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Mid-century/desert modern houses On (or adjacent to) N. Sunnyview Drive. between Simms and E. Molina roads in North Palm Springs sit seven unique, early 1960s homes designed by noted modernist architects Donald Wexler & Richard Harrison and built by the Alexander Construction Co. Their innovative vision; to make affordable desert housing for the masses from prefabricated all-steel and glass components that Read more...

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...

Mid-century modern buildings The 1950s and 60s saw rapid growth in Honolulu and many of the residential buildings that went up in and around Waikiki at this time are considered to be of the tropical modernist variety. If you wander the streets between the Ala Wai canal and Kalakaua Avenue you’ll come across several low-rise, mid-rise and high-rise mid-century modern Read more...

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...

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...

Mid-century/googie buildings Housed in what used to be the Tramway Enco Gas Station, designed by noted modernist architects Albert Frey and Robson C. Chambers in the mid 1960s, the Visitors Center‘s unique hyperbolic paraboloid roof is a not-so-subtle reminder that Palm Springs isn’t just your average desert resort town. Home to arguably the highest concentration of mid-century modern architecture in North Read more...

The 1960s was a period of rapid growth for the hospitality industry in Honolulu. With expanded air travel came more visitors and larger hotels, many of which were designed with tropical modernism in mind. Although this list isn’t anywhere near being complete, these are some of our favorite larger hotels, architecturally speaking, anyway, with corresponding photos above. We’ll continue to Read more...

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...

Mid-century restaurants Although the vast majority of Honolulu’s mid-century Polynesian-themed restaurants, drive-in diners and Tiki bars have long since been torn down, there are a handful of establishments still thriving after all these years. We’ll be adding to this list, but for now here are half a dozen or so that we like and one we wish hadn’t been turned Read more...

Mid-century modern buildings Located on the windward (eastern) side of Oahu near Kaneohe, the Valley of the Temples Memorial Park, best known for its 1960s replica of the 11th Century Japanese Byodo-In Buddhist Temple, was founded by real estate magnate Paul Trousdale (Racquet Club Garden Villas, Trousdale Estates) in 1963 and is the final resting place for thousands of island Read more...

Mid-century modern buildings If you’re a fan of circular buildings – and what self respecting modernist isn’t? – then you’ll want to check out the Varsity Building on University Avenue. Designed by Honolulu modernist architects Wimberly & Cook, this 5-story concrete Brutalist  beauty was built to house the First National Bank when it opened in 1963 and is one of Read more...

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...

Mid-century modern structures The USS Arizona Memorial marks the final resting place for many of the 1,177 sailors killed aboard the battleship USS Arizona during the December 7, 1941, Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The memorial structure itself, designed by modernist architect Alfred Preis and dedicated in 1962, is an exquisite 184-foot long bridge of sorts that seemingly floats above the submerged hull of the ship, Read more...

Mid-century/desert modern houses The Alexander Construction Company (run by father & son team, George & Robert) almost single handedly changed the face of Palm Springs between 1955-1965, building nearly 2,500 post & beam mid-century modern homes and doubling the city’s population in the process. These houses have since been dubbed the “Alexanders,” a majority of which were spearheaded by architect William Krisel Read more...

Mid-century modern buildings Founded in 1907 and relocated from Thomas Square to its current Manoa Valley location in 1912, The University of Hawaii campus at Manoa expanded dramatically during the post war boom years leaving behind a legacy of mid-century modern construction by noted architects like Vladimir Ossipoff, I.M. Pei and Alfred Preis, among others. To put it mildly, this campus is a spectacular Read more...

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...

Mid-century modern buildings Through a nondescript breezeway off N. Palm Canyon Drive, between Destination PSP and a bar & grill, you’ll discover an overlooked outdoor oasis of mixed-use retail, residential, and office space that has seen better days. Currently vacant, this pedestrian friendly outdoor courtyard – which occupies a large area between Palm Canyon & Indian Canyon Drives – is Read more...

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...

Residential tropical modernism An exceptionally well preserved example of mid-century Hawaiian tropical modernism, the Liljestrand House was designed and built in 1952 by noted Hawaiian modernist architect Vladimir Ossipoff for Betty & Howard Liljestrand and sits on a terraced parcel of secluded forest reserve on Mount Tantalus overlooking Honolulu. Many of the interiors and furnishings were also designed by Ossipoff and have been Read more...

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...

Mid-century/desert modern houses Designed by William Krisel (Palmer & Krisel) in the early 1960s for Robert & Helene Alexander of the influential Alexander Construction Co., this luxurious family home was uniquely comprised of 4 floating circular pavilions on three levels under one boomerang shaped roof. State-of-the-art electronics, which would make The Jetson’s proud, were also installed to control indoor/outdoor lighting, temperature and irrigation. Located Read more...

Mid-century modern buildings This 12 block area in Honolulu’s Old Town and Chinatown – bordered by N. Beretania, Bishop, Nimitz and the Nu’uanu river – boasts a lot of architecture from the end of the 19th century and is home to a vibrant arts scene including many galleries, restaurants, clubs and theaters. Among the area’s mostly 1 and 2-story commercial Read more...

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...

Mid-century churches A good chunk of Honolulu’s modern infrastructure was built after the Second World War resulting in what seems to be more modernist churches per capita than most American cities. We singled out this big modernist beauty – as opposed to including it in our other [growing] church listings – because it’s so readily accessible to visitors staying in Read more...

Mid-century modern buildings The International [Island] Style is on display at the Shinshu Kyokai Mission Dormitory on S. Beretania Street in Honolulu’s old Pawa’a neighborhood. Completed in 1961, this Robert Katsuyoshi designed residential building – which houses students from all over the world – is comprised of an L-shaped rectilinear low rise with wood slat louvered window openings and an Read more...

Mid-century/desert modern houses The Alexander Construction Company almost single handedly changed the face of Palm Springs between 1955-1965, building nearly 2,500 post & beam mid-century modern homes and doubling the city’s population in the process. These modern homes have since been dubbed the “Alexanders,” a large portion of which were built near the popular Racquet Club and were spearheaded by architect William Read more...

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...

Mid-century/desert modern buildings The desert can be a spiritual place. For modernist architects William F. Cody, E. Stewart Williams, Albert Frey, and others, each borrowed from their surroundings to create unique and inspiring mid-century places of worship, be it from personal inspiration or the materials they used for construction. Corresponding photos are above… just click on addresses below for Google Map Read more...

Mid-century modern buildings Currently known as the Kaheka Professional Center, this modernist mid rise office building at the corner of S. King and Kaheka streets was designed by architect Ernie Hara in 1956 and was Honolulu’s very first curtain wall  structure. Hara breaks up the glass and aluminum facade, though – typical of the International Style – by incorporating sleek, horizontal Read more...

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...

Mid-century modern architects Taking a page from Hollywood’s playbook – and its Walk of Fame –  in 1992 the city of Palm Springs began honoring those whose contributions and presence in the area contributed to the charm, worldwide prominence and name recognition of the city. Since then, nearly 400 Golden Palm Stars have been embedded in the sidewalks along Palm Read more...

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...