Chef and longtime gaming executive Joseph “Joe” Wilcock was born in Detroit and raised by his mother, Ruby, and stepfather, Ross Johnson, in Sarasota, Florida; Gary, Indiana; and Harlan, Kentucky. After he graduated from high school in Gary he moved to Chicago to attend Washburne Culinary Institute. While attending Washburne Joe worked at Chicago’s Drake Hotel and lived at the Sears YMCA. After earning his certificate from Washburne, Joe worked at the newly opened Holiday Inn in Chicago, the Sea View hotel in Bal Harbour, Florida, and a resort at Blowing Rock, North Carolina. At Blowing Rock he heard about the new School of Hotel Management at UNLV and in August 1969 23-year-old Joe headed for Las Vegas with $400 in his pocket. Las Vegas was a disappointment. Joe could not get a job as a chef without first joining Culinary Workers Union Local 226-which he could not afford to do. Also, because he ran a poker game and cooked at the Chuck Wagon Diner during high school his high school grade point average was roughly a C-, which hindered his admittance into the School of Hotel Management. Undaunted, Joe found a job bussing tables at the Frontier Hotel and joined the Culinary Union so he could work as a chef. He also took three classes at UNLV that semester, earned an A in each, and was admitted to the School of Hotel Management. While at UNLV he affiliated with Sigma Chi fraternity. In his career Joe has worked in all facets of the gaming industry in such Las Vegas properties as the Flamingo Capri, the Frontier, Caesars Palace, the Tropicana, the Dunes, the Golden Nugget, the Mirage, Treasure Island, the Sands, MGM, and the Downtown Grand. He learned the business from the ground up. He also worked at Caesars Tahoe and at different times owned and operated a sandwich shop and a bar. Joe married his wife, Linda, 38 years ago in Las Vegas, in 1976. He is currently employed as a casino shift manager at the Downtown Grand hotel and is affiliated with the House Corporation of Sigma Chi Alumni, UNLV Rebel Golf, the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, and Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Nevada.
The Flippin' Good Burgers and Shakes sign sits at 505 Fremont Street in Downtown Las Vegas. Information about the sign is available in the Southern Nevada Neon Survey Data Sheet. Site address: 505 Fremont St Sign owner: Frederick Mossler. Owned by Honus Capital, Jaimee Oliver principal owner. Sign details: Opened 2015 used to be Uncle Joes Pizza - closed 2014. Sign condition: 5, newer sign Sign form: Blade Sign-specific description: Orange blade sign over the main entrance, with brown and red accent color. An image of a burger and shake at the top, with the words "burgers" vertical in the center of the sign, and the word "shake" at the very bottom. Sign - type of display: Neon Sign - media: Steel Sign environment: On Fremont Street next to the Griffin and Le Thai. At the Intersection of Las Vegas BLVD and Fremont. Sign manufacturer: Federal Heath Sign designer: Keith Grossman Sign - date of installation: Aug. 2015 Sign - artistic significance: Although a new sign, it appears it was meant to mimic diner signs from the 1950s. Survey - research locations: Email Correspondence with Jaimee Oliver, One of the Principal Officers Survey - research notes: https://vegas.eater.com/2017/8/8/16110798/flippin-good-burgers-temporary-shutter-remodel Surveyor: Wyatt Currie-Diamond Survey - date completed: 2017-09-01 Sign keywords: Blade; Neon; Steel; Plastic; Backlit