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Photographs of Don't Tell Mama signs, Las Vegas (Nev.), June 28, 2017

Information

Creator

Date

2017-06-28
2017-08-14

Description

Photos show the signs for Don't Tell Mama at 517 Fremont Street Suite 110 in Downtown Las Vegas. Information about the sign is available in the Southern Nevada Neon Survey Sheet.
Site address: 517 Fremont St
Sign owner: Assessor's page stated T-Breo II LLC (possibly owner of the property, but no owner of the bar/business was found.
Sign details: Don't Tell Mama originally opened in 2008/9 as a New York style piano bar. The name is inspired by the 1966 song "Don't Tell Mama" in the Broadway show "Cabaret". They are known for their bartenders that double as entertainers as well as having open mic every night.
Sign condition: 3- The sign does show some aging and some of the neon piano keys currently do not work
Sign form: Hanging sign and entrance sign
Sign-specific description: The hanging sign is a rectangle sign is outlined in red neon with lower case letters "don't tell mama" is spelt out in a painted white font, but at night the letters are in red cursive skeletal neon. Below the font there is a piano key design. On the building right above the entrance the sign is an image of a closed grand piano neon sign. The body of the piano during the day has blue tubes and illuminates blue at night. Some of the keys are blue and others are red. Both signs are also plastic back lit so people can see the black and white piano keys with the neon on top of it.
Sign - type of display: Neon and backlit plastic
Sign - media: Steel and plastic
Sign - non-neon treatments: Plastic backlit sign
Sign animation: There may have been animation with the neon piano keys lighting up to look like the piano was being played but since many of these keys are not working it can not be confirmed.
Sign environment: Located in the East Fremont District in between Las Vegas blvd and 6th St. This bar has the Beauty Bar to the west of it and Le Thai restaurant to the east. Across the street is Therapy and the Emergency Arts center.
Sign manufacturer: Valley Signs and Lighting
Sign - date of installation: Sign has been up since at least 2014
Sign - thematic influences: The sign portrays the New York piano bar vibe they are going for, and since Neon is and was prominent New York it plays along with their theme as well.
Sign - artistic significance: Piano bars were prominent in the 1950's.
Survey - research locations: Don't Tell Mama website http://www.donttellmama.com/Dont_Tell_Mama/About.html, Asessor's page
Survey - research notes: There is a Don't Tell Mama in New York, but did not find an affiliation or a real connection.
Surveyor: Emily Fellmer
Survey - date completed: 2017-08-14
Sign keywords: Neon; Steel; Plastic; Backlit; Hanging; Building-front design; Fascia; Cantilever construction

Digital ID

neo000192
    Details

    Citation

    neo000192. Southern Nevada Neon Survey Records, 2002-2018. PH-00401. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/d1610w04r

    Rights

    This material is made available to facilitate private study, scholarship, or research. It may be protected by copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, or other interests not owned by UNLV. Users are responsible for determining whether permissions are necessary from rights owners for any intended use and for obtaining all required permissions. Acknowledgement of the UNLV University Libraries is requested. For more information, please see the UNLV Special Collections policies on reproduction and use (https://www.library.unlv.edu/speccol/research_and_services/reproductions) or contact us at special.collections@unlv.edu.

    Standardized Rights Statement

    Digital Provenance

    Original archival records created digitally

    Date Digitized

    2017-06-28
    2017-08-14

    Language

    English

    Publisher

    University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Libraries

    Format

    image/tiff
    application/pdf