The sign for Backstage Bar & Billiards sits at 601 Fremont Street in Downtown Las Vegas. Information about the sign is available in the Southern Nevada Neon Survey Data Sheet. Site address: 601 Fremont St Sign owner: DJ Lethal co-owned with DJ Scotty Sign details: This building dates back to 1957. Triple B opened in 2012 as a billiard hall bar and concert venue. It is filled with a lot of Rock Memorabilia which includes a "turntable library" which they claim showcases over 8 decades of rock history. This location was furnished by rock outfitter Anvil Cases. This property got its name by being "backstage" to the adjoining Fremont Country Club. Sign condition: 5- looks relatively new and still in great condition Sign form: Variation of a Bull Nose Sign Sign-specific description: Their entrance is on the corner of 6th (going South) and Fremont with a blue bull nose type sign in a triangle shape. The base of the triangle sign is right above the entrance. The triangle border has a blue (argon) strip with incandescents lining both sides of the neon tubing. At the base of the sign there is a blue (argon) curved platform (half circle placed adjoining to the base of the triangle). On this platform there are 5 separate strips of argon tubes. Above the platform states "Backstage Bar & Billiards" in white cursive channeled letters. Above the words Backstage and Billiards there are two martini glasses with a pool ball and flag in each glass. At the top of the triangle portion of the sign there is their logo "Triple B" in cursive with Triple in Blue and B in white. Below the bull nose sign there is a reader board that wraps around the building. This reader board is also lined with incandescent light bulbs. In the middle of the of the reader board there is a black background rectangle with 3 rhombus's lined in incandescent light bulbs in a design. Sign - type of display: Neon, incandescent and reader board Sign - media: Steel and Plastic Sign - non-neon treatments: Reader Board Sign animation: Flasher for incandescent light bulbs Sign environment: Fremont East district East District, next to other bars and restaurants. This location is right across the street from the El Cortez. Also they claim to be "backstage" to the adjoining Fremont Country Club which inspired their name. Sign manufacturer: Ultra Signs' recently bought out by Jones Las Vegas ( of Jones SIgns) who did not have records of this sign. Sign - date of installation: 2012 when the bar opened Sign - thematic influences: On Fremont many of the entrances are at the corner intersections, so the bull nose sign has been prominent design type to draw attention to the entrance of the company. This is remnant of the Golden Nugget and Binion's Horseshoe put up their bull nose signs in 1961. Sign - artistic significance: The curved platform at the bottom of their bull nose sign looks like an old retro movie theater style sign platform that you would see in the 1940's/50's. Particularly with their reader board with incandescent light bulbs speaks to this era as well. Survey - research locations: Assessor's page, triple B website http://www.backstagebarlv.com/ , Las Vegas Weekly Newspaper article https://lasvegasweekly.com/nightlife/lowball-diary/2012/dec/05/triple-b-fills-downtowns-watering-hole-hole/ Survey - research notes: Fremont Bars.com has a photo of their main sign being installed. http://www.fremontstreetbars.com/2012/11/29/welcome-to-the-neighborhood-backstage-bar-billiards/ Survey - other remarks: The Ultra Signs logo is visible on the left side of the sign. Surveyor: Emily Fellmer Survey - date completed: 2017-08-11 Sign keywords: Neon; Incandescent; Steel; Plastic; Flashing; Reader board; Bullnose; Marquee
From the Margaret Kelly Collection on the Bluebell Girls, MS-00604. The scrapbook includes newspaper clippings about the Bluebell Girls, Folies-Bergère, and dancer Catherine Dunne's experiences in Milan, Italy at the start of World War II.
Dr. Harold Boyer recalled with great clarity his childhood in Arkansas. Born in 1916 in Hartman, he attended a two-story school which went to eighth grade, fished in a nearby stream, and earned money from the age of six selling newspapers. He remembered that his father wore many hats, including that of town physician, president of the school board, and mayor. He also operated the movie theater and would drive around town announcing upcoming film features through a megaphone. Harold gave details of living through the Great Depression and completing his high school and college education. Dr. Boyer recited many details of his life in the Marine Corps as a medic, serving on active duty in the Pacific arena in WWII, going into medical practice in Oklahoma City and Enid, Oklahoma, and being called back to serve in Korea. In 1952, while checking out practices in several Southwest locations, he came to Las Vegas and interviewed with Dr. Carver Coffman. Harold painted a picture of Las Vegas in the sixties and described his practice and the many organizations in which he participated. He described how certain entities contributed significantly to the growth in the Vegas Valley, including the Convention Bureau, the Elks Club, Rotary Club, Shriners, the Mormon Church, the Mesquite Club, the university, and the gaming industry. He also gave a very positive view of the cultural activities that were/are available to the people of Las Vegas. Comments by Dr. Boyer on race relations recalled the sixties when integration in area schools, hotels, and neighborhoods became a reality under strong black leadership. He also talked about the relationship between casino operators and the civic organizations previously mentioned, and included an anecdote concerning one of his patients and A1 Capone. Helldorado, a unique community celebration, began in 1937 and was designed to draw positive attention to Las Vegas and pull people together. Dr. Boyer described the parades, dances, games, and barbecues that made it so much fun, and listed the founders who made it possible. This list includes people like the Von Tobels, Bob Squires, Bill Ferret, and the Ronzoni family. He related that Helldorado gradually faded out as corporations took over the gaming industry and the population grew to hundreds of thousands. Howard Hughes, the Greenbaums, and Bugsy Siegel are some of the people Dr. Boyer recalled as part of the fabulous tapestry that makes Las Vegas special. He talked about those who had a positive influence on the town, like Ed Von Tobel, Jess Abbott, and Jackie Gaughan. He has wonderful ideas for creating a park near the downtown area that would rival Central Park in New York, Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, or Audubon Park in New Orleans. His closing comments reflect on special projects conducted by the Rotary Club and the future of Las Vegas as an international air travel transportation hub.
In 1948 in Las Vegas, Nevada, a camera-girl-turned-cocktail-waitress and a casino credit manager welcomed the birth of their son, Darrin Bush. After attaining his education at St. Joseph’s Catholic School and Bishop Gorman High School, Bush earned his Bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno. Bush credits his love for photography to his mother’s influence and his study of journalism. Bush’s first job after college as a room service waiter at the Sahara Hotel eventually grew into the coveted position of room service swing captain. His swing shift duties included the entertainers' dressing rooms, which meant taking care of the entertainers, getting them what they needed, and stocking their favorite foods and drinks nightly. Through his work, Bush eventually formed close friendships with several celebrities of the day. He enjoyed his work, but he never stopped honing his skills as an amateur photographer. In the mid-1980s, Bush left the Strip to become a professional photographer for the Las Vegas News Bureau. Throughout his News Bureau career, Bush photographed the casino buildings made famous by Las Vegas-the construction and the architecture of Southern Nevada’s gaming palaces-as well as iconic events in Las Vegas history. Darrin retired from the News Bureau in about 2014, but his work recording the building of and events of Las Vegas lives on in the News Bureau archives. He continues to be an avid photographer.