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The biggest ball of paint.
The oldest drive-in theater. The shortest river. The
smallest post office. The largest candy counter
From California's redwood forest to Florida’s Gulf
Stream waters, the United States is home to hundreds of
superlatives—the biggest, tallest and smallest of every
thing imaginable—from the longest covered bridge in
Windsor, Vt., to the tallest barbershop pole in Forest
Grove, Ore.
In Hebron, Neb., townspeople built a giant porch
swing—that seats 16 people—to show their friendli
ness. In Murphy, N.C., a colossal set of Ten Command
ments is written in concrete letters 5 feet tall and 4
feet wide, giving new meaning to the phrase biblical
proportions.
The nation abounds with naturally occurring super
latives, such as the world's oldest exposed rock in Gran
ite Falls, Minn., and the nation's deepest river gorge
along the Idaho-Oregon border.
More often than not, superlatives are the result of
individuals or families who have dedicated money, time
and effort to build something special, show it off and
maintain it for its exaggerated uniqueness. Just ask
Mike Carmichael, who lias the world’s biggest ball of
paint at his house in Alexandria, Ind. (pop. 6,260).
Biggest bail of paint
People travel from across the nation to brash another
coat on Girmichael’s 1,8(X)-pound ball of paint, which
grows larger—layer-by-layer—even- year.
"People who come by bring me paint, too. says
Carmichael, 58, a house painter by trade, who began
painting the ball in 1977.
Beneath the 19,4(X) coats of paint is a baseball.
Tlie creation actually was inspired by an accident that
occurred while Carmichael was a high school baseball
player working a summer job at a paint store. One day
he and a friend were playing catch in the store and a
missed throw resulted in the baseball getting covered
in paint. Liking the appearance of the accidental art,
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Mike Carmichael maintains an enormous ball of paint.
Carmichael painted the ball repetitively through the
remainder of his high school years. He quit after 1 .(XX)
coats and donated the boll to the Indiana Soldiers’ and
Sailors' Children’s Home Museum in Knightstown,
Ind.
Years later as a young father, Carmichael got the
urge to punt again and recruited his 3-year-old son to
put the first coat on a new baseball. Thousands of layers
later, the ball has easily surpassed his original creation
in size. In fact, it has gotten so big that, with the help
ot a S1(),(XX) donation from the Sherwin-Williams
paint company. Carmichael built a bam next door to
his house to store the giant ball of paint, which remains
a work in progress. Carmichael supplies paint, brushes
and aprons tor visitors who are encouraged to slap on
another layer.
Visit http: hallofpairu.fnehosting.net for more
information.
Oldest drive-in theater
Shankweiler's Drive-in Theater in Orefield, Pa.,
is reminiscent of a time when movie lovers knew the
family who owned the local drive-in.
Wilson Shankweiler opened the theater
in 193 ; (. next door to his hotel just outside of
Allentown, Pa. It was Pennsylvania's first drive
in theater and the nation's second.
Paul and Susan Geissinger bought Shankweiler's
in 1984 and operate the business from April through
Paul and Susan Geissinger own Shankweiler’s Drive-in.
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Labor Day with the help of their daughter, Jennifer, 14.
The outdoor theater accommodates 320 vehicles and
strives to show family-friendly movies that are typically
rated G and PG.
“It is great to see a family of three, four, five, six
people and even the kids' friends all together,” says Paul,
53, whose first full-time job in 1971 was projecting
films at Shankweiler's. "That makes me feel good.”
Through the years, the drive-in has advanced
technologically. Speaker poles and car speakers
were installed in 1948, followed by a snack bar and
projection rexim in 1955 after Hurricane Diane leveled
the theater’s projection booth and screen. In 1982, AM
radio broadcasting was introduced and four years later
movie audio could be heard on the FM dial.
Still, just like in the old days, the theater doesn’t
accept credit cards. Movies are §6.50 for adults and
S 3 for children under 12; toddlers 2 and under are
admitted free. Visit www.ihankimlm.com for more
information.
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The abbreviated D River flows into the Pacific Ocean.
Shortest river
The D River near Lincoln City, Ore., (pop. 25,754)
isn’t a place to take a long, leisurely canoe trip. In fact,
the river is so short that it has an abbreviated name.
Local residents call it the D River and claim
it as the shortest river in the world at a mere
120 feet. The D flows from Devil’s Lake into the
Pacific Ocean on the picturesque central Oregon
Coast, where wind whips the shoreline and giant
boulders stand just off shore like sentinels.
The river’s name probably originated in the
1920 s with Finnish settlers who called Devil’s
Lake and the surrounding community “Delake.”
says Frank Howard, a spokesman for the Oregon
Parks and Recreation Department. The river’s
name came to match the name of the town, which
was incorporated into Lincoln City in 1965.
Tlie D River vies with Montana's Roe River for the
shortest in the country. The Roe, which originates at
Great Springs near Great Falls, Mont., and flow's into
the Missouri River, is 201 feet long.
Smaliesi post office
Names of places near Ochopee, Fla., say a lot
about the countryside: Tamiami Trail, Alligator
Alley, Ten Thousand Islands.
(Continued on page 8)
Page 6
American Profile
Photo: Paul Noll