A Night at the Neon Museum on Film

July 5, 2023, Leave a Comment on A Night at the Neon Museum on Film

A Note from Janey: Today I’m handing the blogging reins to Patrick. He was so excited about both the opportunity to shoot night photos at the Neon Museum in Las Vegas, and with his end products! Enjoy! As Janey mentioned in her post about our return to the Las Vegas Neon Museum I spent most…

A small single story Streamline Moderne style building, abandoned with collapsing wood frame.

Lonesome Spots along California Backroads

June 29, 2023, Leave a Comment on Lonesome Spots along California Backroads

Today I’m rounding up California sights from our road trip, including many more abandoned buildings, neon signs, and even a Twilight Zone filming location! Rustic Oasis Motel, 2005 U.S. 395, Olancha. “Temporarily Closed” according to Google. Airflite Cafe, US-395, Olancha. Abandoned. Invisible Theme Park cited a CalTrans survey (although I could not locate the survey…

Overall view of the front building, which is a single story building, curved ever so slightly with square pillars supporting the overhang. Turquoise diamonds are painted on the pillars, while the rest of the motel is covered in graffiti. In the distance a sign features a palm tree and reads "Arnie's Royal Hawaiian Motel"

A Return to the Abandoned Royal Hawaiian Motel

June 27, 2023, Leave a Comment on A Return to the Abandoned Royal Hawaiian Motel

Back in 2015 en route home from Vegas, Patrick and I found ourselves in the tiny town of Baker, home to the world’s largest thermometer. We also happened upon Arnie’s Royal Hawaiian, an abandoned motel. We snapped photos of it back then, when there was still a fence around part of the property, but a…

A large neon sign features fire made of neon and script reading "The Flame" below backlit plastic reads "Prime Rib Breakfast Lunch Dinner" and in small blue neon reads 24 HRS"

Revisiting the Las Vegas Neon Museum

June 19, 2023, 3 Comments

Back in 2017 Patrick and I visited the Las Vegas Neon Museum, and had an absolute blast, taking both their daytime and nighttime tours. Recently they added a “Photo Walk” option, which is a time for photographers to have respectful free-reign (no touching of the signs!) of the boneyard, and since Patrick has gotten more…

A massive neon sign features a cowboy on horseback being chased by a Native American with a bow shooting arrows, and below reads "Pony Express Lodge"

More than Las Vegas: Neon Gems of Nevada

June 5, 2023, Leave a Comment on More than Las Vegas: Neon Gems of Nevada

Never go on a road trip with me unless you’re prepared to pull off the road whenever I see a neon sign, abandoned building, or something weird. When Patrick and I weren’t on freeways, we took many backroads and old highways during our trip, and even though we had made this drive before, we still…

Small, single story, boarded up adobe buildings sit just past a sign reading "Casablanca Inn"

The Remnants, Remains, and Random Snapshots of 2022

February 1, 2023, 1 Comment

Sometimes when Patrick and I go out we find ourselves pulling over when we spy a vintage sign, or a unique or abandoned building. Often these places never have enough meat to them for their very own post (and more often than not, the photos get forgotten about as a result), or they get relegated…

The large rooftop neon sign for the "Roosevelt Hotel" which spells out its name in red neon letters.

The Neon Gods We Made – Revisiting the Los Angeles Neon Cruise

September 21, 2022, 3 Comments

Unless you’re super new to the blog, then you know I adore neon. There is something about the almost alchemy like art that is neon, and I love seeing it. One of the best ways to see the neon of Los Angeles in the wild is by taking the Neon Cruise, offered by the Museum…

A red painted building sits behind overgrown bushes. A large sign out front reads "Gene Valla's Blue Gum Luncheon-Dinners." A neon martini glass tops the large sign.

Photo Essay: Americana Through the Eyes of a 16 Year Old

January 26, 2022, 8 Comments

Recently Patrick and I went did a massive clean out and reorganization of our garage. Part of it involved me sifting through boxes of photos. Yes, real, glossy, shot on film type of photos. Growing up in the infancy of digital photography means my early memories were captured on film, and I learned the ropes…

Screencap reading "Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood" with additional text reading "Filming Locations"

Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood Filming Locations

August 25, 2021, 3 Comments

Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood has quickly become one of my all time favorite movies. Quinten Tanatino’s love letter to late 1960s LA is full of wonderful details and used many beloved SoCal institutions, including a number that are accessible to the film buff! While many of the locations in the film, they “play themselves”…

A yellow building features a yellow and white sign next to it reading "Nick's Liquor Parking Cigars" and features a small arrow.

The Vintage Neon and More of Highway One: From Santa Monica to Dana Point

August 4, 2021, 1 Comment

California has many legendary roads criss-crossing the state. From the fabled Route 66 to the infamous Sunset Strip, there is plenty of history along these stretches of blacktop. One of these is the Pacific Coast Highway (often abbreviated to PCH) also known as Highway One. It stretches nearly the entire length of the state, often…