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Photographs of Rummel Motel sign, Las Vegas (Nev.), February 23, 2017
Date
Archival Collection
Description
Site address: 1809 S Las Vegas Blvd
Sign owner: Yeh Chia-Hong
Sign details: The motel was founded by Marvin Rummel in 1945 (VintageLasVegas, n.d.), although the Clark County Assessor lists the original construction year as 1951 (Assessor, n.d.). Undated vintage postcards, one describing the motel as "new" (Rummel Motel, 1809 So. 5th St. U.S. 91 - L.A. Highway Las Vegas, Nevada original vintage postcard, n.d.) show that a two-story building was later added to the back of the motor court (VintageLasVegas). The addition may explain the discrepancy in construction dates. The Roles family purchased the property in 1958 (VintageLasVegas; Noted bowler, hotel owner dies, 2002). Ralph Roles also operated the Del Mar Motel (the Del Mar's sign, designed by Betty Willis, is now at the Neon Museum). A vintage postcard from 1958 shows that motel was endorsed by the Automobile Association of America and another automobile club (Garofalo, 2011). The motel was severely damaged by fire on April 30 2017 (VintageLasVegas; Hershkovitz, 2017) and is currently closed.
Sign condition: The condition is 2, fair. The lower portion of the cabinet is dented and access panels are damaged or missing. The upper portions of the cabinet display numerous metal patches. The plastic on the reader board has holes. The remaining neon tubing appears to be intact. All incandescent light bulbs are missing.
Sign form: Pylon sign
Sign-specific description: The sign is supported by a rectangular blue metal pylon. A blue metal-framed reader board and orange metal upper cabinet are cantilevered out from the pylon toward the street. In the center of the upper cabinet is an amoeba-shaped area which is painted black and outlined by white skeleton neon. Inside the black amoeba are individual cursive letters which spell out "Rummel Motel" in white paint traced by white skeleton neon. Atop the upper cabinet is a smaller orange metal cabinet which is wing-shaped. Above the wing is a blue metal circle. Inside the channel of the circle are six concentric circles of empty light sockets. On the outside of the circle is a semi-circular metal frame which holds five white skeleton neon five-pointed stars.
Sign - type of display: Neon, incandescent and reader board
Sign - media: Steel and plastic
Sign - non-neon treatments: Incandescent light bulbs and a reader board
Sign environment: This is located on Las Vegas Boulevard South just north of the Las Vegas Strip
Sign - date of installation: The current sign dates back to at least 1958, but probably is not the original motel sign. A vintage postcard shows that before the two-story addition, the motel had a simple double pole sign with the name "Rummel Motel" enclosed by an open oval (Rummel Motel, 1809 So. 5th St. U.S. 91 - L.A. Highway Las Vegas, Nevada original vintage postcard, n.d.). The colors, lettering style and oval shape of the former sign appear to have inspired the design of the sign seen in a postcard from 1958 (Garofalo, 2011). The latter sign, with heavy modification, is the sign seen on the property today. The sign as currently configured is recognizable in a postcard from the late 1950's or early 1960's (Las Vegas motels then and now, n.d.).
Sign - date of redesign/move: The circa 1958 sign (Garofalo, 2011) was supported by double poles. The pole on the street side of the sign can still be seen on the upper cabinet, but it no longer reaches to the ground. The pole on the motel side of the sign ran from the ground toward the center of the sign, and then doglegged inward toward the motel to support the sign from the side. That pole appears to be the same one now enclosed by the pylon. The shadow of the pole can be seen inside the current reader board, which was a later addition attached below the circa 1958 sign. Automobile club shields at the bottom of the circa 1958 sign have been removed. A black metal directional arrow pointing toward the motel from the street side of the sign has also been removed. A circular white or light yellow metal cabinet with concentric rows of incandescent lightbulbs in the interior and a semi-circle of neon stars on the exterior has been moved from the top of the former directional arrow to the top of the wing-shaped cabinet. The circa 1958 wing-shaped cabinet was flush with the street side of the sign and contained skeleton neon which advertised, "HEATED POOL". The current wing-shaped cabinet contains no neon and has been pushed to the center of the sign. The lower cabinet of the circa 1958 sign was painted orange and black, which is now all orange. The amoeba shape was painted blue and is now black. Below the amoeba were skeleton neon letters which spelled out, "NO VACANCY" and "24 HOUR ROOM SERVICE". The neon is now gone. A small black metal cabinet attached at the bottom of the sign contained what appear to be either painted or skeleton neon letters which state, "COOLED BY REFRIGERATION". That portion of the sign is now gone.
Sign - thematic influences: This sign showcases 1950's and 1960's Googie trends. This also conveys earlier motor court designs in the building and the sign.
Survey - research locations: Clark County Assessor, Parcel No. 162-03-310-007, Retrieved from http://www.clarkcountynv.gov/assessor/Pages/PropertyRecords.aspx?H=redrock&P=assrrealprop/pcl.aspx Garofalo, M. (2011 November 2). Still standing-Rummel Motel. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/vintageroadtrip/6304823598/ Hershkovitz, R. (2017 April 30). Fire damages vacant downtown Las Vegas motel. Las Vegas Review Journal. Retrieved from https://www.reviewjournal.com/local/local-las-vegas/downtown/fire-damages-vacant-downtown-las-vegas-motel/ Las Vegas motels-Then and now. (n.d.). Rummel Motel. Retrieved from http://stefanidrivesvegas.com/8.html Noted bowler, motel owner Roles dies. (2002 July 30). Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved from https://lasvegassun.com/news/2002/jul/30/noted-bowler-motel-owner-roles-dies/ RoadsideArchitecture. (n.d.) The Rummel Motel. Retrieved from http://www.roadarch.com/signs/nvvegas3.html Rummel Motel, 1809 So. 5th St. U.S. 91 - L.A. Highway Las Vegas, Nevada original vintage postcard. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.amazon.com/Rummel-Motel-1809-So-U-S/dp/B00P9LEQCS VintageLasVegas. (n.d.). Rummel Motel. Retrieved from http://vintagelasvegas.com/post/160953547509/rummel-motel-1809-s-las-vegas-blvd-built-by
Surveyor: Mitchell Cohen
Survey - date completed: 2017-09-18
Sign keywords: Pylon; Neon; Incandescent; Reader board; Plastic; Steel
Mixed Content
Transcript of interview with Emilie Wanderer by Joanne Goodwin, 2000
Date
Archival Collection
Description
Emilie Wanderer was the first woman to establish a law practice in Las Vegas. She also helped to start a family court in Nevada with a social worker and a marriage counselor on staff. She and her son John were the first mother-son team to practice law in Nevada.
Text
Transcript of interview with Pamela Gale by Margaret Louis, July 10, 1995
Date
Description
Text
Transcript of interview with Flora Hannig-Kellar by Michael Taylor, March 27, 1981
Date
Archival Collection
Description
On March 27th, 1981, collector Michael D. Taylor interviewed housewife Flora Hannig-Kellar (born January 24th, 1902 in Washington, Utah) in Henderson, Nevada. This interview is Flora Hannig-Kellar’s personal account on growing up in Nevada. She discusses home and family life and local social and recreational activities. During the interview Mrs. Hannig-Kellar also shares some of the poetry she wrote about Nevada and her family, specifically her children and grandchildren.
Text
Interview with John Frederick Campbell, January 14, 2005
Date
Archival Collection
Description
Text
Lisa Levine (University of Nevada Regent) oral history interview conducted by Magdalena Martinez: transcript
Date
Archival Collection
Description
From the Lincy Institute "Perspectives from the COVID-19 Pandemic" Oral History Project (MS-01178) -- Elected official interviews file.
Text
Newspaper clipping, They call him Mr. Frontier, Hughes Nevada Preview, August 1, 1972
Date
Archival Collection
Description
Newspaper article about the Frontier casino executive Mort Saiger from the Hughes Nevada Preview. The article is laminated onto a wooden presentation plaque.
Text
Bill Schafer Papers
Identifier
Abstract
The Bill Schafer Papers (1980-2018) contain personal and professional papers of Las Vegas, Nevada journalist and publisher, Bill Schafer, and photographs from various LGBTQIA+ related events in Las Vegas. The materials include files related to Schafer's work managing the
Archival Collection
Six Companies, Inc. Hoover Dam Photograph Collection
Identifier
Abstract
The Six Companies, Inc. Hoover Dam Photograph Collection (1931-1935), consists of approximately 400 black-and-white photographic prints contained in two photograph albums and an additional twenty-one loose black-and-white photographic prints with ten corresponding photographic negatives.
Archival Collection
University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Nursing Records
Identifier
Abstract
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Nursing Records (1950-2019) contain records documenting the history of the UNLV School of Nursing. The materials include records from the nursing school's Alumni Association, including financial reports, bylaws, correspondence, and membership information; recruitment materials from the School of Nursing, including brochures, photographs, and program requirements; history of the School of Nursing, including photographs, newspaper clippings, a short summary of the program, and a short documentary film comprised of digital video files; and accreditation information, including newspaper articles, accreditation reports, and evaluations of the program from the Nevada State Board. The materials also include nursing student uniforms, caps, and nursing capes from the 1950s and 1960s.
Archival Collection