUTKO KNOWS A LOT ABOUT PENNSYLVANIA DINERS AND HE POINTED OUT THAT WHEN YOU GET UP INTO THE COUNTIES UP AROUND ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA, THERE'S A BIZARRE CHANGE IN SPELLING WHEN IT COMES TO DINERS.

>> UP IN THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF PENNSYLVANIA AN AWFUL LOT OF RESTAURANTS ARE CALLED “DINORS,” AND IT'S SPELT WITH AN "O" INSTEAD OF AN "E." THE USE OF THE "DINOR" SPELLING PROBABLY BEGAN IN THE 1940s AND IT SEEMED TO SPREAD OUT FROM THE TOWN OF ERIE, SOUTH AND TOWARDS THE OHIO AND WEST VIRGINIA BORDER.

NO ONE'S REALLY SURE WHERE IT COMES FROM.

MOST LIKELY SOME BUSINESSMAN JUST USED THE “DINOR” SPELLING AS A WAY TO ATTRACT ATTENTION AND IT JUST SPREAD FROM THERE.

>> SO THEN IN 1999, BRIAN, YOU PUT THIS BOOK TOGETHER, PENNSYLVANIA DINERS, DINERS OF PENNSYLVANIA.

>> RIGHT, YEAH.

>> WITH KEVIN PATRICK.

>> YEAH, WE HAD ALREADY BEEN DOING THE RESEARCH BACK WHEN WE HIT THE ROAD TO DO THE VIDEO, COLLECTING LOCATIONS AND GETTING TO KNOW OWNERS SO, IT EVENTUALLY GREW INTO THE BOOK.

>> WHAT DO YOU THINK IT IS ABOUT A DINER THAT MAKES US LOVE THEM SO MUCH?

>> I THINK BECAUSE THEY ALL LOOK SIMILAR BUT YET EACH ONE IS DISTINCTIVE TO THAT NEIGHBORHOOD.

>> AND, IT'S LIKE ALL THESE OTHER THINGS, I THINK IT'S THE PEOPLE, TOO.

>> OH YEAH, THE PERSONALITIES COME THROUGH AND THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT SPECIAL FOR EVERY DINER THAT'S OUT THERE.

>> NOW AN ISALY'S ISN'T A DINER, BUT ARE YOU LOOKING AT ISALY'S AT THE SAME TIME THAT YOU'RE DOING ALL THIS?

>> YEAH, I WAS STARTING TO VISIT ISALY'S AND RESEARCH THEM AT THE SAME TIME, AND I REALIZED THEY WERE PRETTY SIMILAR IN THAT THE ISALY'S ALSO ALL HAD A SIMILAR LOOK TO THEM, BUT YET EACH ONE WAS PRETTY DISTINCTIVE TO ITS NEIGHBORHOOD.

>> IN A BIG AREA AROUND PITTSBURGH, MANY PEOPLE OVER 30 STILL FONDLY REMEMBER A CHAIN OF STORES KNOWN AS ISALY'S.

>> ISALY'S WERE DAIRY DELI STORES THAT HAD HUNDREDS OF LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA, WEST VIRGINIA AND OHIO.

THE STORES STARTED OPENING IN THE '20s, AND CAME TO PITTSBURGH IN THE '30s, AND HIT THEIR PEAK IN THE LATE '40s AND EARLY '50s.

>> ISALY'S WERE EVERYWHERE IN ALMOST EVERY TOWN AND CITY NEIGHBORHOOD.

>> YEAH, ISALY'S REALLY WAS THE FIRST CONVENIENCE STORE, IN FACT THEY WERE THE LARGEST FAMILY-OWNED DAIRY CHAIN.

THEIR PLANTS STRETCHED FROM PENNSYLVANIA ALL THE WAY OUT TO IOWA.

>> BRIAN BUTKO IS AN EDITOR AND HISTORIAN WHO'S WRITTEN A BOOK ABOUT ISALY'S CALLED "KLONDIKES, CHIPPED HAM AND SKYSCRAPER CONES."

>> THERE ARE STILL A FEW GREAT OLD ISALY'S LEFT AROUND PITTSBURGH -- HOMESTEAD, THE NORTH SIDE, TURTLE CREEK AND NORWIN, AND THE WEST VIEW STORE NORTH OF PITTSBURGH IS ONE OF THE BEST.

IT HAS THE OLD TIN CEILING AND THE FRONT CASE AND THE CHIPPED HAM CHIPPER.

THE STORE IS RUN BY TOM AND GAIL WEISBECKER, AND I THINK THEY REALLY HAVE A LOT OF FUN WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS.

>> WE SELL TONS OF CHIPPED HAM.

TONS OF IT.

>> AND HAM BARBECUES.

>> BARBECUE SAUCE.

WE SCOOP A LOT OF ICE CREAM, SERVE A LOT OF BREAKFASTS, A LOT OF LUNCH TO THE REGULAR PEOPLE EVERY DAY.

>> PEOPLE HAVE ENJOYED ISALY'S PRODUCTS SINCE THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY WHEN WILLIAM ISALY GOT HIS FAMILY STARTED IN THE DAIRY BUSINESS IN OHIO.

ORIGINALLY OF SWISS ORIGIN, THE ISALY FAMILY EXPANDED THEIR PRODUCTS FROM MILK TO ICE CREAM, TO ALL SORTS OF DAIRY PRODUCTS AND EVENTUALLY TO DELI MEATS AND OTHER FOODS.

THEY STARTED OPENING ISALY'S STORES IN THE 1920s AROUND THE TIME THEY INTRODUCED A SQUARE OF CHOCOLATE-COVERED ICE CREAM CALLED A KLONDIKE.

>> THAT KLONDIKE WAS A GOOD ONE.

WE SOLD ‘EM FOR FIVE CENTS.

MR. HENRY ISALY SAID, “AN ICE CREAM BAR ON A STICK IS FOR CHILDREN.

A KLONDIKE IS AN ADULT BAR.” HE WAS RIGHT.

>> EVEN TO PEOPLE ACROSS THE COUNTRY, THE KLONDIKE BAR IS REALLY POPULAR.

NOW IT IS THE BEST SELLING ICE CREAM NOVELTY, BUT IT EVEN SEEMS TO BE MORE THAN THAT.

I THINK THE LARGE SIZE OF IT, THE FACT THAT IT'S STILL WRAPPED IN FOIL.

>> AND IT'S SURVIVED STRONGER THAN ANY OTHER ISALY'S PRODUCT.

ALTHOUGH PITTSBURGHERS STILL LONGINGLY REMEMBER THE TALL SCOOPS OF ICE CREAM ATOP WHAT WERE KNOWN AS ISALY'S “SKYSCRAPER CONES.” NO ONE MAKES THEM REGULARLY ANYMORE, BUT TOM WEISBECKER STILL HAS A SCOOP UP IN WEST VIEW.

HE SAYS IT'S HARD TO DO THIS CORRECTLY NOW BECAUSE ICE CREAM IS STORED IN CARDBOARD INSTEAD OF METAL CANS, AND NO ONE'S TRAINED TO SCOOP THE ISALY'S WAY ANYMORE, AND SKYSCRAPERS COULD BE ONLY A SINGLE FLAVOR, NOT TWO FLAVORS.

BUT STILL THEY HAVE LOTS OF LOVING FANS.

>> ONCE I GOT STARTED ON THE BOOK, I WAS JUST BOWLED OVER BY HOW, HOW MUCH AFFECTION PEOPLE HAD FOR THE COMPANY.

I THINK IT WAS BECAUSE OF WHAT ISALY'S PIONEERED WHICH WAS TO OWN BOTH THE MANUFACTURING PLANT, THE DAIRY PLANT, AND THEN TO OWN THE STORES.

AND THAT WAS REALLY ONE OF A KIND IN THE DAIRY INDUSTRY.

AND I THINK IT WAS REALLY ONE OF THE KEYS TO WHAT MADE THEM SO SPECIAL, THE PRODUCTS WERE FRESHER, AND THEY WERE MUCH PROUDER OF IT BECAUSE OF THAT.

YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE HARDEST PARTS WAS PINNING DOWN WHO INVENTED CHIPPED HAM, WHO THOUGHT UP THE SKYSCRAPER CONE, AND WHO THOUGHT UP THE KLONDIKE, THE THREE MAIN PRODUCTS.

IT'S HARD BECAUSE ALL THOSE PEOPLE ARE GONE NOW, AND THEIR CHILDREN ALL WANT TO SAY A GOOD WORD ABOUT THEIR PARENTS.

YOU KNOW SERIOUS HISTORIANS MIGHT DISMISS ALL THIS AS POP CULTURE, BUT WE'RE TALKING 80 OR 100 YEARS AGO, AND IT'S GONE.

BUT IN THE BOOK, I DID MY BEST TO BRING ALL THOSE STORIES TOGETHER.

>> ONE OF THE BEST SOURCES BRIAN FOUND WAS GEORGE KROHE, A FORMER VICE-PRESIDENT OF ISALY'S.

>> HE HAD STARTED WITH THE COMPANY A WEEK AFTER THEY OPENED IN PITTSBURGH SO HE'D BEEN WITH THEM SINCE THE EARLY'30s.

>> I STARTED IN THE HOMEWOOD STORE, $27.50 A WEEK WITH A DAY OFF EVERY OTHER WEEK AS ASSISTANT MANAGER.

I THINK WHEN I BECAME MANAGER MAYBE I GOT $27.75, I DON'T REMEMBER.

>> BUT IN THE LATE '50s, THEY STARTED DECLINING, SLOWLY BUT SURELY.

THE FAMILY SOLD IT IN 1972, SO THE STORES BEGAN CLOSING, THE '70s, THE '80s, RIGHT UP UNTIL 2001 WHERE STORES ARE STILL CLOSING, AND THERE ARE ONLY A FEW LEFT.

>> WE ACTUALLY SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE COME BACK.

WHEN THEY WERE KIDS, THEY ALL CAN REMEMBER WALKING IN, 'CAUSE THERE WAS NO DAIRY QUEENS, NO FAST FOOD.

>> THEY BRING THEIR CAMERAS.

>> THEY'RE ALL USED TO GOING IN THERE AND STANDING THERE FOR THAT CONE.

>> IT'S JUST BEEN A FAMILY TRADITION FOR US TO COME HERE.

MY GRANDPARENTS CAME HERE, AND MY PARENTS CAME HERE WHEN THEY WERE LITTLE.

>> THERE'S SOMETHING VERY INFECTIOUS ABOUT ICE CREAM.

ICE CREAM IS A PLEASANT FOOD.

AND A LOT OF THE COMPANIES WHO SELL ICE CREAM TODAY, THEY'RE THOUGHT WELL OF, EVEN IF THEY DON'T HAVE A REAL, REAL GOOD PRODUCT.

WE HAD A GOOD PRODUCT, AND WE SOLD IT, AND WE SOLD IT TO SO MANY PEOPLE.

WE STROVE FOR PERFECTION.

WE DID.

>> I THINK IT IS HOME TO A LOT OF PEOPLE.

JUST LIKE A DINER, YOU'LL HEAR THE PEOPLE SAY THAT THEY COME HERE EVERY DAY, AND THE OWNERS KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT.

I THINK THEY FEEL A LOT MORE COMFORTABLE HERE.

>> A FUNNY THING -- I HAD A WOMAN, AND MANY YEARS AGO SHE WORKED FOR ISALY'S IN AN ISALY'S STORE, AND SHE SAID, “YOU KNOW HOW WE USED TO SAY THE ISALY'S NAME?” I SAID, “NO.” SHE SAID, “I SHALL ALWAYS LOVE YOU.” SO, THAT'S GONNA, SAME OLD FAMILY STUFF AGAIN.

>> I SHALL ALWAYS LOVE YOU, SWEETHEART.

YEAH, THEY SAY THAT.

THEY NEVER SAID THAT.

>> HE SAYS TO ME EVERY MORNING WHEN WE WORK TOGETHER.

>> THAT'S FUNNY.

>> I WISH.

>> THAT'S REAL FUNNY.

>> THIS IS MELTING.

GOOD-BYE.

THAT'S ENOUGH.

>> SO, BRIAN, THAT WAS 2001, NOW IT'S 2011.

ISALY'S IS STILL ALIVE.

>> YEAH, AND HERE WE ARE AT THE WEST VIEW ONE.

IT WAS THE BEST ONE WHEN WE DID THAT SEGMENT, AND IT'S STILL A GREAT PLACE TO COME AND EAT.

>> WELL, I LOVE TOM AND GAIL WEISBECKER, AND I CAN'T BELIEVE, THEY'RE NICE ENOUGH TO HAVE ME PAINTED HERE IN THE WINDOW, HOLDING UP A SLAMMER.

I DIDN'T EXPECT THAT, BUT I LOVE THAT SANDWICH.

IT'S THE BEST CHIPPED HAM SANDWICH ON EARTH, AND WE PUT IT IN MY SHOW SANDWICHES THAT YOU WILL LIKE, BUT I THINK THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE LOVED ABOUT ISALY'S WAS GOOD FOOD AND GOOD PEOPLE.

>> YEAH, I STILL GET PEOPLE CONTACTING ME ALMOST EVERY DAY, WANT TO REMINISCE ABOUT THE GOOD TIMES THEY HAD AT ISALY'S.

>> YEAH, GOOD ICE CREAM TOO.

IN 2004, I GOT THE MONEY FROM PBS TO DO A SHOW ABOUT UNUSUAL BUILDINGS, AND I REMEMBER YOU AND YOUR WIFE SARAH WERE TALKING ABOUT DOING A CHILDREN'S BOOK.

>> RIGHT.

SO WE DECIDED TO GO ON A ROAD TRIP TO SEE SOME OF THEM, AND WE LOADED UP THE KIDS IN THE VAN, AND YOU ALL CAME OVER TO FILM US DOING THAT.

>> AND ONE MORNING IN WEST MIFFLIN, PENNSYLVANIA, ANDREW, NICHOLAS AND NATALIE BUTKO ARE UP EARLY WITH THEIR PARENTS, BRIAN AND SARAH.

>> OKAY, EVERYBODY READY?

>> THIS FAMILY OFTEN USES UNUSUAL ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS AS GOOD REASONS FOR FAMILY VACATIONS.

>> THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE'RE STARTING 6:30 IN THE MORNING.

NORMALLY WE TRY A LITTLE LATER, BUT WE WANT TO GET SOME MILES ON THE ROAD JUST IN CASE WE FIND A GOOD DINER OR SOMEWHERE WHERE WE WANT TO SPEND SOME TIME.

WE HOPE TO END UP IN CAVE CITY, KENTUCKY, AND IT'S A LONG DRIVE, LOTS TO SEE AND DO AND WE HOPE TO BE THERE BEFORE SUNDOWN.

>> SO WE LET THE BUTKOS GO ON THEIR MERRY WAY.

BUT MY CREW AND I WENT LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY, AND DID STORY AT BONDURANT'S PHARMACY.

IT'S A PHARMACY IN THE SHAPE OF A MORTAR AND PESTLE, THEN THAT EVENING, WE ALL ENDED UP IN CAVE CITY, KENTUCKY.

>> SO, IT WAS WELL AFTER SUNDOWN BY THE TIME WE CAUGHT UP TO BRIAN BUTKO AND HIS TRAVELING FAMILY IN CAVE CITY.

THEY WERE STAYING AT THE WIGWAM VILLAGE MOTEL WHERE THE INDIVIDUAL ROOMS ARE LIKE LITTLE CABINS IN THE SHAPE OF TEPEES.

WE WANTED TO MEET BRIAN AND SARAH AND THE KIDS HERE BECAUSE THEY WERE WORKING ON A BOOK.

>> THE BOOK WE'RE WRITING IS CALLED ROADSIDE GIANTS, AND THE WHOLE IDEA BEHIND IT WAS THAT WE FOUND WE WERE ALWAYS TAKING OUR FAMILY TO PLACES LIKE THIS.

>> AND WE JUST TALK A LOT ABOUT THE DIFFERENT THINGS, AND ONE DAY WE SAID, HEY THAT MIGHT BE A GOOD, GOOD BOOK, AND THEN WE SAID, LET'S MAKE IT A CHILDREN'S BOOK.

I KNOW CHILDREN, HE KNOWS ROADSIDE, WE CAN COLLABORATE AND WORK TOGETHER.

>> AND CLASSIC ROADSIDE PLACES LIKE THIS WIGWAM VILLAGE ARE WHAT THEY'RE CONCENTRATING ON.

THE FIRST TEPEE MOTEL WAS BUILT AROUND 1930 BY FRANK REDFORD TO HELP ATTRACT BUSINESS TO HIS GAS STATION NOT FAR FROM HERE IN HORSE CAVE, KENTUCKY.

EVENTUALLY SEVEN WIGWAM VILLAGES WOULD BE BUILT.

THREE STILL REMAIN, ONE IN ARIZONA, THIS ONE ON ROUTE 66 IN RIALTO, CALIFORNIA, AND THE OLDEST REMAINING SET, WIGWAM VILLAGE NUMBER TWO, HERE IN KENTUCKY, 15 TEPEE-ROOMS AND ONE LARGE TEPEE WITH MOTEL OFFICE AND GIFT SHOP, ALL OWNED AND OPERATED BY IVAN JOHN SINCE 1996.

>> IT WAS IN BAD SHAPE.

THE FLOORS WERE TERRIBLE.

THE ROOMS HAD TO BE REDECORATED.

I LOVE OLD THINGS AND I THINK WE ALL SHOULD PRESERVE THE OLD, THE THINGS THAT OUR PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS ADMIRED MOST.

>> IT'S PRETTY AMAZING THAT PLACES LIKE THIS HAVE SURVIVED.

>> THERE'S A CERTAIN TYPE OF PERSON THAT REALLY ENJOYS BEING HERE.

THERE'S THIS ENGLISH LADY WHO CALLED ME SEVERAL TIMES IN THE LAST SEVERAL DAYS.

>> I'VE COME TO SEE THE WIGWAM MOTEL BECAUSE I'M WRITING A BOOK ABOUT AMERICA'S ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS.

>> HER NAME IS RACHEL MORRIS, AND IT SUDDENLY SEEMED AS THOUGH EVERYBODY WAS HERE TO WRITE SOMETHING ABOUT THESE UNUSUAL LITTLE BUILDINGS.

>> THESE ARE TEPEES.

I THINK A WIGWAM WOULD BE A MORE ROUNDED STRUCTURE, SO IT'S WIGWAM VILLAGE BUT THEY'RE ACTUALLY TEPEES.

>> AS OUR TRAVELS TAKE US AROUND, WE'RE GETTING PICTURES WITH KIDS IN THEM, WITHOUT KIDS IN THEM, AND -- >> WE'RE DOING IT TO HAVE FUN, SO WE NEVER WANT THE RESEARCH TO GET IN THE WAY, SO WE GO OFF AND HAVE FUN AND -- >> IT'S TRICKY.

IT'S REALLY HARD TO WRITE ABOUT THE TRAVELING YOU'RE DOING WHILE YOU'RE DOING THE TRAVELING.

>> THE IDEA IS TO BRING THE PEOPLE TOGETHER, YOU KNOW, AND THIS WAS LIKE A NICE GATHERING PLACE FOR FAMILIES.

>> THE TEPEE-SHAPED BUILDINGS, PEOPLE KNOW THEY'RE COMING HERE TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A FUN TIME.

IT'S NOT JUST EVERYONE GOING INTO THEIR MOTEL ROOM ON THE FOURTH FLOOR AND HIDING AT NIGHT.

>> IT'S AN ADVENTURE.

IT'S NOT JUST THAT THE WIGWAM MOTEL IS HERE.

IT'S PART OF LIFE AND IT BRINGS NEW THINGS INTO YOUR LIFE, IT BRINGS MOMENTS OF CHANCE INTO YOUR LIFE THAT YOU WOULDN'T GET OTHERWISE.

I THINK THAT'S WHAT I LIKE ABOUT IT, BUT I'M STILL WORKING THAT OUT.

>> I THINK IT'S COOL.

>> CAN'T HELP BUT WANT TO SLEEP IN A WIGWAM.

EVEN IF IT IS A TEPEE.

>> IF YOU HAVEN'T SLEPT IN A WIGWAM, YOU'RE NOT COOL.

>> SO BRIAN, EVERYBODY'S THERE AT WIGWAM VILLAGE, WANTING TO WRITE A BOOK ABOUT THE AMERICAN ROADSIDE, DID YOU AND SARAH EVER FINISH?

>> YEAH, WE ACTUALLY ENDED UP WRITING TWO BOOKS -- THE ROADSIDE GIANTS AND ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS.

>> HUH.

AND DO YOU EVER GET TIRED OF ALL THIS STUFF?

>> NAH, LOVE BEING OUT THERE ON THE ROAD.

WELL, YOU KNOW KIND OF THE LURE OF BEING OUT THERE AND FINDING NEW THINGS.

>> I MEAN, HAVE YOU EVER HEARD ANYTHING LATELY ABOUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY THAT YOU THOUGHT, "OH, I WANT TO SEE THAT!"

>> OH YEAH, JUST YESTERDAY I HEARD THERE'S DUCKPIN BOWLING ALLEYS OUT IN POTTER, NEBRASKA.

SO I'M GONNA HAVE TO HEAD WEST.

>> COOL.

WE, WE -- I THINK SINCE 1992, YOU'D BEEN NUDGING ME TO PUT IN A PROPOSAL FOR A NATIONAL SHOW ABOUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY.

AND I THINK I DID SEVERAL TIMES TO PBS, BUT THEY FINALLY BROKE DOWN AND SAID "OKAY, LET'S TRY THAT."

AND IN 2008, WE MADE THAT.

YOU HAD JUST PUT A BOOK OUT.

>> RIGHT, "GREETINGS FROM THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY."

IT WAS SO HELPFUL TO US BOTH TRAVELING AND WHEN WE PUT THE SHOW TOGETHER.

IT WAS -- WE COULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU.

>> THE FOUNDERS OF THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY WANTED THE STRAIGHTEST AND FASTEST ROUTE.

>> THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, THERE'S OFTEN DIFFERENT GENERATIONS THAT YOU CAN TAKE -- THE ORIGINAL, AND THEN MAYBE THEY RE-ROUTED IT A BLOCK OR TWO AWAY, AND THEN A FEW BLOCKS AWAY.

AND SO I'VE BEEN AT IT NOW FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS, AND I SURELY CAN GO ANOTHER 20 AND NOT SEE EVERYTHING THERE IS TO SEE.

>> BRIAN BUTKO IS A HIGHWAY HISTORIAN WHO LIVES IN PITTSBURGH.

HE WROTE THE BOOK CALLED "GREETINGS FROM THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY."

>> I THINK A LOT OF US WANT TO EXPERIENCE SOMETHING ELSE THAN THE GENERIC SIDE OF THE INTERSTATES, TO GET ON THE OLD TWO LANES AND EXPERIENCE THE ROAD GOING OVER THE LANDSCAPE, THAT IT'S LAID ON THE HILLS NOT THROUGH THEM.

>> ONE DAY WE MET BRIAN IN WILKINSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, AT PEPPI'S DINER, A LOCAL ROADSIDE LANDMARK.

>> I LOVE IT.

IT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE STOPS ON THE ROAD REALLY.

IT'S A GREAT SANDWICH SHOP.

AND IT'S ACTUALLY A VERY RARE NATIONAL BRAND DINER.

IT WAS BUILT IN NEW JERSEY IN 1939.

AND IT'S EVERYTHING YOU WANT AN OLD DINER TO BE.

>> NOW MANY PEOPLE CONSIDER ROUTE 30 TO BE THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY THROUGH PENNSYLVANIA, BUT PEPPI'S IS ON A BUSY STRETCH OF PENN AVENUE, A MAIN ROAD IN THE PITTSBURGH AREA.

>> IT'S THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY.

AND THAT'S THE HARD THING FOR PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND -- THAT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY REALLY ISN'T ANYTHING, YOU CAN'T REALLY CALL IT 27 OR ROUTE 30 OR ROUTE 1, LET ALONE I-80.

IT'S ITSELF.

IT'S A NAMED HIGHWAY FROM THE TEENS.

AND ONCE THE HIGHWAYS WERE NUMBERED IN THE 1920s, THAT IDENTITY HAS BECOME SO STRONG THAT WE'RE ALWAYS TEMPTED TO WANT TO SAY, WELL, THAT'S ROUTE 30 OR IT'S ROUTE 40, AND CERTAINLY AT TIMES IT IS, BUT, BUT ONLY AT TIMES, SO RIGHT OUTSIDE OUR WINDOW HERE, THAT WAS THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, I WOULD SAY IT STILL IS THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, IT WAS ROUTE 30, BUT NOW ROUTE 30 GOES AROUND PITTSBURGH.

>> ACTUALLY, DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE MOMENT?

DO YOU REMEMBER A TIME?

A DAY?

SOMETHING THAT WE DID?

>> I LIKED BEING AT PEPPI'S DINER.

>> PEPPI'S DINER WAS GOOD.

>> FOR THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY SHOW.

>> DO YOU REMEMBER THE GLENFIELD VIADUCT WHEN WE SHOT OVER THERE?

>> I DO.

I KEPT DRIVING BACK AND FORTH UP THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD.

>> THAT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT NEVER MADE IT INTO A SHOW, A LITTLE PIECE OF THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY.

BUT I JUST WANTED TO HAVE LUNCH AND THANK YOU, YOU KNOW, SAY HOW MUCH FUN IT'S BEEN.

I LEARN SO MUCH, NO MATTER WHEN I GET TOGETHER WITH YOU, AND YOU KNOW I JUST WANT TO SAY, WE'RE NOT DEAD YET, SO -- >> WELL GOOD, THANKS FOR TAKING ME ALONG, IT'S BEEN A LOT OF FUN.

>> WELL, MAYBE YOU HAVE SOME NEW THINGS WE CAN DO SHOWS ABOUT TOO.

>> I THINK SO.

LET'S START PLANNING.

>> DUCK PIN BOWLING.

>> ON THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY.

>> ALL RIGHT.

NOW IN THE RIDE ALONG THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, AT THE END OF THE SHOW, WE HAVE A BUNCH OF PEOPLE TALK ABOUT THE JOYS OF THAT OLD HIGHWAY, BUT THE FINAL VOICE, THE END OF THE SHOW AS WE DRIVE OFF INTO THE SUNSET, IT'S MR. BUTKO'S.

>> THIS WEEKEND COMING UP, I'M TRYING TO THINK AGAIN, HOW FAR CAN I GO EAST OR WEST ON THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY BEFORE I HAVE TO TURN AROUND AND GET BACK HOME?

>> HI.

I'M BRIAN BUTKO, AND I'M WRITING A BOOK ABOUT THE LINCOLN -- >> START AGAIN.

>> YEAH.

HI, I'M BRIAN BUTKO AND I'M WRITING A BOOK ABOUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY IN PENNSYLVANIA.

I HOPE YOU'LL JOIN ME ON THE PENNSYLVANIA ROAD SHOW TOMORROW.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY AND OTHER ROADS IN PENNSYLVANIA.

>> PRETTY GOOD.

BUT YOU LOOK LIKE AMERICAN GOTHIC.

>> WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY AND SOME OTHER GREAT OLD ROADS ON THE PENNSYLVANIA ROAD SHOW.

I HOPE YOU'LL JOIN US.

>> ALL I WANT TO TELL YOU IS YOU'RE GONNA LOOK A MILLION PERCENT BETTER IF YOU'RE SMILING WHE WHOLE TIME.

OKAY, SMILING AT THE BEGINNING, YEAH.

>> OKAY.

>> TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THESE STORIES, TO LEAVE A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION, GO ONLINE TO WQED.ORG/ITS-PITTSBURGH.

WE ALSO HAVE A FACEBOOK PAGE, AND ON TWITTER, FOLLOW RICK AROUND HERE.

"IT'S PITTSBURGH AND A LOT OF OTHER STUFF" IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE BUHL FOUNDATION, SERVING SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA SINCE 1927.