- Did you know there's a filling station right here in central Illinois that is full service only?

- Oh yeah.

It's a gas.

Get it?

It's a gas.

By the way, do you know how a 17 foot tall woman can change her clothes in public?

- Very carefully?

All that and much more coming up.

(upbeat music) - If you love music, you're gonna love this show.

Because... wait a minute.

You love music because you were show choir extraordinaire in high school, right?

- Jazz hands.

- You still got it.

Way back then the artists were so reluctant to share their musical rights to sell them because they were like, ah, we can't have them in commercials and things like that.

But nowadays that's a big thing and it's getting bigger every day.

This is huge business.

$350 million for guys like Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and a lot of others.

And we're gonna talk to one of them.

He's one of the biggest chart toppers of the 70s and 80s.

One of your favorite bands.

- Ooh, I can't wait to find out who it is.

but I'm also gonna share a secret with you.

It's a very, very top secret weapon that the honor flight has.

It's not their big fundraisers.

No, it's not their big money donors.

What it is is a 97 year old man who's their secret weapon.

But before we do that, let's head on to Tremont.

- Get some gas.

- [Julie] Pulling into Tremont Oil is like firing up a time machine.

For this trip, let's set the clock for 1924.

(upbeat jazz music) In the aftermath of world war I, the US economy is booming and Americans just wanna have a good time.

George Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" debuts in New York City, becoming the defining composition of the fun loving jazz age.

As prohibition pushes into its fifth year, a battle continues to rage between law enforcement and bootleggers.

In most cities, people who wanna drink can get one.

Meantime, motor travel continues to explode.

Henry Ford sells almost 2 million of his Model Ts with a price tag as little as $265.

More and more people just wanna jump behind the wheel and hit that open road.

In Tremont, Illinois, Glen Gibson hears the roar of the traffic and sees dollar signs.

He sets up a filling station on Pearl Street, the main drag through the Tazewell County village.

All those cars and trucks zooming around have to stop and get gas sometime.

So why not pull into his own Tremont Oil Company?

Gibson's gamble paid off.

Almost a century later, Tremont Oil Company continues largely unchanged.

You can still get full service and only full service.

It's one of just a handful of full service gas stations in the state and the only one in central Illinois.

- You think about when my grandfather started in 1924, I mean auto industry, you know, was just really getting off the ground.

- [Julie] And though cars, roads and fuels have changed, Tremont Oil has remained the same.

- If you really look at what we do now compared to what we did back then, it hasn't really changed that much.

It really hasn't.

We still provide the same services for the most part that we did back when my grandpa first started it.

So in that respect, it really hasn't changed that much.

- [Julie] Inside the place looks like yesteryear.

Service bays are in the back mostly for tire sales and oil changes.

Inside the front door you can buy oil or other motoring necessities along with a few snacks.

But there's no sprawling coffee bar or nacho station.

It's a gas station, not a convenience store.

- I don't think that's ever been our niche.

That's not what we're looking to push here.

We provide a different service there for the community.

There's plenty of other places that can provide that kind of stuff.

We're just looking to provide the services that the farmers and the community members need here in town.

- [Julie] But the biggest distinction, the full service pumps.

You can't do self-serve here.

Attendants pump the gas for you.

Tremont Oil's gas runs about 13 cents per gallon more than other stations, including a self-serve stop next door.

But the extra charge brings you extra service.

- Clean your windshield, we'll check your oil, check your tire pressure.

So whatever you need.

- [Julie] Locals appreciate that kind of service.

- They give you really good service.

And I'm an old fashioned gal and I like being pumped and all that.

I don't like to do that myself.

- [Julie] In fact, when traveling elsewhere and buying gas, she misses a special treatment she gets at Tremont Oil.

- They have me pretty spoiled down here.

- [Julie] Sometimes locals move elsewhere in the area, but even if they live miles and miles from Tremont, they'll drive out of their way to come back to Tremont Oil for gas.

- [Tom] I like to think it's maybe the service that we provide.

I think that it's hopefully a nice place for people to come to, something that kind of takes them back to the past.

Something that they can't get elsewhere.

- [Julie] Out of towners often pull off nearby interstate 155, motor into Tremont Oil and step out of the car to do self-serve.

Only to be shocked when the attendant grabs the pump and asks what grade of fuel they prefer.

- They're a little taken aback by it.

They really can't believe what they're seeing to be honest with you, they just either they haven't seen it or they haven't seen it for so long, they didn't think anybody was still around that did this kind of service.

- [Julie] Despite the initial shock, the newcomers enjoy the throwback service.

- Yeah.

I think they're happy.

I think simply because they didn't think that service still existed any place.

And so I think for the most part they're happy to see it.

- [Julie] But how long can Tremont Oil survive as a throwback?

No one in the Gibson family has expressed an interest in eventually taking over.

So Tom Gibson foresees a time when Tremont Oil might run out of gas.

- It's inevitable sooner or later, that's gonna be the case.

We've had a very good run.

I mean, it's gonna be 100 years.

in a couple years.

And with the changing market technology or whatever, who knows how long a place like this is really gonna be in demand?

It's hard to tell.

We don't know that.

So there is some sadness, but you know, I kind of come to grips with it.

(upbeat rock music) - [Crowd] Fun fact.

- Fun fact.

The Aztecs referred to the Armadillo as a turtle rabbit.

That's super adorable.

(gentle music) - [Phil] Gene Neeley has been a Patriot all his life and that's a long time.

With the army in world war II, he served overseas and helped save the world.

Afterward with the Air Force, he became a charter member of the Illinois National Guard Base in Peoria.

Even after retiring, he long remained in the Air Force reserves and now Neeley is a volunteer, an extraordinary volunteer for Greater Peoria Honor Flight.

Neeley helps raise money and otherwise assists the organization in sending veterans on one day trips to the nation's capital, allowing them cost free-experiences richly steeped in comradery, emotion, and healing.

In that way, Gene Neeley still serves this country at age 97.

- And it's been an honor for me to be a part of sending our veterans to DC.

- [Phil] Further, his enthusiasm is infectious within Honor Flight.

- I'm proud of him.

I'm proud of what he does for Greater Peoria Honor Flight.

He truly inspires me every day to make sure that I put my best foot forward and work as hard as I can to get our heroes to DC.

- [Phil] Neeley grew up in the Tazewell County village of Mackinaw.

As a teen in 1943, he joined the Army, which sent him overseas as part of the second replacement depot.

His unit hauled ammunition and other supplies for the infantry moving through France, Belgium, Italy, and Germany.

- It gave me a little bit of an idea of what service is.

- [Phil] In France, Neeley had his most memorable encounter, an absurdity of war still etched in his mind.

His unit captured a group of Germans trying to hide inside a building.

At one point, Neeley opened a door and found two German boys, both armed.

- They could have shot me but there as they sat, one of them nine, one of them 11.

Can you imagine little boys carrying a gun?

- [Phil] Neeley's unit discussed securing the prisoners, wondering if the boys needed to be locked up.

One of the lads understood some English and he said the boys had no intention of trying to flee.

Starving, they eye the GI's food supply.

- We thought we were gonna lock them up.

And he said, we no run, we eat.

They probably hadn't ate in probably days and days.

- [Phil] As the war ended in 1945, Neeley headed home to Mackinaw.

The next year he married Mary Cooper and moved to her hometown of Tremont where they would raise one daughter.

Also in 1946, he found out that the Illinois National Huard was forming a squadron near the Peoria airport.

What today is known as the 182nd Airlift Wing.

Neeley joined the Air Force and ran the squadron's motor pool, eventually rising to Master Sergeant.

He retired in 1962, but stayed in the Air Force reserves until 1984.

He is the last surviving charter member of the Air Guard Base in Peoria.

He still lives in Tremont in the same house he shared with his wife, a marriage that lasted 66 years until she died in 2012.

Then 87, Gene Neely was about to embark on his next patriotic duty.

In 2013, he was invited to take a trip with Greater Peoria Honor Flight, which had just formed.

The national not-for-profit provides veterans with free one day trips to war memorials and other sites in Washington DC.

Back home after the trip, Neeley asked if he could help Greater Peoria Honor Flight.

He soon became a familiar face at fundraisers.

- So Gene is one of our hardest working volunteers and we couldn't do what we do without him because what we do is for him and other veterans.

- [Phil] Neeley also has become a stalwart of the homecoming celebration that greets each Honor Flight's return to the Peoria airport.

After getting past security, the first person they'll see is Neeley there to greet each veteran with a hearty handshake or enthusiastic thumbs up.

- [Phyllis] Gene likes to be the very first person when they come through to begin their welcome home, the actual celebration part of it, he wants to be there to shake their hand, to thank them for their service, to make sure that as they proceed down that ramp, they are thanked by a fellow veteran that served his country, served it proudly.

- [Phil] Neeley makes one other key contribution to Honor Flight.

Sometimes veterans decline invitations to go on the trip.

Some say they didn't see combat.

Others say others deserve the spot more than they do.

When a veteran balks at going, Honor Flight sends Neeley to discuss the situation.

No one ever turns him down.

Ever.

- Gene's superpower is well, he is our Energizer bunny.

He's our motivation.

He's our inspiration.

He just has magic within him to help convince our veterans to go that might be reluctant.

- [Phil] Before a recent Honor Glight, a Vietnam veteran at first declined the offer.

But after a little cajoling from Neeley, he took the trip and was glad he did.

- He really didn't wanna go.

But after he was there and seen the Memorial, then he said, I felt a lot better.

And he said, I really appreciate what you do.

I said, well, you get the right time, get a homecoming that you deserved a long time ago.

Now we have provided that for you.

And it's been an honor to do so.

- Well I always tell Gene that his world war II hat that he wears is a magic hat.

So I think when he goes to talk to these other veterans that are reluctant, they see a man that has also served his country and served it with pride.

And he convinces them to see these memorials that were built to honor their service and sacrifice that this trip will help bring a lot of them closure, especially the Vietnam veterans.

So I think Gene just has a way about him, a way with words that are veterans that are reluctant look into his eyes and realize that going to DC will be a day of honor and a day of healing and a day of emotions, but also a day of fun and laughter and celebration.

- [Phil] Neeley sees his work is simply doing what needs to be done to show appreciation to this country's veterans.

- To me, it is still an honor to be a part of the Greater Peoria Honor Flight.

- [Phil] And he doesn't plan on slowing down.

- [Gene] I don't think I'm gonna quit tomorrow.

I'm gonna keep right on going and going.

(upbeat rock music) - [Crowd] Fun fact.

- Fun fact, soybean production is key in making crayons.

Most of the soybeans grown in the US go towards feeding livestock, but they're also used in the production of goods like crayons.

One acre of soybeans can produce 82,368 crayons.

(upbeat music) - [Julie] She's a Peoria charmer that we can count on to tell us summer has finally arrived here in central Illinois.

- That's usually our sign that the weather's finally breaking.

We're gonna have that summer spring type weather.

Typically the first sign that we have when the clothes come off, so no more snow, no more salts on the road.

All the fun stuff.

♪ Mercy - [Julie] Vanna Whitewall is an ageless beauty but she has had her share of makeovers.

- She has been bumped into or knocked off the post she stands on or needed cosmetic repairs.

- [Julie] Standing tall outside of Plaza Tire for 54 years, this tall doll has shown us all that size does matter.

Weighing in at 450 pounds and 17 and a half feet tall, she continues to look out for Peoria.

- She's a Peoria landmark.

So whether you're from here or passing through, a lot of the times there's some sort of story or you've heard a story about her.

So it definitely draws a attention.

- [Julie] The fiberglass femme fatale sports her 28 pound dress all winter long, but have you ever wondered how she wiggles into her famous red summer bikini?

Well, you gotta see this.

- [Man] We are going to back our Plaza Tire truck close to her, set up a ladder and we will have her dress placed in the bed of the truck when it's all done.

And then we actually have a hanger inside the shop that the dress will hang on all winter or summer long until next winter.

- [Julie] Bikini on?

Check.

Dress is stored away for another season?

Check.

It can only mean one thing, that it is officially summer in Peoria.

♪ Pretty woman - [Phil] More and more, yesteryear's pop sensations are getting paid like never before, trading their musical catalogs for sums that sound like lottery jackpots.

Stevie Nicks, $100 million.

Sting, $300 million.

Bob Dylan, $500 million.

Bruce Springsteen, $550 million.

And those figures are just the tip of the musical rights iceberg.

Scores of other artists are routinely scoring seven, eight, and nine figure deals from investment companies looking to reap big profits from royalties and licensing.

In 2021, according to Music Business Worldwide, $5 billion was spent on acquiring music rights with the trend still on the upswing.

It's a stunning turn of events in the industry where decades ago many artists would've turned up their noses at blatant commercialism.

But these days, many musicians feel it's not selling out, but finally getting their due and finding a new audience.

Just ask Graham Russell, half of Air Supply, the 1980 hit makers who recently played in Peoria.

Selling part of Air Supply's catalog has allowed the group to draw new fans every time a single appears in a movie, TV show, or commercial.

- It keeps our visibility up there.

I mean, let's face it.

"All Out of Love" was originally released in 1978.

That's a long time ago and people still wanna put it in movies now.

It's almost 50 years ago.

It's frightening - [Phil] Graham Russell and Russell Hitchcock met in 1975 during an Australian production of "Jesus Christ Superstar".

Offstage, the two bonded and shared memories.

Two years later, they started recording as Air Supply.

Even after charting in Australia though, they had a tough time making ends meet.

- In 1978, and this is after "All Out of Love" was released in Australia and it was a big hit, we were, I remember being at my tiny apartment and Russell came over and we were pulling the cushions off the couch to find change to buy a loaf of bread.

And that's true.

I'm not making it up.

And this was after we'd had two or three hit records in Australia.

So our future at that point seemed very dismal.

We didn't know what we were gonna do.

- [Phil] Then came 1980 with the release of the "Lost in Love" album on the American label Arista.

The title track became a worldwide smash as was "Every Woman in the World" and "All Out of Love".

In short order, other albums and hits would follow.

But Russell says that for musicians, chart success back then did not always mean financial stability.

- In years past in the 80s when record companies were involved, they pretty much owned everything and they would give you a lousy royalty rate for the length of your career or for maybe five or six albums.

And it was always a terrible royalty rate.

So you never really, unless you had multimillion selling albums, you never really made any money.

- [Phil] As time pushed forward, the pair found solid fiscal footing as they continued to record and tour.

And for the longest time, that's the only way artists saw fit to make a living.

License their songs for say a commercial?

Perish the thought.

- [Graham] Most artists would never dream of doing a commercial like 15 or 20 years ago.

- [Phil] But things changed, especially in recent years, when investment companies saw big dollar signs in the offing, not just for royalties, but to license music for TVs, movies, and commercials.

And big money bidding began for the musical rights to artists as old as Bing Crosby to contemporaries like Imagine Dragons.

Over a year ago, one of those investment companies, Primary Wave, contacted the manager for Air Supply with an offer.

- But it was our manager that came to us and we've been with the same manager for over 40 years.

So he's our closest friend and confidant.

And he said, you're not gonna like what I'm gonna tell you, but listen, listen to me and think about it.

And at first we said, oh no, we don't wanna do that.

But then we started to think about it, especially at the point Russell and I are in our career, so the more we looked at it, the more we thought, oh, this might be a good idea.

- [Phil] In part, the decision was based purely on dollars and cents.

- You look at what you sell over the years and what you are projected to sell between now and the end of your career, which could be any time, it could be tomorrow.

I hope it's not.

And then you just make a projection of what you might earn in that time.

And I think if somebody's willing to pay you for that and take a gamble, I think it's a good gamble.

- [Phil] And especially considering those long ago days of scrounging for loose change to buy bread, the deal for a portion of the Air Supply catalog sounded too good to pass up.

- We were actually, we're in the high eight figures.

- [Phil] But the deal was about much more than money, Russell says.

Air Supply has veto power over licensing which means the pair is involved in shaping their image.

- [Graham] We have total power final say, like if somebody wants to come and use "All Out of Love" in a potato chip commercial for instance, we can say no, we don't want that.

And there's no quibbling, if we don't want it, or we don't think it's within our interest, we'll say no.

And there's no question.

- [Phil] Plus Air Supply gets involved musically in the creative process regarding TV and movies.

- We've been very lucky with our music because it's very it's very easy to put it in movies.

For instance, I mean, "All Out of Love" has been in at least 15 movies.

- [Phil] Further, Russell and his musical partner, each of whom is in his 70s, find that the licensing is bringing newer and younger audiences to Air Supply's music.

- And it keeps us visible and it keeps us up there.

And people come to our shows and they may come to our shows, oh, I know those guys.

They were on that sitcom.

When in fact the song is almost over 40 years old.

- [Phil] And who knows?

As the big ticket deals continue, maybe the trend will afford artists like Air Supply a touch of immortality.

- [Graham] They're going to put this catalog into the future.

So maybe our music will be played and heard way after we are gone.

♪ Thinking of ♪ What are you thinking of - Just like my friend George Washington back here, I cannot tell a lie.

That was a great show.

- It was a great show.

- It was pretty good.

So make sure you join us next time on.

- "You Gotta See This!"

- All that coming up and more coming up.

All that and more.

(bright music) (Julie and Phil mumbling) - I screwed it up.

Let's go to Tremont.

To get some gas.

The part where you said that you were in Glee Club or whatever, there's no evidence of the glee.