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Mid-century vintage signs Few signs in the world are as immediately recognizable and iconic as the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign. Located on the median at 5100 S. Las Vegas Blvd. just south of Mandalay Bay, the sign – which is of classic Googie & Atomic Age descent – was designed in 1959 by Betty Willis (Stardust Casino and Moulin Read more...
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Vintage Chapels Nothing says Las Vegas better than a quickie marriage (or a quickie annulment) and there’s no shortage of wedding chapels here in which to do so. If you’re looking for the perfect vintage or retro spot to share your vows there are four chapels that jump to the top of the list (from north to south)… click on Read more...
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Mid-century walking tours Las Vegas has a variety of niche tours that cater to just about everyone but for our money it’s Las Vegas Pop Culture Tours that satisfies. Created by Babs Daitch (one-time social secretary to Frank Sinatra) and Richard Hooker (former Urban Arts coordinator), their signature 90-minute Fremont Street Walking Tour makes a great primer for anyone wanting Read more...
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Vintage mid-century decor This eclectic shop is actually comprised of multiple pop-ups, each specializing in unique Las Vegas vintage style. From old carnival signs to black & white television sets, jewellery, fashion, home decor and much more. If you’re looking for the obscure or hard-to-find, make Vintage Vegas your first stop. Located in the downtown Arts District. Read more...
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Mid-century modern buildings With the demolition of The Riviera Hotel & Casino in 2015 and the Tropicana in 2024, only three original mid-century properties remain on The Strip. Many have been rebuilt and remodeled over the years – several times – but some of their bones are still there and worth a visit, if not to stay at then to Read more...
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Retro Mid-century Apparel Now located in the downtown Container Park, this cozy pin-up boutique offers new designer fashions with a decidedly retro, post-war look. From snazzy patterned 1950s-style dresses to the vintage accessories that go along with them, if “mid-century housewife” or “Bettie Page” is the look you’re going for then Vintage NV can hook you up. They also carry Read more...
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Mid-century vintage diners Restaurants come and go, especially in Las Vegas, which is why true diner culture connoisseurs can appreciate a little mid-century authenticity. Unlike the Vegas kitsch of the stand-alone Peppermill Restaurant & Fireside Lounge, these “lunch counters” are old-school and can all be found inside other establishments, which was the norm back in the day. We’ve listed the following from Read more...
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Mid-century modern buildings Established as the Nevada Southern University in 1957, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus boasts well over a dozen handsome mid-century modern buildings, and although the campus has grown to over 330 acres since then, these modernist structures are all within easy walking distance of each other and can be viewed in about an hour. If Read more...
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Tiki Culture/Polynesian Pop For fans of Polynesian Pop, stepping into an authentic Tiki bar is like riding a time machine back to the 1950s or 60s, and although there’s little trace left of the Stardust Hotel & Casino’s famous Aku Aku Polynesian-themed restaurant & cocktail lounge (or any other vintage Vegas Tiki bar for that matter), there are fortunately two really Read more...
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Mid-century/desert modern houses Built in 1959 by modernist architect Hugh E. Taylor, and originally located at the posh Desert Inn Country Club Estates (where The Wynn golf course is now located), the historic Morelli House was saved and relocated by The Junior League to its current downtown location in 2001. Notable for being the home of Sands Hotel & Casino Read more...
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Mid-century popular culture In the early 1950s the Kefauver Committee hearings on organized crime took place in 14 U.S. cities, including – and especially – in Las Vegas. Hearings were held at the Federal Courthouse and Post Office building, which, although designed in the neoclassical style and not mid-century modern, is one of the few historically significant structures left in Read more...
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Mid-century vintage automobiles THIS ATTRACTION WAS CLOSED AS OF JANUARY 2018 Hidden all the way at the back of The Linq Hotel & Casino, up the parking garage elevator to the 5th floor, is the world’s largest vintage automobile showroom… and it’s worth the trip (and $13.00 admission price) if that’s what you’re into. This 125,000 sq ft. space boasts Read more...
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Mid-century Americana A curated collection of hand-picked, unique items – mostly American made – is what you’ll find at Swag Antiques; classic items from turn-of-the-century to mid-century modern and beyond. Their downtown corner store is filled with tin and neon signs featuring classic American advertising, 1950s & 60s soda pop, ice cream and bakery items and antique telephones & radios among Read more...
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Vintage mid-century collectibles With over 10,000 sq. ft. and a variety of 40 vendors selling their wares, Sin City Pickers is worth a look. They’ve got custom-made steampunk items, vintage toys, retro fashions, mid-century (and earlier) furniture, Tiki collectibles and a dedicated floor for original art by local Vegas artists. Bryan Goodman and Jason T. Smith, from Spike TV’s “The Thrift Hunters” Read more...
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Mid-century modern buildings Designed by Charles Luckman & Associates, the Sears building at the north end of the Boulevard Mall is the last vestige of the original late 1960s single-storey shopping center developed by Las Vegas businessmen Merv Adelson and Irwin Molasky (Paradise Palms). Its classic folded roofline and graceful linear awning look like they were dropped at the corner of E. Read more...
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Retro mid-century apparel If retro, rockabilly and pin-up is your thing, then Rockin’ Bettie is the store for you. A cute little fashion boutique specializing in brand new retro styles by designers with names like Daddy O’s and Peanuts, Rockin’ Bettie also carries unique retro-style shoes, accessories and homewares. They even have a studio in the back where dames and Read more...
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Mid-century ephemera You know them, you love them; Rick Dale and his team of “loose screws” from the History Channel’s Rick’s Restorations. If you’ve got a rusty old Coke dispenser they’ll restore it. A broken down gas pump? They’ll restore that too. Or you can purchase a really sweet custom restoration from their boneyard! As a result of their History Channel popularity Read more...
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Vintage mid-century furniture Arguably, downtown’s first business dedicated to mid-century modern vintage, this large store has it all; history, style and a 1950s pink kitchen display to die for. From mid-century ceramics and clocks to modern art and vintage finds that would make your grandmother proud, they stock historically significant pieces and also offer short term rentals. As if that Read more...
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Mid-century modern buildings DEMOLISHED IN 2022 Originally a Mormon Church & Recreational facility before it was taken over by the city of Las Vegas in the late 1960s when it stood temporarily as City Hall, then as the Reed Whipple Cultural Arts Center in the early 70s, this handsome 60s building boasts a large sweeping facade with beautiful block detailing Read more...
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Housing the world’s largest collection of vintage pinball machines under one 10,000 sq. ft. roof, the Pinball Hall of Fame is really a pop culture museum of sorts showcasing hundreds of machines dating back to the 1950s… and they all work! From classic penny drop machines like “Skill Roll” to the 1960s Apollo space program-inspired “Lunar Shot,” this arcade/museum delivers Read more...
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Mid-century vintage diners/bars Las Vegas’ original 24-hour coffee shop and ultra lounge has been serving up huge portions and stiff drinks for over 40 years. An offshoot of Reno’s Peppermill & Lounge when it opened across the street from the formerly iconic Stardust Hotel & Casino (rest in peace) in 1972, this place was an instant hit with Strip performers and Read more...
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Mid-century furniture & apparel Kate Aldrich and Tim Shaffer have been winning over locals since opening their high end vintage decor & apparel shop in 2012. Mid-century modern furniture from Knoll to Nelson share a lot of square footage with ceramics, lighting, glassware, artwork, apparel and even vintage eye wear – hipsters will have a blast trying on retro frames! Read more...
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Mid-century/desert modern houses Southern California architects Dan Palmer & William Krisel, who’d successfully built hundreds of mid-century modern post & beam tract homes in Palm Springs during the 1950s & 60s, were tasked by local developer Irwin Molasky to design a majority of Clark County’s first planned community, Paradise Palms, and they knocked it out of the park. This progressive 1960s subdivision Read more...
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Mid-century modern buildings The Palm Mortuary & Cemetery dates back to the 1920s and has seven locations in southern Nevada. The two rectilinear mausoleums at their downtown Las Vegas location were built in the late 1950s and are gorgeous examples of midcentury modern construction with patterned breeze block screen walls and clean lines. As you enter the grounds, the “Building of Eternity” Read more...
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Mid-century/desert modern houses For a city that’s fond of bulldozing its past, Las Vegas has a surprising number of neighborhoods that have been designated “historic,” and although that doesn’t mean they’re all of the mid-century modern variety – like Paradise Palms – there’s probably enough here to satisfy those with a craving for residential modernism. Listed from west to east… click Read more...
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Vintage restaurants Nothings says vintage Las Vegas like dark wood paneling and shiny brass fixtures, especially if your idea of vintage Vegas is a rat pack-style retro steak house. Fortunately, there are a handful of such places that still exist, the oldest dating back to the 1950s. Listed from ‘less vintage’ to ‘most vintage.’ Click on addresses below for Google Read more...
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Mid-century vintage signs If you’ve ever wanted to get up-close and personal with vintage Vegas neon signery, this is the place to do it. Although there are several restored neon signs on display throughout the downtown Fremont Street area and along North Las Vegas Boulevard as part of the Las Vegas Signs Project and National Scenic Byway, the “Boneyard” is Read more...
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Mid-century popular culture Nuclear testing near Las Vegas drew thousands of curiosity seekers to the city in the 1950s and early 60s. The Atomic Age was big business and Las Vegas cashed in with Atomic themed drinks, beauty pageants and flashy marquee signs. Who knew the Atomic bomb could be so much fun? The National Atomic Testing Museum takes a different Read more...
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Mid-century modern buildings/signs In the post-war years, as more families started traveling the United States by automobile, Las Vegas proved to be a requisite stop along their way. Clusters of motor courts and motels (motor + hotel) popped up along east Fremont Street and to the north and south on Las Vegas Blvd. to meet the need for inexpensive lodgings. Read more...
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Mid-century modern buildings This simple two-story circular building acted as developer Irwin Molasky’s unique base of operations from where he oversaw the 1960s development and construction of his master-planned community, Paradise Palms, adjacent to the Las Vegas National Golf Course. The round, smoked glass structure – now used for medical offices – is hard to miss when driving along S. Read more...
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Mid-century modern churches Modernist churches abound in Las Vegas but they don’t all adhere to the typical A-frame design of the period, especially when it comes to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS). The following three Mormon chapels and two others are highlighted because of their unique, non A-Frame, mid-century qualities… click on addresses below for Google Read more...
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Mid-century bank buildings Bank design in the post-war years seemed to be about inspiring optimism and consumer confidence. Bigger was better so of course what better place than Las Vegas for these institutions to make their mark. The biggest and boldest designs are listed below in no particular order… click on addresses below for Google Map locations. Nevada Savings & Read more...
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Vintage mid-century collectibles If you’re in the market for repurposed memorabilia and vintage collectibles, then you’ve come to the right place. Modern Mantiques specializes in unique, quality, one of a kind treasures that range from classic art deco to mid-century modern and everything in between. They buy, sell and trade items such as classic automobiles, slot machines, militaria, sports memorabilia, vintage toys, Read more...
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Vintage apparel & housewares Martin’s Mart is a true “thrift store.” Nothing fancy or repurposed here, just a genuine place to find nice vintage, gently used clothing and housewares at a good price. Located on Antique Alley downtown in the Arts District. Read more...
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Vintage mid-century antiques A large store with multiple vendors, Main Street Peddlers is like a scaled down version of the Charleston Antique Mall but with the convenience of being downtown. There are multiple vendors peddling their kitschy wares here, many of which include vintage mid-century items like home accessories, fashions, art, lighting, glassware, pottery, curios, Tiki memorabilia and more. Located right Read more...
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Vintage eats Luv-It Frozen Custard has been in business and in the same location since 1973! That’s practically historic status when it comes to Las Vegas and its penchant for knocking things down. They offer walk-up counter window service (no seating) and boast the best freshly-made frozen custard we’ve ever had (check their website for the daily specials)… and if you Read more...
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Vintage Las Vegas memorabilia This cozy store has the misfortune of being located across from the extremely famous and extremely popular Pawn Stars’ Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, (and Pawn Plaza ) but it should definitely not be overlooked. Lost Vegas Antiques is filled with all sorts of Vintage Vegas curiosities and collectibles from the Rat Pack and Mob eras Read more...
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Vintage mid-century collectibles Laura’s is jam packed with such a diverse array of retro, antique and mid-century collectibles that you could easily spend several hours (or more!) sifting through it all. Their showroom, which opened in 2014, downtown, has since moved to Decatur but is still filled with vintage housewares, glassware, tinware, toys, wall art, Tiki collectibles, vintage Vegas memorabilia and much more. Owners Read more...
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Mid-century/googie buildings Currently pulling double duty as a Visitors Center and the gateway through which guests can enter the Neon Museum’s “boneyard,” the La Concha Visitors Center started out as the iconic lobby to the La Concha Motel, designed by noted modernist architect Paul R. Williams, in 1961. Its unique design stood out on The Strip during the 1960s-90s where Read more...
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Vintage mid-century collectibles Clocks aside, these guys have a remarkable array of interesting vintage items that have been lovingly restored, each one seemingly with its own unique origin story. From vintage Coca-Cola branded collectibles to mid-century advertising props, as well as the usual antique store bric-a-brac, the friendly owners and staff also seem to go out of their way to educate Read more...