Happiness is spotting a quality vintage sign. It’s even better when it’s in good shape and a brand you know.
When Arby’s first opened in Boardman, Ohio, in 1964, the neon ten-gallon hat was a big part of their brand. The company used it as their logo until the mid-seventies and these signs have steadily disappeared from the American streetscape ever since.
I read once that there are about a hundred of them left and I’ve seen a few including one in a town along Route 23 in Kentucky. That was several years ago but I do hope it still exists.
These old signs are costly to maintain and many are grandfathered in to local codes. In other words, many cities won’t allow signs this big or flashy to be installed but they allow existing signs to stay.
I also suspect that the chain makes franchise owners pitch the signs if they demolish and rebuild. The neon mid-century style doesn’t fit well with the new Arby’s brand and the boxy buildings that seem to make up the modern fast food world.
Personally, I’m a fan of character and of things that stand out to let you know where you are. You can spot the trademark red roof and wood siding of an old school Pizza Hut from a mile away. Yet the sleek, modern design reminds me of the box my toaster came in and they just melt into the background. These towns that demand everything be brick and that signs be white rectangles that fit in the same brick box used by everyone else are not my kind of towns.
Give me places like Muncie, Indiana where character and pizazz rule the street. These are the places that make me happy!
Here’s another vintage sign that still exists in Muncie!
That’s a huge sign
It really is. But it’s easy to see the Arby’s when you’re scanning the street for a drive-thru!
Well, I wouldn’t swoon over an old Arby’s sign, but I do decry the homogenization of American communities. There are so many places I’ve been through that I couldn’t possibly recall ‘cause they looked the same as so many other places. Blah.
Haha. It’s really the well kept neon and it’s rareness that makes it swoon worthy. Arby’s is openly hostile to vegetarians. So they normally are just sort of irritating.
I stayed somewhere a few years ago after Christmas where there wasn’t a lot to do after about 4pm. Rather than sit in my hotel room, I did some bargain shopping in two different areas on two different days. The neighborhoods were so similar I could have sworn it was the same place even though they were a good fifteen miles apart. It’s sad.
One of the Arbys in Lansing MI still has this type of sign, but the building is newer. Until a few years ago, we also had one of the original style buildings, It was obviously an old Arbys, but was a coffee shop as long as I can remember & eventually was replaced by a larger mixed use building. The old building still shows up on streetview at 270 Grand River in East Lansing.
That’s wonderful! I enjoy seeing the old mixed with the new. Are you from Lansing? I have never been – is there anything interesting to see or do in your town?
Yes, I have always lived somewhere in the greater Lansing area, and yes I suspect you could find lots of interesting things here.
The short answer is that we are pretty much like Columbus, just a quarter of the size.
Lansing has:
The Capitol Building
The Michigan Historical Museum
The R E Olds Transportation Museum
Impression 5 (A small hands on science museum, mostly aimed at kids)
A small but nice zoo
An extensive walking/biking trail system that includes both city & wooded areas.
East Lansing is adjacent & is the home of Michigan State University.
The campus includes 2 museums & several different botanical garden areas.
Surrounding the two bigger cities is a ring of typical midwest small towns, the sort with about 5-10 thousand people and a downtown full of 100-150 year old buildings.
I’m taking notes! The Michigan Historical Museum looks especially interesting. Thanks for all this!
First time I ever went to Arby’s was when my Indiana cousins took me in Indianapolis when I was a kid. To this day, the Beef n Cheddar is one of my favorite things in the world. Imagine my horror when I got back to L.A. and discovered that one of my two Arby’s has been turned into a Starbucks!!!!! That only leaves me the one in Hollywood, on Sunset Blvd. (There are others but they’re farther away). But at least it does have the big hat sign!!!
Oh no!! You’ll need to patronize that Arby’s as much as possible to do your part in keeping them there. Lol.
I like their orange cream milkshake with a side of cheese sticks. Man, those things are good.
No no no! The Jamocha Shake! lol