Vegas Vic is the unofficial, yet most widely used name for the Las Vegas, Nevada neon sign that resembles a cowboy that was erected on the exterior of The Pioneer Club in Las Vegas in 1951.[1] The sign was a departure in graphic design from typeface based neon signs, to a friendly and welcoming human form of a cowboy. His human-like abilities of talking and waving his arm constituted an immediate acceptance as the unofficial welcoming sign reproduced thousands of times over the years and all over the world. The sign is currently owned by Schiff Enterprises and can still be found at 25 E Fremont Street, where he has been since 1951 on the exterior of what used to be The Pioneer Club but is currently a souvenir shop also owned by Schiff Enterprises.
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History
Although the Pioneer Club no longer operates as a casino, Vegas Vic (the 40-foot[2] Neon Cowboy that was its mascot) lives on. In 1947 Las Vegas chamber of Commerce hired a West-Marquis firm to draw visitors to Las Vegas. The company then created the first image of Cowboy Vegas Vic and his friendly "Howdy Podner" greeting.[3] The image created for the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce ad campaign version of Vic had him wearing a blue checkered shirt. Due to the popularity of the cowboy the Young Electric Sign Company was commissioned to build a neon-sign version by the owners of the Pioneer Club. They then commissioned Pat Denner who modeled it after the image in use by the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce. The neon version was complete with a waving arm, a moving cigarette, and a recording of "Howdy Podner!" every 15 minutes. Vegas Vic was then erected on the exterior of the Pioneer club in 1951 [4] on the southwest corner of First Street and Fremont Street replacing the sign that simply said Pioneer Club with an image of a horse drawn covered wagon.
In 1966, Lee Marvin was filming "The Professionals" and staying at the Mint Hotel. Marvin complained that Vegas Vic was too loud, so casino executives silenced Vegas Vic and he was left that way for nearly two decades.[2] It was replaced in the 1980s, but as of 2006 no longer works. The arm stopped waving in 1991.[4]
When the Fremont Street Experience was under construction in 1994, several feet were cut off of the brim of Vegas Vic's hat to make him fit properly under the curve of the canopy of the Fremont Street Experience. After the Pioneer Club closed in 1995, Vegas Vic fell into disrepair. The Neon Museum stepped in and offered to restore and maintain the sign if Schiff Enterprises, who owned the building and the sign, paid for the electric bill to operate it. Under the proposal, Schiff Enterprises would retain ownership of the sign until they sold the building. If they sold the building then it would become the property of the Neon Museum who would then maintain it from that point on. Schiff Enterprises declined the offer and eventually restored the sign themselves.[4]
The red circle on his pocket is supposed to simulate a Durham Tobacco tag that is dangling from a yellow string attached to the bag that is stowed away in his pocket. Vegas Vic represents a time when a cowboy rolled their own cigarettes from a bag of tobacco.
Vegas Vic was the first of what would become three neon cowboys at Nevada's Casinos. Wendover Will was erected a year later in 1952 at Stateline Casino and River Rick was erected in 1981 at the Pioneer Hotel and Gambling Hall in Laughlin. River Rick is virtually an identical copy of Vegas Vic, outfitted with a different choice of clothes.
Vegas Vic has also seen a couple of costume changes through the years. Originally (50's through 60's) his shirt was white with yellow checkered stripes. Later during an early restoration, his shirt was painted solid yellow (70's through 1998). When he was restored in 1998 his shirt was painted a red and yellow checkered pattern (1998-present).
Gallery
 The Pioneer Club 50's (Yellow Striped Plaid Shirt) |
 The Pioneer Club 73 (Solid Yellow Shirt) |
 Post 1998 restoration (Red and Yellow Checkered Shirt) |
The Pioneer Club 73 |
 Vegas Vic, The famous neon cowboy of Fremont Street |
See also
References
- ^ "Timeline". Las Vegas Sun. http://www.lasvegassun.com/history/timeline/. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
- ^ a b "Vegas Vic Lives!". Las Vegas Sun. 2000-06-25. http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2000/jun/25/vegas-vic-lives/. Retrieved 2008-11-18.
- ^ Las Vegas - A Centennial History. University of Nevada Press. 2005. ISBN 0874176158, 9780874176155. http://books.google.com/books?id=GQ7mORxm6TYC&pg=PA115&lpg=PA115&dq=1947+vegas+vic&source=web&ots=26OV6tCIp3&sig=dEfdXzXLvDxEsdw799aduIuisFc&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
- ^ a b c "Faded Glory". Review Journal. 2000-01-16. http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2000/Jan-16-Sun-2000/news/12757407.html. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
Coordinates: 36°10′14″N 115°08′37″W / 36.17056°N 115.14361°W
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