Route 66 (TV series) in the context of U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was 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 highway ran from Chicago, Illinois, through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona before terminating in Santa Monica, California, covering a total of 2,448 miles (3,940 km).

It was recognized in popular culture by both the 1946 hit song "(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66" and the Route 66 television series, which aired on CBS from 1960 to 1964. It was also featured in the Disney/Pixar animated feature film franchise Cars, beginning in 2006. In John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath (1939), the highway symbolizes escape, loss and the hope of a new beginning; Steinbeck dubbed it the Mother Road. Other designations and nicknames include the Will Rogers Highway and the Main Street of America, the latter nickname shared with U.S. Route 40.

Leonard Freeman (October 31, 1920 – January 20, 1974) was an American television writer and producer who is best remembered as the creator of the CBS series Hawaii Five-O in 1968. He appeared in a 1953 episode (#112) of the TV series The Lone Ranger.

Hawaii Five-O ran for twelve seasons, at the time a record for a crime drama. In 1960, he wrote for the series Route 66; in 1962, he produced The Untouchables. In 1967, he produced the western film, Hang 'Em High. A decade earlier, he wrote scripts for the syndicated Men of Annapolis.