Angel Delgadillo (born April 19, 1927) is an American barber and businessowner in

Seligman, Arizona Seligman () is a census-designated place (CDP) on the northern border of Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. The population was 446 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is one of the stops on Historic U.S. Route 66 (Arizona), hi ...

who has been dubbed the "guardian angel" of

U.S. Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) is one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The high ...

. He is the main founder of the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona, established in 1987 to campaign for "Historic Route 66" signage on the former US highway; similar initiatives have since been established in every U.S. Route 66 state. Over the years, multiple guidebooks and websites from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and even the

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that give information on the road have mentioned him. His late brother Juan operated a Seligman restaurant, Delgadillo's Snow Cap Drive-In.

Biography

Delgadillo was born on April 19, 1927, along

. He witnessed the exodus of Okies due to the

Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl was a period of severe dust storms that greatly damaged the ecology and agriculture of the American and Canadian prairies during the 1930s. The phenomenon was caused by a combination of natural factors (severe drought) and hum ...

in the 1930s, the movement of men and materials during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and the rise and fall of the road. In 1947, he graduated from Seligman High School. As an adult, he ran a barbershop in town (founded May 22, 1950) and opened a souvenir shop inside his business, along the historic road. After the decline and eventual

delisting Delisting may refer to: * Delisting (Canadian medicare), the removal of medical coverage for a certain operation by Canadian medicare * Delisting (listed building), the removal of protected status from a listed building * Delisting (stock), the ...

of the route from the United States Highway System in 1985, he went on to found the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona. Eventually, route 66 associations were founded in all eight US 66 states with a similar goal: preserving the once-important road. While researching the history of Route 66 for the 2006

Pixar Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...

motion picture '' Cars'',

John Lasseter John Alan Lasseter ( ; born January 12, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and animator. He was previously the chief creative officer of Pixar Animation Studios, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Disneytoon Studios, a ...

met Delgadillo, who told him how traffic through the town virtually disappeared on the day that nearby

Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west transcontinental Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States, southeastern and Southwestern United States, southwestern portions of the United States. At a leng ...

opened. In the film, Sally Carrera (an animated gynomorphic Porsche 996 motorcar) serves as a vehicle to deliver that message in a 3½ minute flashback in which the town and the US Highway vanish literally from the map. It has been said that Delgadillo helped to inspire the movie through his passion for the road. Over the years, he has become an attraction along the road with people stopping to talk to him and coming from all over the world just to meet him. When the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

was interviewing him, he met with tourists from Europe and Asia. For his work in promoting Route 66, Delgadillo has been called "The Father of the Mother Road," "The Guardian Angel of Route 66," and "The Ambassador." Angel's story has been immortalized in the song "Angel Delgadillo", written by former Kingston Trio member John Stewart on his album "Rough Sketches".

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Delgadillo, Angel 1927 births Living people Barbers American hairdressers U.S. Route 66 in Arizona People from Yavapai County, Arizona