Vegas’ most famous 80-foot-tall guitar is headed for the Neon Museum in January, to be displayed along with the dozens of other historic, decommissioned signs. Officials with the Neon Museum confirmed today that the sign is being delivered to the attraction, but with no time table set for its transport.
The back story of this iconic visage is worthy of a rock musical. The Hard Rock Cafe closed on New Year’s Eve, leaving the future of the sign in question because the cafe didn’t actually own the piece itself. The sign company Yesco actually owned it, in an agreement with Hard Rock Cafe’s parent company dating to the restaurant’s opening in 1990. In essence, Yesco built the sign and charged HRC a rate to display it at the restaurant.
As Hard Rock Hotel chief operating officer Jody Lake said this afternoon his company attempted to purchase the sign from Yesco for $1 as Hard Rock Cafe closed, but a deal was never officially formalized. Under that agreement, the hotel would have assumed any renovation, refurbishment or transportation costs from the sign (one of Lake’s ideas was to tilt the sign on its side, appearing as if it was being played, for the trip to the Neon Museum).
Instead, Yesco itself has donated the sign to the Neon Museum, which of course is thrilled to have the colossal piece. It needs refurbish work, naturally. This is a 27-year-old sign with aged neon effects and many of the bulbs have naturally burned out, never to be replaced. But it is undoubtedly a piece of history and has found a more than suitable retirement suitor.
Original Article by John Katsilometes of Las Vegas Review-Journal.