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I can almost hear the cry of childish delight that must have erupted from the backseat of many a Ford, Chevy or Oldsmobile traveling along the nation’s highways and byways in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

America was on the move after World War Two. Gas was cheap, incomes were high and millions of young families hit the road to see the sights that this country had to offer. Some were spectacular, like the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Yosemite. Some more mundane but much more exciting when you spotted five in a row. Then you won “Holiday Inn’s Travel Game.”

This bingo type game is really quite ingenious. 25 squares lined up in five rows and five columns with a free space in the middle. In each square there was a drawing of a landmark a child might see out the car window as it drove through the ever changing landscape that made up America.

Square one, for example, was a railroad. If you spotted a train or a track you slid an orange piece of translucent plastic over the drawing to mark that square as “spotted.” In order to win you had to see five specific items in a row, either horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. But even with a free space in the middle to help out, achieving victory was a challenge.

Oh, some of the items would be easy to see on any road trip. A stop sign, street lamp, or fire plug for example. Others were more obscure like a fruit stand, fountain or horse.

No matter how long it took a child to complete a row, there were two other sets of winners. One was the parents who got some peace and quiet while their offspring were busy. The other was Holiday Inn, who not only supplied the road traveling attraction, but also the oasis at the end of the journey.

An oasis I discovered for myself on a recent trip to Arizona. My best friend Debbie and I drove to Tucson recently so she could experience the giant bead show that the town puts on every February. Along the way we stayed in several different hotel and motels. The types of accommodations varied, but there were three constant themes. The rooms were so-so, the prices were high and the beds were bad.

After four sleepless nights the show was over and we were on our way home. When we reached Goodyear, a suburb of Phoenix, by chance we checked into a Holiday Inn and our traveling experience dramatically improved. The room was big and clean, they had a great restaurant and the beds were fantastic. To top it all off, the rate was even a little cheaper than the other guys.

All in all, a positive experience, which was the point founder Kemmons Wilson sought to create nearly seventy years ago. According to KWilson.com, Wilson got the idea for his family friendly motel on a frustrating vacation to Washington D.C. in 1951.

Most of the accommodations in those days were cramped, uncomfortable and expensive (so to speak.) According to “About the Towels, We Forgive You: Absorbing Tales of Borrowed Towels” (1) Wilson and his wife spotted a billboard for a motel that promised a room for eight dollars a night. A reasonable rate for the time. The only trouble was, when they got there they found that the motel charged an extra two dollars per child and the Wilson’s had five children! That brought the bill for a one night stay to a whopping $18! The horror!

It was then and there that Wilson got his idea for Holiday Inn. He envisioned 400 motels across the country, each within a one day’s drive of the next. They would have standardized rooms and a restaurant on site so the family wouldn’t have to do anymore traveling to find a place to eat. Each motel also had a swimming pool, so said children could work off all the energy they built up while trapped in the car all day. All this for one set price. No extra change for the kids.

And yes, the hotel was named after the famous movie starring Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire.

The family could spend an evening watching TV, perhaps a rerun of “Holiday Inn” was on. After a comfortable night’s sleep and a hearty breakfast, they would be ready to hit the road again, and the kids would be excited to have another chance to win the Holiday Inn Travel Game.

Who knew there was so much history and excitement in a 6 3/4″ X 6 3/4” piece of cardboard?

Of course, for me, I loved all the wonderful artwork found in each square, and the overall design is charming with its yellow-green color scheme. I’ll have to give the game a try the next time I hit the road. Maybe I’ll get lucky enough to spot a lamp or a cow?

In any case I already won when this game came into my life. A Glorious piece of Vintage Stuff!

(1) “About the towels, we forgive you. Absorbing Tales of Borrowed Towels.” Published by: Spellbinders. Inc. 2004