Top 10 Kitsch Experiences - USA

Weird and the wonderful available at the American Heritage Antique store, Old Towne Orange, Orange County.

Article by: Lonely Planet authors, May 2008

Combine a fierce sense of independence with a vast landscape and what you get are all kinds of folks giving free reign to their offbeat obsessions. Call it 'Americana', and don't miss it.

1. Roswell, New Mexico

Roswell is the site of a 1947 incident involving the crash landing of a mysterious object on a ranch. No one would have noticed or really cared about it had it not been for the military's big hush-up, which for a lot of folks confirmed that aliens had landed. International curiosity and local ingenuity have transformed the small city into a thriving extraterrestrial zone, complete with bulbous white heads which glow atop the downtown street lamps. Believers and kitsch-seekers must check out the International UFO Museum & Research Center. Remember, the truth is out there.

2. Cadillac Ranch

Along Route 66 you'll find many kitschy American sights, including the Cadillac Ranch outside Amarillo, Texas. Local eccentric Stanley Marsh planted 10 Cadillacs headlights down in a deserted stretch of dirt in 1974 and it has been spawning similar sites around the country (like Carhenge and Cars-on-a-Spike) since. Visitors are welcome to spray-paint their own contributions to the art; the cars have even been painted pink in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness.

3. Liberace Museum

It's no coincidence that the museum dedicated to one of America's most flamboyant entertainers is found in Las Vegas, the world's most outrageously excessive city. Classically trained pianist Wladziu Valentino 'Lee' Liberace's career spanned four decades, peaking in 1960 with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His charisma, garish costumes and camp performances won Liberace admiration worldwide. The museum, exhibiting Liberace memorabilia, family photographs, stage costumes and a collection of the great man's pianos, opened in 1970 and is the third most popular attraction in Nevada.

4. Graceland

Most kings live in a castle, but Elvis had a mansion in Memphis. In 1957, at age 22, he paid $100,000 for the house and its 13.8 acres. Redecorated in 1974, Graceland includes yellow vinyl walls, green shag-carpet ceilings and a fake waterfall. Elvis lived here until his death in 1977, and is buried next to the swimming pool with his loved ones. Big things are afoot at Graceland after its sale in February 2006 to the entertainment company that owns American Idol

5. Dollywood

Yup, Tennessee is blessed by this tribute to another big name in music: the big-haired, bigger-bosomed country singer Dolly Parton. Nestled at the foot of the Great Smoky Mountains, this 125-acre theme park features Appalachian-themed rides and attractions, from the Mystery Mine roller coaster to the bald eagle sanctuary to the faux one-room chapel named after the doctor who delivered Dolly. Talk about standing by your man!

6. Wigwam Motel

Route 66 enthusiasts will be delighted to find 400 miles of pavement stretching across Arizona - including the longest uninterrupted portion of the old road left in the country. This blast from the past brings you right past a roadside motel in Holbrook with concrete tepees for rooms. Dating from the 40s, they are tacky and creaky, but odd and intriguing all the same. This dose of Americana includes vintage cars permanently moored in front of each tepee and hulking freight trains passing every hour (your tepee will shake to their beat).

7. Jackalope

Bet you didn't know Douglas, Wyoming is the Jackalope Capital of the World. Even better, in 2005, Wyoming legislators declared the Jackalope as the state's 'Official Mythical Creature'. Still don't know what we're on about? The Jackalope is a jack rabbit with antelope horns found in tourist trap gift shops throughout the American West. It was created in 1939 by Douglas Herrick, a local taxidermist. The Jackalope imagery adorns billboards, hotel signs and a park bench in front of the police department. The best tribute of all is a concrete Jackalope statue in the heart of downtown. And yes, at eight feet tall, it is the world's largest.

8. Big Chicken

Towering above a KFC restaurant like some kind of poultry Godzilla, the aptly named Big Chicken is a skyscraping mechanical bird with a rolling eyeball and moving beak dating from the mid-60s. It's become as much of an Atlanta landmark as anything in the metro area. The KFC it dwarfs sells stuffed replicas for $7.99. Big Chicken history is preserved on the wall and under glass, along with children's artwork inspired by the bird.

9. World's Biggest Dinosaurs

You may do two double-takes in Cabazon, 17 miles' drive west of Palm Springs: the first when you see a giant T-Rex & Apatosaurus, and the second when you see how they are now being marketed. These concrete behemoths (55 ft and 45 ft tall, respectively) took 11 years to build, and were originally intended for Knott's Berry Farm. They remained a temple of tourist kitsch (you might recognize them from Tim Burton's film Pee-Wee's Big Adventure) until 2005, when they were purchased by a group of creation scientists, who contend that God created the original dinosaurs on the sixth day of Creation along with the other animals. The gift shop offers the usual dino-swag plus 'evidence' that dinosaurs and man existed at the same time.

10. SPAM Museum

Lookin' for a little sweet pork magic? Outside Duluth, Minnesota lies the SPAM Museum, an entire institution devoted to the peculiar, revered tins of meat. Who knew canned hog could be so fascinating? With their “Sure beats an art museum” tagline, this place is, quite simply, oinking good fun.