Announcing the Hit The Road Blogathon

 

 

The essence of adventure! Whether the beginning of summer (in the northern hemisphere around Memorial Day) or the end of summer (again, in the northern hemisphere, around Labor Day), many start plans to make a road trip for vacations. (National Lampoon's Vacation)

But a road trip is not limited to just that.  There can be any variation of motivation to make a trip. It can be as simple as "I wanna go see Grandma and Grandpa, let's pile up in the car and HIT THE ROAD". (The Visit comes to mind, but there are others)

Or it can be a matter of necessity.  "We have to get this package to someone and we gotta get it there yesterday". (Think Smokey and the Bandit)

Or just a venue to give a background to a story involving improving relationships between two characters who may need to change their previous situations. (I'm thinking Over the Top here, which is more about father and estranged son becoming more intimate with each other than the actual road trip itself.) 

One of the things I remember from years past is that the best part of going somewhere is the process of getting there. Not everyone has the wanderlust like me. I sometimes get in the car with no goal other than just to go driving. But the need to accomplish a goal that involves moving from one point to another is something that just about everybody has at some point in their lives.

That is the essence of the Hit The Road Blogathon. For the purposes of this blogathon, any film, TV show or, even, book is fair game. I am encouraging you to look at your vast collections and write about any such motivational stories that involve getting from point A to point B. Hell, I'll even accept an entry of your own past if you have one that brings back fond memories (but a film or book would be better).

So here are the basic rules:

1. Pick a movie, TV show or book in which the main part of the story involves travel. And this is wide open. It can be by car (Green Book), motorcycle (Easy Rider) semi (Convoy), walking (Stand by Me) bus (The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert), or even spaceship (Battlestar Galactica). As long as the piece in question has at it's core a trip from point A to point B and the trials and tribulations involved in said trip, it's fair game. I will consider any movie acceptable as long as the trip itself is the core focus.

2. Let me know of your choice so I can add it to the roster. (Include the mode of transportation, if it's not obvious.) Multiple entries on the same movie are not out of the question, but, please, let's not have 100 people choosing one film.  Try to be a little varied.

3. Grab one of the following banners that my friend Rachel @ Hamlette's Soliloquy created for me to use and include it in your post. Thank you Rachel for these. (The movies in the banners, by the way, are Stand by Me, Green Mile, Easy Rider, and Convoy.)  

 

 

 

4. Post your entry sometime between Aug 28 and Sept 1 (Labor Day weekend here in the northern hemisphere) and notify me so I can include it in the wrap up post.

5. As always, have fun.

If you need any suggestions, just message me.  I have a raft of movie ideas that I can give you.

 

 

The Roster (so far):

Me:  Convoy (1978) and The Great Smokey Roadblock (1977) {big rig trucks}

Hamlette's Soliloquy: The Journey of Natty Gann (1985) {trains}

Realweegiemidget Reviews: The Love Boat (TV series) ep. featuring Ron Ely: (1980) {cruise ships}

Angelman's Place: Paper Moon (1973) {cars}

Taking Up Room: Out to Sea (1997) {cruise ships}

In The Good Old Days Of Classic Hollywood: The Long, Long Trailer (1953) {camper trailers}

Silver Screenings: China Seas (1935) {ships} 

18 Cinema Lane: She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949) {horses}

18 Cinema Lane: Santa Cruise (novel by Mary Higgins Clark) {cruise ships}

life and death in l.a. Vanishing Point (1971) {cars} 

life and death in l.a. Two-Lane Blacktop (1971) {cars}

Whimsically Classic Two for the Road (1967) {various transports}

Make Mine Film Noir Dangerous Crossing (1953) {ocean liner}