“The Neon Museum” by Jeremy Thompson is licensed under CC BY 2.0
The Neon Museum is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization in Las Vegas, NV that collects and preserves retired neon signs. Its collection includes signs dating back from the 1930s up to present day. The Neon Museum’s mission is to inspire educational, historic, and cultural enrichment.
The two-acre museum includes the Neon Boneyard Park, the Boneyard (an outdoor exhibition space that features more than 200 neon signs), and the Neon Boneyard North Gallery (which contains approximately 60 more signs). Some of the most famous signs include Caesars Palace, Binion’s Horseshoe, the Golden Nugget, the Stardust, New-New York, Lady Luck, and O’Shea’s.
“The Neon Museum” by Jeremy Thompson is licensed under CC BY 2.0
The visitors’ center is housed inside the former La Concha Motel lobby. With a very distinctive shell-shaped design, the La Concha Motel Lobby was saved from demolition and donated to the Neon Museum in 2006. Its space-age motif was designed by architect Paul Revere Williams and is considered to be one of the best-preserved examples of 1950s Googie architecture. Some celebrities who stayed at the La Concha Motel included Ronald Reagan, Muhammad Ali, Flip Wilson, Ann-Margret, and the Carpenters (source). It was also used as a filming location in the movie Casino (source).
La Concha Motel
Daytime Photo: “Neon Museum” by Julian Dunn, used under CC BY 2.0 / Cropped from original
Nighttime Photo: “The Neon Museum” by Jeremy Thompson is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Each of the historic neon signs have either been donated to the museum or loaned by individuals, casinos, and other businesses. They serve as a unique way of exploring the arts and cultural history of Las Vegas over the past several decades, as well as technological advances made to improve the electrical design of the signs over time. Collectively, the signs also serve as a commemorative, nostalgic experience for visitors worldwide who may remember the historic signs when they were originally on display many years ago.
The Neon Boneyard was formerly known as the YESCO (Young Electric Sign Company) Boneyard. YESCO, a company that designs and manufactures electric signs, was originally founded in 1920 in Utah, but a Las Vegas branch was opened in 1933. As casinos were demolished or signs replaced, many of the old signage found a home at the Boneyard, and in 1996, the Neon Museum was founded. YESCO donated many of the retired signs to the museum to help with the preservation and study of these iconic Las Vegas artifacts, and tours of the Boneyard were given by appointment only.
The Neon Museum officially opened to the public on October 27, 2012 with both day and night tours available. Eleven of the signs are restored while the remainder of the signs are illuminated by ground lighting.
Learn more about the Neon Museum below:
“Neon Museum and Boneyard in Las Vegas, Nevada – Travel Thru History” by travelthruhistory
Filmography
The Neon Museum is a popular filming location and has an extensive filmography (source). Productions filmed here include:
- Mars Attacks
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
- New Kids on the Block documentary, Hangin’ Tough (source)
- Beyond Desire
- Fools Rush In
- Vegas Vacation
- The Killer’s music video, “All These Things That I’ve Done”
- Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations
- Jimmy Eat World’s music video, “Big Casino”
- Laura Pausini’s music video, “Se Fue”
- Last Vegas
- Now You See Me
Learn more about the productions that have filmed at the Neon Museum.
If you are interested in filming at the Neon Museum, be sure to submit a request on their website: NeonMuseum.org. All scouts and shoots need to be booked at least 7-14 days in advance and a request must be submitted in writing. For more pictures, you can view the full Neon Museum filming location details here and don’t forget to register your project!