The sign that started the series: Jack’s is a family restaurant in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula town of Rapid River. Wish I could say I ate there, but we were just passing through on our way around Lake Michigan, and this sign caught my eye. The original reference photo [I only have one], shot in black and white film, languished in my files for years before I finally did something with it. Jack’s inspired me to at least make an attempt to return to my artist roots.

Established in 1910, Axelrod Music was known for years as the place to buy sheet music and musical instruments in downtown Providence. Closed in 2004 after 93 years in business, the sign still remains; though I wonder how much longer it will be there. Those that remember buying sheet music or instruments at the old shop loved the creaky old floors and packed to the seams feel of the old building that was a fixture for musicians young and old in Rhode Island.

The reference for this sign was taken while on a road trip with my son from Austin, Texas to Chicago, Illinois via the “Blue Highways” – two lane roads that, prior to the creation of the interstate system, were the way people traveled the country. We hit “Ark City” on a Sunday afternoon; downtown was mostly boarded up and deserted. As a boy growing up in Kansas, I often traveled through the town on my way to a church summer camp somewhere nearby.

I lived in Austin for a little less than a year, and learned quickly that the unofficial battle cry of the city is, ‘Keep Austin Weird’. When I first moved to Austin, the Motor Court was still standing; by the time I left Austin, the building had been torn down and only the sign forlornly remained. Austin has many of these signs, which have been preserved, and I firmly believe they enhance the city’s “weird” uniqueness. I hope this one somehow survives as well.

Central Camera Company, founded by Albert Flesch in 1899, is a photographic supply and camera store on Wabash Avenue in Chicago. It is one of the oldest small businesses in Chicago’s “Loop” and is still run by the great grandson, Albert “Don” Flesch. The store has been at its current location since 1929. I passed by this sign everyday at eye-level commuting to and from work on the Chicago El for ten years. It ‘s about time it joined the series.

The Hotel Gates sign is gone... painted over with a totally new name and new neon. The building now houses a “boutique” hotel. As is oft the case these signs get removed or renovated, reused and over-painted in an attempt to remain modern and relevant, and the histories of the place are forgotten in the process, such is the way of progress and of change. And such it is with the transitory nature of human life, sometimes we make a mark that lasts but for a season.

The Herbert Hotel and sign have been “renovated” since the reference for this image was taken. In the renovation the original was painted over and new neon was installed, unfortunately the sign has lost the wonderful chiseled, circa 40s or 50s style, font that is shown here, in that recent renovation. The reference was originally shot with black and white film and the image stayed in my files for years before I created this print. 

I’m fairly sure this is a modern sign intentionally made, quite successfully, to look old and antique. The use of the iconic, art deco font called, Broadway, [designed in 1927 by Morris Fuller Benton] certainly helps. It is nice to see a thoughtful and period sensitive approach to the design of this sign. This sign graces a classic Beaux Arts building, which was built in 1910 and advertises the boutique hotel that occupies its space.

When I first moved to Chicago, the Pacific Garden Mission [which has serving as a refuge in Chicago since 1877] was on South State Street, this sign which had graced the original building on South State Street, was moved to the new building in 2007. It is a sign I had always wanted as part of the series, but didn’t get around to capturing it until after the move to its current location on South Canal Street. I’m happy they moved the sign along with the mission.

Established in 1948, little else can be found about the hotel other than it is best to avoid staying there today! Route 66 started [or ended depending on which direction you were headed] at Jackson Boulevard, so back in the day, one would have gone right past the building that houses the New Jackson Hotel if they were traveling the Mother Road. For all I know the hotel was in operation when Route 66 was the only “easy” way to cross the country by car.

Originally built as the Hotel Proctor in the rebuilding of the “Tenderloin District”  [so nicknamed in 1879] after the 1906 earthquake and fire, the Hotel Pacific Bay Inn is now run by the San Francisco Department of Public Health to serve the homeless population in the city. San Francisco is home to many old, wonderfully decaying, yet still in use, signs. I shot the reference for most of my San Francisco signs in 35mm black and white film more than 20 years ago.

The Ritz was built in 1929, and was the first theater in Austin to be built specifically for talkies. When first opened, management brought in local country acts to perform before the movies. The theater closed in 1964, was reopened in '70 showing adult films and was later converted to a live music venue. The early '80's saw the theater used primarily as a showcase for punk bands. It was reclaimed for it's original purpose in 2007 and is still owned by the grandchildren of the original builder, J.J. Hegman.

This Route 66 icon and diner was built between 1936 and 1939 by Roy Rieves using the rocks that paved the original road that later became the “Mother Road” on which the cafe stands. At one time the Greyhound bus stop for Stroud it is still in operation as a cafe. It’s original, and rare, Wolfe grill named, “Betsy” which survived a fire in 2008 that gutted the diner, is still being used today to serve up home cooked fare for those who stop in on their Mother Road adventures. 

The Savannah Theatre has been operated continuously on Chippewa Square in beautiful Savannah, since 1818. The original building was damaged several times by hurricanes and fire. Following one of these fires the current Art Deco styled building and sign were erected in 1948. Restored in 2002, the Savannah Theatre went back to its live theater roots and now hosts live productions and musical revues. 

A motel on the “Mother Road” – old Route 66, one can’t miss this towering neon sign from the early 50’s that is right on Route 66. The motel is still fulfilling its original purpose and adds to the sleepy ambiance of Stroud. While not far off the “beaten path” of the Turner Turnpike it is a perfect example of the design of the 1950s. I can just imagine the big finned “Caddies” and Ford F-100 pickups rolling by on the baking asphalt out front.

Designed by the Boller Brothers, famous for their “atmospheric” theater interiors, the Uptown Theater opened in Wichita, Kansas as a first-run vaudeville theater in 1927. It was converted to run movies in 1961 and to show 70mm in 1964. As a teenager growing up in Wichita, I remember going to see a midnight showing of Stanley Kubrick’s, 2001: A Space Odyssey in all it’s panoramic, 70mm glory, at the Uptown before it was converted to a dinner theater.

The building this sign graces is now a hostel rather than a hotel and it actually still has two styles of signs, one that is definitely very late 50s or early 60s and the one pictured here, which could date from the 30s or early 40s. Signs make me wonder about the lost histories of these buildings, the origins of the businesses and the lives led by the people who built, and were served by them... of the ebb and flow of life and the marks we make to indicate our presence.

Named after the famous Oklahoma native and American cowboy-humorist and actor, Will Rogers, this theater was designed for Griffith Theatres in 1946 by architect Jack Corgan. The most distinguishing feature of the building is its soaring marquee and sign made of concrete, metal and neon that epitomize Art Deco design, architecture and typography. The building is no longer in use as a theater but the sign has been beautifully restored.

Built in 1878 the building that now houses the Blue Star auto parts store was, during prohibition, where Al Capone had a speakeasy, illegal gambling hall and brothel in what was once the respectable Cullerton Hotel. Deep beneath the hotel was a series of secret tunnels that made up an elaborate 25-mile escape system. It was in what was called the Levee District of Chicago; know at the time as the most crime-ridden part of the city.

Opened in 1957, the Continental Club had a coast-to-coast reputation as the premier club for live music in Austin. Originally opened as a very “posh” private supper club by Morin Scott, it hosted the touring big bands of Tommy Dorsey and Glen Miller. In the 1960s the venue became the first “burlesque” club in the city. The 70’s saw its resurgence as a live music venue. In 1987 the current owner restored the club to its 1950’s glory.

Family owned and operated since 1934 this body shop is the longest continually owned and operated car repair service of its kind in the state. Though the sign is definitely from the 50s or early 60s as I believe the car on the sign matches the profile of a ‘57 Chrysler 300. The shapes and colors, neon and fonts used on the sign also wonderfully reflect the “space-age” optimism of the post war, beginning of baby boom years.

Originally opened as a Sammie’s Drive-In in August of 1939, this beloved Austin burger joint became Hut’s in 1969 when owner Homer “Hut” Hutson moved from his second location just up the street. The original Hut’s also opened in 1939 was on South Congress Street. Surviving the great flood of ‘81 relatively unscathed when everything around Hut’s was badly damaged, prompted Texas Monthly to coin a phrase, still used today, of Hut’s: “God Bless Hut’s”.

LaSalle Flowers has been a family owned business on the northeast corner of LaSalle and Superior in Chicago since 1936. The design and typography of this neon and bare bulb sign beautifully reflect an art deco sensibility. This sign and the Erie & LaSalle Body Shop sign are only one block apart from each other. They are the last two signs of their type standing on North LaSalle Street, a street that I am sure once boasted many.