Rockin’ Flagstaff

ROCKIN’ FLAGSTAFF

By Holly Riddle Opening photograph by Kerrick James

In the balmy darkness of the Arizona night, neon often lights the sky along Route 66. It is a well-worn path that has welcomed travelers for almost a hundred years. Climbing high into pine country, there is an unexpected, unusual patch of neon though that screams loudly into the evening. A huge sign shaped like an acoustic guitar announces one of the most visited stops along the Mother Road and perhaps Flagstaff’s most popular attraction: The Museum Club.

A solidly-built venue that was designed to resemble an enormous log cabin pulsates with live music, and the energy inside is palpable. It is distinct from the sleepy towns that motorists discover along Route 66 and its wooden floor and furniture provide patrons with an authentic step back in time. It is a true example of American ingenuity and vision, but like all spots along the Main Street of America that still stand open and ready to greet travelers, The Museum Club has a varied and colorful story to tell.

From Museum to Music Venue

Built in 1931 as the largest log cabin in the world (later downgraded to “in the nation” and then further downgraded to “in Arizona”), The Museum Club, sometimes lovingly referred to as The Zoo Club, brings together a wide swath of individuals with varying backgrounds in the same way that Route 66 has since its inception. As Route 66 brought traffic to the main streets of towns all over the United States from 1926 onward, travelers and locals mingled, with the former benefitting the latter in a multitude of ways, not least of which was via an economic boost, as Flagstaff can testify.

“I have no doubt that our economy in Flagstaff was driven by a couple of engines, but one of them had to be Route 66. The railroad went right through town, but unlike every other city, literally, in Northern Arizona, we were the only city that didn’t have a Fred Harvey establishment,” said Sean Evans, archivist at the Cline Library at Northern Arizona University, referencing the Fred Harvey Company’s chain of restaurants and hotels that were prominent throughout the western United States around the turn of the century and well into the mid-20th Century. “Flagstaff wasn’t quite the destination. We’re called the Gateway to the Grand Canyon, but if you look on the map, that’s really Williams, Arizona. I think Route 66 offset some of that.”

Up until the advent of Route 66, Flagstaff more or less ended at its railroad station. Early Route 66 businesses didn’t even get a street number; they were known by their mileage from downtown, with The Museum Club located about three to four miles from downtown Flagstaff. The challenge for businesses like The Museum Club was getting travelers to stop a while and spend a few dollars, versus heading on to the downtown area, and for that, they needed a unique selling point.

“A lot of the buildings on [Flagstaff’s Route 66] main drag were restaurants, motels, motor courts, car repair places, gas stations… The Zoo Club was unique because it was, first, a taxidermy-Indian trading post kind of place, and later it becomes a bar and restaurant with tremendous bands going through. The number and types of people who played there is just amazing. So, from that standpoint, it’s a unique place,” said Evans.

Built with the help of unemployed local lumberjacks during the Great Depression, The Museum Club was first launched with lifelong taxidermist Dean Eldredge at the helm — at that time under the name of The Dean Eldredge Museum and Taxidermist. It was done so not only as a spot for Eldredge to display his expansive taxidermy collection but also with an economic goal in mind — it needed that unique selling point

Inside The Museum Club.

to get travelers off the main drag and the few miles out of downtown.

So, the business also sold moccasins and rugs, pottery and native art — and, of course, offered the opportunity to see more than 30,000 museum items on display, ranging from a six-legged sheep to a two-headed calf. It was, essentially, an original, tried-and-true tourist trap of the best kind and a love letter to roadside Americana. It was, in essence, an example of one of Flagstaff’s economic drivers — Route 66 — taking advantage of a decline in another, the logging industry.

Unfortunately for Eldredge’s dreams, though, The Museum Club in its earliest incarnation didn’t last long. Following Eldredge’s passing from cancer, much of his beloved taxidermy and artifact collection was sold, with the building being purchased by Doc Williams in 1936.

A Flagstaff saddle maker with an entrepreneurial mindset, Williams saw the end of Prohibition as an opportunity to extend The Museum Club from mere museum and tourist attraction into something more, and created a tavern to much success, a bit of a foreshadowing of what The Museum Club would later come to be. However, beyond Williams’ small blip in The Museum Club’s history, not much of interest occurred over the next few decades and The Museum Club’s reputation waned until 1963, when the venue gained a new owner that would catapult it into the limelight as a premiere spot for live music.

“The tavern was purchased by [Don Scott], one of the Texas Playboys, which was Bob Wills’ band — Bob Wills

being the king of Texas swing [music] back in the day,” said Mike Thompson, the current booking manager and overseer at The Museum Club. “In the ‘40s and ‘50s, he was a huge name. Don Scott had all the Nashville connections and started bringing Bob Wills in and, throughout the years, Waylon [Jennings] and Willie [Nelson]. There’s been many, many people play [here]. I think that sealed [the Club’s] fate as a classic.”

Scott and his wife, Thorna, would own The Museum Club until their deaths, both tragedies that are still acutely felt by staff and longtime Club-goers. The story goes that, when closing up one night, Thorna climbed the stairs to the second floor, leaving Don on the first floor; she tripped, broke her neck, fell into a coma, and died. Two years later, perhaps unable to overcome his grief, Don committed suicide in front of the Club’s fireplace.

It was not long after, in 1978, that Martin and Staci Zanzucchi purchased the club and continued its legacy of live music. They also added more taxidermy to the walls, as befitting the Club’s colorful history.

A Flagstaff native, Martin was no stranger to the nightlife business, working with relatives to oversee multiple other clubs and lounges. In the 1980s, The Museum Club was seized after two of those relatives were arrested and convicted on charges of possessing and distributing cocaine. For two years, Martin struggled to regain control of The Museum Club, eventually succeeding, but not before the legal issues had already caused some damage. Martin had to work hard to rebuild his and The Museum Club’s reputation. To do so he decided to install the Club’s highlight antique mahogany back bar, one of three bars in the building, which was built in the 1880s. He purchased the bar for $5,000 in 1982 and it was later appraised at $125,000.

But even after rebuilding The Museum Club to some of its former glory, Martin’s work in Flagstaff wasn’t quite done. He was also a key player in bringing attention to Flagstaff’s stretch of Route 66, working hard to restore the original Route 66 name to what had become Flagstaff’s Santa Fe Avenue by the 1990s.

Keepers of the Legend

Despite changing hands several times over its existence, and waxing and waning popularity, The Museum Club would not actually shut down completely until 2017, for a brief respite, and then once again, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020.

Currently, the Club is owned by a somewhat secretive group of local residents who call themselves “The Zookeepers,” but who, according to the Arizona Daily Sun, banded together to purchase the venue following the last closure. This air of secrecy lends The Museum Club a certain additional appeal, as if the Zookeepers are just that — keepers of a Flagstaff legend who are content to remain in the shadows, so long as their beloved institution remains in business, just as it has, more or less, for the past 90 years.

A Bit of (Un)Living History

Any historic property comes with its fair share of ghost stories, but The Museum Club may have more than any other venue in Flagstaff. The Scotts, who gave the club its status as a top-tier live music venue, supposedly still roam the halls following the couples’ tragic deaths: Thorna walking the stairs and showing up at the bar, where sometimes she even sticks around long enough for an unsuspecting patron to buy her a drink, after which she disappears. Another woman, unnamed, supposedly died in a fire in one of the Club’s apartments and remains in place. A cowboy in a black trench coat and black hat makes appearances following his untimely demise in a fatal bar fight. “I’m a skeptic myself,” cautioned Thompson, “but I have friends of mine, who, two of them for sure got a strong tap on the shoulder. One of them had their shirt pulled on when there was nobody around. My girlfriend actually got kind of an irritating tap on her shoulder, turned around to yell at whoever did it and there was nobody there. There’s a lot of that stuff going on. We’ve been told there are nine known deaths in [the venue] and 12 spirits were detected by an investigator. But like I said, I’m a skeptic. But we do have a lot of investigators popping in and [asking], ‘Can you stay open? I want to do

The Museum Club’s antique mahogany back bar, built in the 1880s.

a thing after everybody leaves.’ Sometimes we’ll stay open so they can do their walking around with their meters and things do happen.”

The Museum Club’s assistant manager, Bridget Laber, seems to be more of a believer.

“We have experiences weekly,” she said. “I believe it. I’ve seen stuff myself. We just had a paranormal investigator out two weeks ago and we all experienced things while he was here.”

It is said that it is not uncommon to hear walking on the second floor or steps on the staircase, or to see dust falling from the first-floor ceiling from the impact of someone walking on the second floor. The paranormal possibilities only add to the mystery and color of the already quirky historic gathering spot.

New Offerings, Same Flavor

Ghosts or no ghosts, today, if you walk into The Museum Club, you’ll still find a wealth of taxidermy that is so old that some pieces are just barely holding together, including some of Eldredge’s originals and the antique mahogany back bar — items that create a vibe described as “a real, old Western town kind of feel” and “old-school honky tonk.” It’s even been thought that The Museum Club might be the only place in Flagstaff with that certain “real historical feel to it,” which might be true considering a devastating fire that destroyed much of Old Town Flagstaff’s architecture in 1884, and the slow evolution of other attractions from the Club’s era, many of which are now unrecognizable.

But beyond all this, patrons will also find locals, and travelers, and college kids, and a fair mix of everyone, really. The Museum Club has historically been, and continues to be, a meeting spot for folks from all walks of life.

“Maybe this is what makes it kind of unique,” said Sean Evans. “Locals do go to The Museum Club and tourists do go to The Museum Club. If you think of Route 66 as kind of a pilgrimage for tourists, that’s one of the pilgrimage spots.”

And, as of recently at least, The Museum Club has been putting on more live music than any other venue in Arizona, with four shows per week, and, since reopening in March 2021, according to Thompson, it’s not uncommon to see tourists stopping in the parking lot before the Club opens for the evening, to simply take a photo and then move on.

This year, The Museum Club turns 90, but the love that the venue inspires in patrons young and old is hardly tired and the stalwart club keeps chugging along, despite changing ownership and even a pandemic — and perhaps that’s exactly what Dean Eldredge would have wanted for his beloved museum, even if it does look a little different.

THE BENT DOOR

The beloved ribbon of American road is famous for its quirky grass-roots, boot-strapped creations. All along the Mother Road’s long slash of pavement, visitors flock to one-of-a-kind icons, such as the stone frog, the blue whale, and the green tiki head. And as far as anyone knows, there is only one bent door — the entryway into a little cafe made from a World War IIera control tower in Adrian, Texas.

The old Rock Island Railroad town of Adrian stays on travelers’ radar for a couple things — a mathematicallyconjured attraction consisting of a sign pointing out that 1,139 miles in either direction leads to the eastern or western terminus of said Highway 66. The other thing is the “milehigh” pie at the homey little cafe known as the Mid-Point. “Our attractions give us an opportunity to tell Oldham County history and a chance to meet people as they travel Route 66. We always enjoy welcoming visitors in our communities,” said Jaci Roberson, Director of the Oldham County Chamber of Commerce.

But there’s another little nook that seems destined for a revered spot in the Mother Road’s pantheon of kitsch — the Bent Door. This piece of recycled goodness began in 1947 with one Robert “Bobby” Harris, who worked at Manuel Loveless’ Kozy Kottage Kamp (next door to where the Bent Door would stand). Harris also farmed, which may have helped to finance his business idea. He purchased a control tower with angled viewing windows and — wait for it — a bent door!

There isn’t total agreement on where this control tower came from, but most sources place it as coming from Dalhart, Texas. Regardless, Harris brought it to Adrian (population 250), parked it on the piece of land that he bought next to the Kozy Kottage Kamp, and incorporated it as one corner of his concrete-block building. “Robert was in the Army Air Corp [in World War II], before [it became the] US Air Force,” said Ramona Kiewert, now owner, along with her husband Roy, of the Bent Door. “He loved planes and found the control tower and door. He built it into the building to be unique and eye catching.”

With his cafe ready for business, he turned the business, known then as the Midway Station, over to his mother and left town. Some people say his mother ran it for a while, while another source states that the cafe never opened until it was sold to the Loveless family before becoming Tommy’s Cafe in the 1960s (Adrian population up to 258). It apparently prospered as Tommy Loveless’ Tommy’s Cafe until I-40 bulldozed its way by during the Mid-Century. The cafe closed, opened, sold, and fell into disrepair. In 1994, word spread of its imminent demolition, and someone alerted Harris, who was then living in New Mexico. He returned to Adrian in 1995 to redeem the property from non-payment of taxes and bring his dream back to life. But he fell ill and passed away around 2000 at the age of 87.

The Bent Door slept a little longer, until a chance visit brought a family to Adrian to nurture the oddity. Roy Kiewert was a long-haul truck driver from Nacogdoches, Texas. One day in 2006, he pulled into a gas station in town, needing to catch a bit of sleep. The next day, he looked around the tiny village, and, of course, we know what he spotted.

“It was listed with a realtor [and] she took him for a tour. Roy told her that we wanted to buy it, [but] he had to go deliver that load. It had just gone up for sale that week,” said Ramona Kiewert. “We were coming back, and Roy said, ‘I’ve got a feeling that I need to call her and tell her that we’re coming.’ And she said, ‘You are coming with cash, right? I have had ten calls about the Bent Door.’” That was July 2006. The couple purchased the Bent Door Cafe from Harris’ three daughters, and a gradual restoration began. The couple had big plans: a ‘50s-style diner and a patio out back (just like in Robert’s plans, his daughters remembered), a souvenir shop, and a special spot to honor Harris. But the cafe has never opened. The Kiewerts, both in their mid60s, have faced setbacks: health issues, lack of adequate funding, and even a large tree that fell on the building. But the couple have attracted some income since their purchase in 2016 of the historic Fabulous 40 Motel next door, and time will tell.

Today, Adrian is a quiet little town on the edge of Texas, almost forgotten, but not totally. Travelers who stop in Adrian gaze wistfully at the Bent Door Cafe, curious about the stop’s story and hopeful for an opening in its future. America’s Main Street has a myriad of wonderful things to see and enjoy but there really is only one bent door.

Bono’s Giant Orange

In 2013, California Route 66 Historic Association member Beth Murray was driving down Cajon Pass on old Route 66 when she spotted it: a seven-foottall orange with pitted sides and a gleaming green stem painted on top. Murray and her husband Barry exchanged delighted looks. The pair were on the tail end of an epic cross-country journey, swept up in the nostalgic magic of the Mother Road. Naturally, they had to stop for an impromptu photo shoot. As Murray laughed and posed in her best 1950s getup, an elderly gentleman with a welcoming smile walked around the side of the giant orange.

“Joe [Bono] walked out and I thought, ‘Oh no, are we not supposed to be here? Are we doing something wrong?’” Murray said. “He came over and was just so sweet and friendly and as nice as can be. He said, ‘Do you want to see inside the restaurant?’”

Bono ushered them into a cozy building behind the orange with checkered tables and gleaming bottles of Chianti wine hanging from the rafters. Pictures of Bono’s parents Jim and Frances, affectionately known as Papa and Mama Bono, adorned the walls behind a deli case piled high with Italian meats and cheeses. As Bono launched into his tour of the quirky establishment, the Murrays were unknowingly initiated into one of the oldest and most beloved traditions along Fontana’s stretch of America’s Main Street.

In 1936, before families on Route 66 could blast the air conditioning or zip through drive-throughs, there were the orange-shaped juice stands that sprang up among the emerald hills and citrus groves of southern California to help travelers cool off. And before I-15 bypassed Route 66, they all passed by Bono’s.

“There was all this traffic, people were coming in from the Mojave Desert parched,” said Lynne Miller, President of the California Route 66 Historic Association. “There was no air conditioning in their cars. They came down the Cajon Pass and they saw all these orange groves, they smelled these orange blossoms, and someone came up with the idea of starting an orange juice stand shaped like an orange.”

The restaurant had humble beginnings. Mama Bono opened her produce stand on the side of Route 66 in 1936, selling frosted mugs of orange juice and fresh-picked oranges for a dollar. The families pouring in were eager to enjoy a cool refreshing drink and business exploded. In 1943, the little restaurant was born, and soon filled with the mouthwatering scent of authentic Italian cuisine. “The story is that if a traveler came through late at night hungry, Mama Bono would get up at all hours of the evening to make them a meal,” said Miller. “That was one of the reasons her restaurant was so popular. She really went the extra mile to help serve the travelers coming along Route 66.” However, when the interstate bypassed Bono’s in 1969, the family’s dream, and their historic orange stand, started to show some wear and tear. In the early 1970s, the number of people coming down Cajon Pass with their foot on the brake to marvel at the giant orange and enjoy a picnic in its shade slowed to a trickle. As was the case for so many mom-and-pop shops along Route 66, people stopped showing up to take pictures with the wacky structure and, gradually, it fell into disrepair.

After Mama Bono passed away in 1994, the restaurant was closed to the public, but Joe never stopped fighting to reopen. “Joe Bono always had a dream about opening up the restaurant again,” said Miller. “Every time we’d be there for our [California Route 66 Historic Association] meetings, he’d be like, ‘I’m so excited, I think we’ve found the cook, I think we’re going to open the restaurant again.’ It was such a dream he had, but it never materialized until Pino [Mele] and his family took it over.”

Mele, who belongs to another tight-knit Italian family in the Fontana community, has changed little about the restaurant besides adding some delicious desserts to the big old-fashioned deli case that greets customers. The only thing about Bono’s that has sadly not aged well is its crowning jewel: the orange juice stand. Last year, Murray’s special connection with Bono’s inspired her to change that. “My husband passed away six years ago and that was the last trip we did,” said Murray.

Murray launched a GoFundMe campaign in February 2020 and has thus far managed to raise a thousand dollars to restore the orange. It is a gift to the owners and everyone who passes along this storied section of Route 66. There is undeniably magic left over in the citrus groves from the days when families wound down Cajon Pass and stopped to buy an ice-cold glass of juice and chat with Papa and Mama Bono. The giant orange is the perfect icon to symbolize the innocence of those unforgettable days and to remember California’s wonderful contribution to America’s Main Street.

Terence CONCANNON

Arizona is often connected to wide open desert skies and scenic landscapes, but the Cactus State is home to much more. Hidden down in eastern Arizona, Lake Havasu is a warm, beautiful, colorful town that regularly draws visitors from far and wide. The town is famous for its picturesque lake of course, but also for its many miniature lighthouses and the Dixie Belle, a restored 68-ton riverboat, but its biggest claim to fame is the actual London Bridge. Behind the town and its innumerable tourism attributes is a man who has been leading the charge since ����. In this issue, meet Terence Concannon.

What did you want to be when you grew up? Motion Picture Director. Most famous or noteworthy person you have ever met? Steve Hackett, former guitarist for Genesis, my favorite band, at a meet and greet in Los Angeles. What characteristic do you respect the most in others? Accountabilty. Dislike in others? Blaming others. What characteristic do you dislike in yourself? When I’m passionate about something, I talk way too fast. Who would you want to play you in a film based on your life? Kyle McLachlan. Talent that you WISH you had? To be fluent in French and Spanish. Best piece of advice you’ve ever received? Pick your battles. Best part about getting older? Learning to sweat the small stuff. What would the title of your memoir be? Things I Learned After It Was Too Late. First music concert ever attended? Buddy Rich. What is your greatest extravagance? My music collection of nearly 11,000 CDs, vinyl, and concert posters. What is the weirdest roadside attraction you’ve ever seen? Hat and Boots in Seattle near where I grew up. The gas station was a giant hat and the restrooms were the boots. Coolest bridge in America? The London Bridge. What else? If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Understand patience at an earlier age. What do you consider your greatest achievement? Educating and empowering young professionals. Most memorable gift you were ever given? A shortwave radio when I was 13. What is the secret to a happy marriage? I’m divorced, so I’m still trying to figure that one out. Most memorable hotel/motel that you have stayed at? The Empress Hotel in Victoria, BC. Why so? So much history, surrounded by so much luxury. What breaks your heart? To see a human or animal frightened or suffering in any way. What is the last TV show you binge watched? Tombstone Territory. What is still on your bucket list? Iceland. What do you wish you knew more about? Reading music. What is something you think everyone should do at least once in their lives? Travel internationally. What fad or trend do you hope comes back? The Macarena. Strangest experience while on a road trip? Jerry Garcia passing away while I was driving through San Francisco. The town came to a standstill. What movie title best describes your life? The Incredible Journey. Ghost town or big city person? Big City. Lake or ocean person? Ocean. What does a perfect day look like to you? A lazy day of lunch and ice-cold beers at Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace followed by an evening of live music under the stars. What is your favorite place on Route 66? The Santa Monica Pier. What is the most unexpected surprise about Lake Havasu? When it gets below 80 degrees, we wear sweaters. What would your spirit animal be? Brown Bear. Which historical figure — alive or dead — would you most like to meet? Ousman Sembene, a Senegalese filmmaker. If you won the lottery, what is the first item you would buy? I would buy two houses: one for my daughter wherever she wants it and one for myself in Isla Mujeres, Quintana Roo, Mexico. What meal can you not live without? Vegetarian Tacos. Bizarre talent that you have that most people don’t know about? Human beat-box. What surprises you most about people? Willful ignorance and bigotry. What makes you laugh? My older brothers. Most unknown (but should be) stop in Arizona? Angel Delgadillo’s Route 66 Giftshop in Seligman. What do you think is the most important life lesson for someone to learn? Always think of others before you think of yourself. What is one thing you have always wanted to try, but have been too afraid to? Riding a unicycle. What do you want to be remembered for? Being kind, trustworthy and genuine.