NBC and Grimm restore a classic Portland neon sign

Just a quick post to let everyone know one of Portland's most well-known neon signs is lit once again for the first time since 1974!

The Oregon Leather Company sign in downtown Portland has long been one of our favorites and one we've always feared we'd never see lit again. Thanks to NBC and their series Grimm (which films around Portland) the sign is once again lighting up the corner of Second & Couch. We can't wait to spot the sign in an upcoming episode!

We spoke with a gentleman involved with the series and he was almost as thrilled as we were to have the sign working again. He mentioned that since filming often takes up on-street parking for blocks, and even closes streets at times, it felt great to give something back to the neighborhood. 

Here's how the sign has looked the last 37 years:

On the off-chance someone at NBC ever runs across this post please know how much we, as well as fans of vintage neon signs around the world, appreciate what you've done. Thanks!!

Jeff & Kelly

Vintage Roadside

20 Vintage Roadside fine art prints now available!

Gearing up for the holiday season, we're pleased to offer twenty of our favorite Vintage Roadside fine art photographs in our Photo Department.

We Still Roam the Earth -  © Vintage Roadside

Each photo is available as an 8" x 10" or an 11" x 14" Chromira print on gloss Fuji Crystal Archive paper. We looked at several printing options and were floored by the quality and colors of the Chromira prints. All prints are produced by a professional lab here in Portland, Oregon.

Feels Like Home -  © Vintage Roadside

Enjoy the photos - we've got everything from mannequin-eating dinosaurs to fading tourist courts as well as vintage neon signs.

Dive In -  © Vintage Roadside

You can browse and shop our Photo Department here.

Have a great week,

Jeff & Kelly
Vintage Roadside

Tiki Oasis 2009 road trip - the long road home

Hi everyone! Apologies for the delay in getting our journey home from Tiki Oasis posted but we hope you'll enjoy the recap. We were home for just one day following Tiki Oasis before setting off on another road trip so several more updates are in the works.

Back to Tiki Oasis. Wow! What a great weekend it was. Thanks to everyone for taking time to stop by our booth and say hello. We met so many wonderful people and it was great to have a whole herd of Portlanders to enjoy the weekend with. We also hope that all of you who went home with Vintage Roadside t-shirts are enjoying your new attire!

The weekend wrapped up with more sun, great music, and Ku-Bar watching over the grounds.


Before heading north from San Diego we still had two stops to make to complete our tiki road trip from Portland to San Diego. First up was Trader Mort's at 2904 Shelter Island Drive.


Opened in 1963 and still maintaining its period tiki-style, Trader Mort's is a neighborhood liquor store that also carries a wide selection of wines, soft drinks and snacks. Outside you'll find the original tiki statue, lit torches, and more masks decorating the roof line.


The inside was clean and tidy and seemed to be doing a brisk business. We'd like to thank the gentleman at the counter for sharing some of Mort's history and letting us snap a few photos.


An outside view showing the great architecture of the building.


Just down the road from Trader Mort's is the amazing Humphrey's Half Moon Inn at 2241 Shelter Island Drive.


Another look at Humphrey's incredible architecture.


We once again took the opportunity to explore more of historic Highway 99 through central California. If you enjoy a slower trip and the chance to get out of the car every now and then, the towns along 99 offer many great glimpses of the past.

Enjoying the sunset at the Town & Country Motel in Livingston.


Defunct cafe somewhere north of Bakersfield (our road trip notes failed us on the exact location). We loved the stars on this one.


Fresno has become one of our favorite places to photograph vintage neon signs. The city still contains an amazing amount of signs in varying conditions. The Eagle Cafe is one of many that must have been amazing when it was lit. The animated neon wings make this one a treasure.


The Luau is probably one of the most well-known tiki signs in the country. Partly for being an incredible design and partly for not having a single tiki-related item left inside. While it is a shame the restaurant no longer enjoys a tiki theme, we're grateful the owners have left the sign in place for people to enjoy.


We always enjoy stopping by for a look at the Merced Muffler Man. This time we were lucky enough to spend some time talking with his owner. He let us know the Muffler Man stood for many years over a local wrecking yard. After the yard closed he spent some time flat on his back before rising once again here at the Museum. We're still looking forward to the day our very own Muffler Man proudly surveys our abode!


On previous trips we always seemed to pass through Yreka "after hours" but this time we were happy to make it in time to visit the Siskiyou County Museum. The museum has a wonderful collection of artifacts including mining items, Native American clothing, logging gear and more. We really enjoyed our visit and would highly recommend a stop if you enjoy local museums.


Medford gave us a chance for another "used to be a tiki place" photo with the Tiki Lodge. We didn't have a chance to look inside the office but the architecture and sign still provide a nice photo.


Leaving Medford a road trip tragedy struck. A car in front of us veered over into the shoulder and as they swung back into the lane a giant rock hit our windshield. Normally you cringe and look for a little star-shaped chip. Not this time. Within seconds the little star had grown from a 1/2" crack to a 3" crack. One more movie sound effect and we were looking at a 6" crack. The 100+ degree temperature wasn't helping us on this one. It was 4:30 pm and still 240 miles from home.

We keep a GPS with us for motel & drive-in locating so we thought we'd see if Grants Pass had a windshield repair facility that could help us out. Two options came up and we headed for the nearest one. We pulled into Novus Glass at about 4:45 pm. We went in and explained what had happened. Even though it was the end of a hot day Craig offered to fix our monster crack right then. We pulled into the shop and after an offer of cold water Craig went to work on what initially seemed a lost cause. Hopefully without sounding too much like a commerical, we just wanted to let everyone know of the amazing customer service we received from Craig Gostnell and his business. If you're ever in need of glass repair in the area give Craig a call at (541) 474-5646.


Happily back on the road with our freshly-repaired windshield we made one last stop at another of our favorites. The Ranch Restaurant and Lounge in Rice Hill features a dining room with stools, a restaurant area for dinner and a lounge for your beverage needs. All of the food is prepared at the restaurant and they have a local supplier who bakes their pies. We enjoyed a wonderful slice of blackberry pie on this visit. Delicious!

By the way, the Ranch Restaurant is also a giant A-frame. It doesn't get much better than that!

We hope you enjoyed riding along on this one. We have a visit to a defunct amusement park coming up soon along with road trips to the Bay Area and our annual trek to the National Trust for Historic Preservation conference. This year we'll be traveling from Portland, Oregon to Nashville, Tennessee.

Jeff & Kelly
Vintage Roadside

Vintage Roadside Visits: The Frostop in LaPlace, Louisiana

As we celebrate the Fourth of July holiday, we thought this would be the perfect time to share some history behind a classic roadside drive in. Nothing says summer like a meal at a mom and pop place with some history behind it!

We were thrilled to recently talk with Terry Toler of the LaPlace Frostop and here’s some history she was kind enough to share with us.

Vintage Roadside: What year was the LaPlace Frostop built?

Terry: 1958.

Vintage Roadside: Who built the restaurant?

Terry: My grandfather, Morris Terry built the LaPlace Frostop as an investment. He, my grandmother, and mom would take rides to one in Kenner, LA and he decided to build one in LaPlace. He never ran it - he leased it out.

Vintage Roadside: So the original restaurant was built as a franchise location?

Terry: Yes, this restaurant was built to be a Frostop.

Vintage Roadside: Did your grandfather have prior restaurant experience?

Terry: My grandfather and grandmother May Terry actually had a restaurant near where Frostop is today named Terry’s Restaurant. It burned down in the late 1930’s or early 1940’s.

Vintage Roadside: Has the restaurant always been owned by your family?

Terry: Starting with my grandfather it has been in our family the entire 51 years. The first man to lease it, not sure of his name, ran it for about 6 months. He was followed by Sonny Kendrick and then his brother Wayne Kendrick who ran it until 1966. The Frostop was run from 1966 - 1973 by Bill Gooding, Dave Millet, and Roland Millet.

Vintage Roadside: How long has your family been actively operating the restaurant?

Terry: My parents, Jimmie and Evelyn Toler, took over operation of the Frostop June 1, 1973. I joined my parents after graduating from LSU in 1993. I actually started back in 1979 cleaning tables and washing dishes and progressed from there on!

Vintage Roadside: When did the Frostop chain cease operation?

Terry: The best we can tell it was around 1981. My Dad called in an order for Frostop merchandise - cups, napkins, etc. The company handling that said they were no longer handling those items. Apparently we were the only Frostop buying the items. We never received any formal notification.

Vintage Roadside: How many Frostop restaurants are left?

Terry: There are several left scattered throughout the United States. There are more in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas than anywhere else in the country. The one in Thibodaux moved to a new location, as did one that was in Jefferson - it moved to Destrehan, so they no longer have the original look. Several “new” Frostop’s have opened and closed in the area in the past few years. There is no franchise so everyone does their own thing. Outside of Louisiana, there are Frostop’s in Mississippi, Arkansas, West Virginia, Illinois, Utah, and Idaho. Many of these are no longer operating in their original buildings. The Frostop in Huntington, West Virginia seems to be the one that has most maintained its original look. It was built in 1959. The internet has really allowed us to see the other Frostop’s across the country.

Here is a great website detailing some of them.

Vintage Roadside: Your building still has that classic, original look to it. What changes have you made since 1958?

Terry: The building has changed some through the years. The original building was much smaller. The mug was on the roof and there was no neon on the building or mug. Below is the original look:


The mug was moved to a pole sometime in the 1960’s and neon was put on the building and mug. No one seems to remember the details of mug move and neon. The dining room was added in 1962. At some point an office, back area, and storage room were added. In 1981, my Dad Jimmie, decided to do a renovation and changed the layout of the kitchen and serving area. The cooking and serving were all done in a small area. We had the room so they changed it up making things much better. The only change to the outside of the building was covering the original tile with wood. That was a decision that would come back to haunt us!


Serving cooking area before remodeling:


The mug received its first minor renovation in 1987, scaffolding was erected and the neon was taken off. Mugs Coleman, a local man, did some minor repairs to the metal and then repainted it. We had the rotation repaired by Brightway Signs and then put the mugs rotation and neon maintenance under contract with them.


In the early 1990’s a cream colored siding went on top of the wood and original tile.


Then in 1996, we found out that the building had Formosan termites! The wood under the siding was NOT a good idea, so off came the siding and the wood underneath it. We put cream colored tiles over the original tiles. The decision was made to change out our floor and put a slanted metal roof instead of the original flat roof. One week into the project with the roof off it stormed and our ceiling and walls buckled. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. We found out we had termites in every wall! That started the process of almost 2 months of being closed and having every wall redone. The roof now has a different look thanks to that! The neon on the face of the building was changed a bit. Hamburgers - Hotdogs -BBQ now reads Burgers - Poboys - Hotdogs.


We were very conscious by 1996 that we wanted things to go back as they had been. I think had we bulldozed and started over it would have greatly changed people’s perception of the LaPlace Frostop.

The next change was the 2007 complete restoration of the mug. The original mug was sheet metal but it was redone in aluminum. The original frame, handle, and fiberglass frame were kept. Brightway/American Sign did the work. They still had the maintenance contract and completely reworked the transformers for the neon and rotation while it was in their shop.


I feel the building has stayed true to its roots while keeping it looking as original as possible. The only thing we would like to do is remove the siding under the canopy - under the siding is the original checkerboard pattern on the canopy.


Vintage Roadside: You mentioned the restoration of the mug – while being such an important piece of your history, it must have been one of those things that can really affect a budget.

Terry: I didn’t change the neon in the renovation - they took it off and put it back on. The rebuilding of the mug was just under $19,000 - to do the neon all new would have been at least another $10,000.

Vintage Roadside: Was there ever a thought to not restore the mug and replace it with a less-expensive plastic sign?

Terry: That was NEVER even considered!!

Vintage Roadside: The rest of the neon on your building also looks amazing. How tough is it to maintain those signs?

Terry: That is what we’ve had the contract since 1987 for! It currently runs us $106.58 a month for neon and mug rotation - VERY worth it. Insurance also covered the neon damage after Hurricane Katrina.

Vintage Roadside: Do you have vintage memorabilia from the restaurant?

Terry: Some - wish we had kept more! Now we have to buy it back on eBay! I am currently restoring on old rootbeer barrel for display in our dining room. We still have some mugs with the logo. We were having them printed with the logo until 2004. The last batch had a problem and the mugs broke very easily. We think there was a problem in the firing process putting the logo on…that ended the logo on the mugs. One of the coolest items to me is the metal sign that shows the original patent.


Vintage Roadside: Do you offer inside and outside dining?

Terry: Yes, inside and outside dining as well as phone orders

Vintage Roadside: What are some of the items we might have the pleasure of ordering at the Frostop we might not find at another drive in?

Terry: We have expanded way beyond the original Frostop menu. We have a golden grilled chicken sandwich and salad that are excellent. We actually have a huge menu. We also cook everything when it is ordered - so everything is fresh and hot.

Vintage Roadside: We've heard you've got your own onion ring breading. Is it as amazing as we hear?

Terry: People seem to love them. We didn’t have them for months after Hurricane Katrina due to our supplier going under water in New Orleans. We found out how much our customers missed them. We now sell our onion ring breading in 3lb bags for home use.

Vintage Roadside: You offer frosted mugs of root beer. Any guesses on how many of those mugs have been "accidentally" taken home over the years?

Terry: More that I would care to count. I went to someone’s house once and they showed me a cabinet full!!

Vintage Roadside: How long have some of your regulars been eating at the Frostop?

Terry: Some since the beginning….we have even had people tell us they got engaged here!

Vintage Roadside: When/where can we stop by for a meal?

Terry: We are open Monday - Saturday 11am - 6pm. We are located at 411 E. Airline Hwy. LaPlace, LA stop by and see us!

Vintage Roadside: Thanks Terry for sharing your history, and also thanks to your family for keeping the Frostop going for over 50 years.

Terry: You’re welcome!

So, if you find yourself down in Louisiana and are looking for a great meal we’d highly recommend a stop by the Frostop! We’ve got our eye on the Lot-O-Cheese Burger, the Golden Grilled Chicken Sandwich, two orders of onion rings, a rootbeer and a banana milkshake!

Jeff & Kelly
Vintage Roadside

All images courtesy of the LaPlace Frostop.

From Portland to Palm Springs along Highway 99 - Day 3

Welcome to day three of our trek to Palm Springs and the annual conference of the California Preservation Foundation. Today's section of Highway 99 took us from Stockton to the northern edge of Bakersfield where we've bunked down for the evening.

Stockton proved to be a challenge due to a court session which resulted in the closure of numerous parking lots and a perimeter of streets in order to provide media access to the courthouse. We had a tough time finding a place to park but, wow, what a downtown!

After circling...and circling...and circling, we finally found a 30-minute spot, threw the car into park, and worked our way over to the Hotel Stockton, a 1910 Mission style hotel noted as the Central Valley's first reinforced concrete structure. The hotel once featured 252 rooms and an extensive roof garden.

With the advent of the motor hotel, or motel as we now know it, the Hotel Stockton fell out of favor and eventually closed in 1960. Used as county offices until 1992, the hotel was restored and reopened to the public in 2005. With its upper floors dedicated to apartments for low and fixed income residents, the hotel continues to play a vital role in the life of downtown Stockton and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.


Next up was a look at the Stockton Savings & Loan Society Bank known for two important firsts: Stockton's first revolving door was located here and the building was regarded as Stockton's first skyscraper. The building is now home to the Bank of Stockton and is also on the National Register of Historic Places.


Although we didn't get to spend as much time as we would have liked exploring downtown, Stockton is home to an impressive list of 29 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places - definitely worth another visit.

From Mission style to a building shaped like a giant ice cream cone!

We stopped in Manteca to take a look at this little place mainly as a result of our A&W Burger Family. When we "adopted" our family, the gentleman we acquired them from mentioned he had built a drive-in shaped like an ice cream cone in Manteca. This was our first trip back since bringing the Burger Family home and the ice cream cone was the first thing to catch our eye on the drive into town along Main Street. We're happy to report it was open for business with people lined up for eats.


You'll probably have noticed by now that we really like the Welcome Arches found in various places along old 99. We were excited to get a look at this circa. 1912 Modesto arch after learning that the slogan "Water, Wealth, Contentment, Health" was decided after a contest, but was actually the runner-up slogan. The first place winning slogan was "Nobody's Got Modesto's Goat." Wish we could have seen that in neon! Thanks to Waymarking.com for the great story.


Modesto is also home to the Greater Valley Center Highway 99 Task Force, a regional non-profit organization working to transform roughly 280 miles of Highway 99 into the "Main Street of the San Joaquin Valley." A worthy project that we look forward to watching develop.

Following Modesto, we spotted this wonderfully maintained neon sign outside of the Rice Bowl restaurant in Merced along old 99, or 16th Street as it's now named.



We promised fiberglass giants and we deliver! It's no secret that we would love to add a Muffler Man to our fiberglass family, and while we've not yet found the right one for us, this one at the local agricultural museum made our day. The museum was closed, but we managed to catch this shot before that ominous cloud you see in the background (we think it followed us from Portland) blocked out the sun.


Next up - Madera. The sun had finally broken back through the clouds which prompted us to execute a somewhat questionable driving manuever in order to stop by Farnesi's Restaurant and Coffee Shop just off the Gateway Drive exit.


We were also happy to find this car dealership in Madera with an appreciation for vintage neon signs. In addition to the Buick sign they also display a vintage GMC Trucks neon sign.


Moving on to Fresno, we checked out a stretch of old 99, now named Golden State Blvd., and found this old motor court sign, one of a cluster of great old signs and mostly closed motels that once thrived along the highway.


Sadly, we just learned that the Storyland Inn has been condemned by the city of Fresno. We hope it might be possible to preserve the two wooden soldiers still guarding the entrance.



In that cluster of signs we mentioned along Golden State Blvd, we liked this combination of signs side by side: a Googie style coffee shop sign in front with the iconic Fresno Motel sign featuring a diving girl in back.


Toward the end of the day we passed through the small town of Fowler. We like to pretend that the town was named after Jim Fowler from Wild Kingdom, but are guessing that's probably not the case. As fans of the allure of neon, we were excited to see that the town had installed a new neon sign with an arrow leading to their downtown business district. Way to go, Fowler!


Signing off for now - on the road again in the morning for the final leg of our trip. Palm Springs or bust!

Jeff & Kelly
Vintage Roadside

From Portland to Palm Springs along Highway 99 - Day 2

Day 2 of our Portland to Palm Springs road trip is in the books and we're calling it a success as we had a blast driving along some of our favorite sections of Highway 99 as well as a few sections that were new to us. It's always interesting to discover something that's been waiting for you, in some cases, for over 60 years!

The drive today covers Mt. Shasta through Lodi - only about 275 miles, but by the time we calculate all of the u-turns and numerous trips back and forth across each town we probably covered closer to 400 miles. We're pretty sure we lapped Lodi at least three times.

Last night we mentioned we stayed close to a spot rumored to be the site of a Bigfoot crossing...you didn't think we'd just leave it at that, did you? Below is our best evidence to date - camera shy, but, oh, so handsome.


After heading out this morning, the first place we stopped was a building we've missed every time we've driven this short section of Highway 99. The Mt. Shasta Richfield station was built in 1930 and was one of eight Richfield stations built in the state - although the only one built in this style. Richfield hoped to corner the market on both automotive and airplane fueling, hence the 125' tower to attract aircraft. The station operated until 1964 and now serves as a private residence.


Next up was a stop at one of our favorite Highway 99 towns: Dunsmuir. The town of Dunsmuir (or Pusher as it was originally named, albeit for one year only) was established on Monday, August 23rd, 1886 when the Southern Pacific Railroad reached Cedar Flat (later Nutglade - the current Dunsmuir south yard), and opened the station of Dunsmuir in a box car.

The commercial district, which is roughly bounded by Sacramento and Shasta Aves., Spruce and Cedar Sts. (both sides), is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Our favorite place in Dunsmuir is the Cave Springs Resort on old Highway 99 (current day I-5 Business Loop.) We'd love to show you a photo, however we've been bested yet again by sunlight shining directly into the camera as we try to photograph the resort. If only they could move it across the street!

Cave Springs was opened in 1923 by Clint and Ida May Brown and operated under the name of Brown's Auto Camp. In 1925 the first six cabins and a few tent platforms were built along the river. A store and a home were built next to the highway where the pool is now. The year 1926 brought more cabins at the top of the hill, and in 1929 the Brown's granted some land to the state to expand the highway in front of their place. By now the Brown's were calling their business Brown's Auto Park which would later be changed to Brown's Modern Motor Lodge and finally in 1952 the Cave Springs Resort.

Just down the road from Cave Springs sits the closed Corral Cafe with a fantastic cocktail sign mounted on one of its stone chimneys.


We understand that the Dunsmuir Visitor's Center has recently re-opened and hopes to highlight the importance of historic preservation in the community. We wish them the best of luck!

Following Dunsmuir, our next stop was Redding. We came into town on old Highway 99 (now Highway 273), and were greeted by this amazing sign above Lim's Cafe.


This approach also gave us a chance to stop and take a look at a place we comment on every time we pass by. The business sits along a frontage road with no clear access from I-5 and we were thrilled to crack the riddle of how to get there. We're happy to report that numerous guests were enjoying a round of golf today.


Designated a National Trust Main Street in 2006, downtown Redding has an eclectic and well-preserved collection of buldings. From the Streamline Moderne fire station to the Art Deco Cascade Theatre, there's something for fans of every almost every architectural style.

Preservation Note: Developed in the 1970s by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Main Street program emphasizes how an architecturally interesting, pedestrian friendly, locally owned business district supported by the community is sound economics.

We've visited a number of these Main Street towns across the Southwest and can attest to the success of the National Trust's common sense approach.

Now, back to the Cascade Theatre. According to the Cascade's website, the theatre was "constructed in 1935 as a 1,348-seat movie palace and vaudeville stage. One of the few theatres built during the heart of the depression, the Cascade Theatre was a magnificent example of art deco architecture in California, complete wiht gold and silver gilded walls, period chandeliers, ornate plasterwok, a grand neon facade and marquee and beautiful murals. "

Even with all this beauty, the Cascade was unable to compete with new mall-based cinemas and closed its doors in the late 1990s after years of declining ticket sales.

An enormous preservation effort led by the the Cascade Theatre Restoration Steering Committee and Southern Oregon University's public radio network saved the Cascade for future generations - and road trippers like us - allowing the beautifully restored theatre to reopen in August 2004.

The Cascade Theatre has the triple honor of being on the National Register of Historic Places, the California Registry of Historic Resources, and a recipient of an Art Deco Society of California Preservation Award.


Just a couple of blocks away from the Cascade is a fun stretch of Highway 99 with a couple of outstanding 1950s and 60s era motel signs. We can't fit all the photos in this blog, but here's a great example of why tracking down the path of old highways can be so much fun.


After Redding, we headed down to Red Bluff to visit another impressive community project focused on preserving a town's architectural heritage: the Cone-Kimball Clocktower.

Destroyed by fire in 1984, the community (led by the Red Bluff Rotary Foundation) was successful in raising grant monies and donations to rebuild what we've learned is referred to as the "heart of Red Bluff." In a neat twist of history, the tower's groundbreaking was held on April 30, 2005 - the 21st anniversary of the fire that destroyed the original structure.


One thing we forgot to show you yesterday were these handy Historic 99 signs. Although spaced somewhat few and far between, they've definitely tended to show up just when we need them.


Thanks go out to Assemblyman Statham for introducing ACR 19 in Feburary 1993, a measure that highlighted the importance of recognizing the significance of US 99 to the history of California.

With our light fading, we decided to wrap up the day's photos in Lodi. Along a stretch of Highway 99 now known as Cherokee Lane, we found this remnant of the highway's glory days:


And finally, we'd read that the Welcome Arch in Lodi was something special and not to be missed. Trying not to break the speed limit or endanger any pedestrians, there was much cheering in the car as we made it just in time for this sunset photo showing some of the arch's detail.


And about five minutes later looking east.


Tomorrow will be another big day as we look to cover another 250 miles or so, searching for more great sights and preservation stories from Stockton to Bakersfield and points in between. Hope you'll join in!

Jeff & Kelly
Vintage Roadside