Check out the little neon car on this old Motor-Vu sign. With its pointed shape and animated bulbs, it looks ready to leave the highway and take off into space. A trip to the drive-in apparently called for something with a little more get-up-and-go than the family sedan.
Motor-Vu was a fitting name for an outdoor theater, bringing together the car and the evening’s entertainment in just a few letters. This sign adds some extra movement to the invitation, recalling summer nights spent watching a double feature through the windshield.
UPDATE: The original theater associated with this particular sign has not been identified. Its rocket-like car remains a memorable example of the playful advertising that helped make a night at the drive-in an occasion. 10-26
Rollerland Skating Rink Photo courtesy Georg Balandran
Who says roller skating is slow? After seeing the skate on this Rollerland Skating Rink sign scooting along at what looks like supersonic speed, you might think twice. The design gives an ordinary roller skate enough movement to suggest it could leave the building before its owner catches up.
A little neon animation could do quite a job advertising an evening’s recreation. Before anyone reached the rental counter or took a lap around the rink, this sign was already putting on a show outside. Hopefully the skating floor offered a slightly more leisurely pace.
UPDATE: The precise rink associated with this sign and the sign’s present whereabouts remain unconfirmed. This photograph preserves its speedy invitation to lace up and join the fun. 10-26
Encino Park Liquor
Encino, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Wondering whether it’s time to make a stop? The clock at Encino Park Liquor has an answer ready. Its “Time to Buy” message combines a useful roadside timepiece with a sales pitch, giving passing motorists along Ventura Boulevard two reasons to look up. Whatever the hands happen to say, the neon offers a suggestion of its own.
The circular clock and surrounding neon make this more than an ordinary liquor store marquee. Green, red, and white tubing give the display an extra presence after dark, when the clock becomes as much an advertisement as a neighborhood convenience. It’s a clever arrangement from an era when merchants found all sorts of ways to make their signs worth remembering.
Believed to date from the 1950s, the sign recalls the years when Ventura Boulevard’s shops, restaurants, and markets competed for attention with individual roadside displays. A clock could help someone keep an appointment, though this one might encourage a short detour along the way.
UPDATE: Encino Park Liquor retains its familiar “Time to Buy” neon clock sign along Ventura Boulevard. The combination of timepiece and salesmanship remains one of the neighborhood’s more recognizable roadside sights. 10-26
Scott Pontiac (Gone)
El Monte, CA Photo courtesy Dan MacPherson
Here’s Scott
Pontiac Dealership in El Monte back when the dealership’s neon still came to life at dusk. The glowing marquee advertised the cars below while adding another bright landmark to the city’s automotive landscape. As daylight faded over the lot, the sign began its evening shift, catching the attention of motorists who might otherwise have driven right past.
Pontiac dealerships were once familiar stops along Southern California’s commercial boulevards, with new models, used-car rows, and prominent signs competing for passing attention. Scott Pontiac was part of that scene, serving customers during the years when the brand was a regular presence on American roads. A brightly lit dealership offered plenty to look at, whether a new car was in the budget or window shopping was the evening’s entertainment.
This view catches the transition from day to night, when the vehicles begin to settle into shadow and the neon takes over above them. For roadside photographers, that could be a better reason to stop than anything listed on a windshield sticker.
UPDATE: Scott Pontiac has closed, and the vintage dealership sign has been removed. This dusk view preserves the marquee from the days when Pontiac was still a name to look for along El Monte’s auto row. 10-26
Chateau Marmont
Hollywood, CA Photo courtesy Georg Balandran
Above Sunset Boulevard, Chateau Marmont offers a different sort of roadside welcome. The glowing script belongs to a castle-like retreat that has hosted generations of actors, musicians, writers, and other Hollywood personalities. Its hillside setting gives the place a little separation from the traffic below, even while the familiar name remains out where everyone can see it. After dark, the neon provides a bright introduction to a place known for keeping much of its activity out of public view.
Opened in February 1929 as an apartment building, the Chateau drew inspiration from French château architecture, particularly the Château d’Amboise in the Loire Valley. It became a hotel in the early 1930s, offering visitors something quite different from the motor courts and roadside lodgings that would later spread across Los Angeles. The towers, steep rooflines, and tucked-away accommodations helped make it a favorite retreat for guests seeking a little privacy near the Hollywood action.
Chateau Marmont
Hollywood, CA Photo courtesy Georg Balandran
The celebrity history also includes tragedy. John Belushi died in Bungalow 3 on March 5, 1982, and ghost stories later became attached to the bungalow. Tales of cold spots, unexplained activity, and a mischievous presence are part of the hotel’s folklore. Whether drawn by the Hollywood stories, the architecture, or simply the neon, there’s plenty here to prompt a second look from Sunset.
UPDATE: Chateau Marmont remains an operating hotel, with its familiar illuminated name continuing to mark this much-storied stop along Sunset Boulevard. Nearly a century after its opening, the old hillside retreat remains one of the area’s most recognizable landmarks. 10-26
Rose Pharmacy (Closed)
Covina, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The neon at Rose Pharmacy in Covina gives customers more than one place to look. Glowing lettering across the front is joined by the rooftop marquee, where a large arrow points the way toward the neighborhood drugstore. Apparently there was no reason to leave anyone guessing where to pick up a prescription.
Known as Rose Professional Pharmacy, the shop stood along East Rowland Street. Its rooftop arrow gave the low storefront a presence beyond the building itself, catching the attention of passing motorists and providing a familiar marker for neighborhood customers. After dark, the combination of lettering and neon made an everyday pharmacy stop worth a second look.
UPDATE: Rose Professional Pharmacy has closed, and Lou’s Glass House of Covina now occupies the former location. The old rooftop arrow sign is still there, carried over to serve the glass business. A change of tenants thankfully didn’t mean the end of this piece of Covina’s roadside scenery. 10-26
Twin Palms Village
Whittier, CA Photo courtesy Sal Garcia
A pair of glowing palm trees makes a fitting roadside greeting at Twin Palms Village in Whittier. The green neon gives this neighborhood shopping center a little tropical scenery after dark, with no need to wait for daylight to appreciate the palms.
Along busy Whittier Boulevard, a distinctive shopping center sign could help motorists pick out their destination among the surrounding storefronts. Twin Palms Village took its name quite literally, turning the trees into the main attraction above the shops. A quick shopping trip might call for a second look once the neon comes on.
UPDATE: Twin Palms Village retains its familiar palm-tree signage along Whittier Boulevard. The center has two matching signs, giving travelers approaching from different directions a look at its roadside greenery. 10-26
Motor-Vu
Chateau Marmont
Rose Pharmacy (Closed)
Twin Palms Village
