American Sign Museum
2515 Essex Place
Cincinnati, Ohio 45206
(800) 925-1110
(513) 258-4020, ext. 336
Fax: (513) 421-5144
E-mail: tod@signmuseum.org
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Back to the future: Holiday sign to be restored
Boulder landmark to look like 1950s self after $33,000 repair job
By Anna Uhls, Camera Staff Writer
June 13, 2006
The Holiday Drive-In Theater neon sign - the only remaining marker of a
Boulder landmark that operated for 35 years - once again will look new
when it returns after a $33,000 restoration to be completed in July.
The drive-in opened on 30th Street in 1953 between Pennsylvania and
Colorado avenues with room for 650 cars, according to historic records
at Carnegie Branch Library. In 1969, it was torn down and relocated to
28th Street and Lee Hill Road, where it operated until the theater
closed in 1988.
For more than 15 years, the abandoned sign weathered with the times
until its name once again had meaning. In 2004, the 27-acre Holiday
Neighborhood opened with room for more than 330 homes. The
neighborhood's streets — such as Easy Rider Lane — commemorated the
first movie shown at the theater. A park shaped like the original
drive-in parking lot will be used to show outdoor movies.
The Holiday Drive-In sign originally had red neon letters, a green
blinking arrow with a curved end and the outline of the flatirons. The
marquee is one of Boulder's last remaining "Googie" styled signs, a
1950s design with futuristic shapes. It also is the last architectural
feature of the drive-in movie industry in Boulder, according to
information from the Holiday Neighborhood.
The sign was designated as a local historic landmark this year, making
it eligible to receive money from the State Historical Fund for
restoration from the Colorado Historical Society, a program that awards
grants to public and nonprofit organizations to preserve Colorado's
architectural and archaeological artifacts.
"It's a big part of social history as much as the design of the sign,"
said Laurie Dunklee, spokeswoman for the historical society. "It
represents a whole generation of people and is an important reminder of
the past."
The society provided $24,000 toward the construction. The remainder of
the cost will be paid for by Boulder Housing Partners, a nonprofit
organization that built Holiday Neighborhood.
"It's really amazing to see so many people tap into this historic
restoration in some way," said Cindy Brown, co-executive director for
development of Boulder Housing Partners. "We wanted this new development
to have roots in the past."
The sign was taken down by cranes June 2 and is scheduled to be
completed July 4, when it will be re-installed on the theater site, said
Bill Hayes, owner of Boulder's Supersign, the company hired to complete
the project.
The project was supposed to start a month earlier, but was delayed
because of owls nesting in the sign, he said.
Hayes said the sign will be restored to look exactly like the original
1953 marquee, including all new neon and interior lights.
"It's so great that they picked a Boulder company to restore it," he
said. "There is a lot of Boulder history in the sign, and it's important
to the community."
Hayes said he has received a lot of interest from Boulder residents
since he began work on the sign a little more than a week ago.
"Everybody 35 years old and older has some emotional tie or memory
connected to this part of Boulder's history," he said.
Contact Camera Staff Writer Anna Uhls at (303) 473-1498 or
uhlsa@dailycamera.com.
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