Gentle reader,
There is a mysterious, unpredictable and powerful force in the universe called Affective Ownership.
It is what made thousands of seemingly rational people feel an unexpected wave of sorrow when the Hollywood Arby’s at 5920 Sunset Boulevard near the 101 on-ramp suddenly closed one week ago, and they realized their world would be a poorer place if the big neon hat went away.
We feel the same way.
And we knew that the sign was original to the building (installed 1968 for a business that opened in January 1969), and had been called out on the city’s Survey LA website as a possible landmark.
Recognizing that emotions were high and misinformation about options for preservation of an historic sign after a business has closed were spreading, we jumped into the dialogue to let concerned Angelenos know that they should contact the council office and express their interest in seeing the sign preserved in place, and that it had already been recognized as potentially historic.
And a lot of you have done just that.
Our preservation pal Damian Sullivan, who saved the Tail o’ the Pup from its storage facility among many other quirky successes, hopped on the horn with 55-year Arby’s operator Marilyn Leviton to learn about her business, the building, the lease, new ownership, and what she knew about plans for a new tenant and the famous sign.
He also was on site on Tuesday night, hours before we shot our video of the tagged sign and building, documenting the scene and the sexy evening neon glow.
His photographs have proven more valuable than he realized, since hours later the entire site was heavily vandalized. It’s nothing that can’t be cleaned up, but we very much hope the sign and building can be secured, that this character stays away, and no further damage occurs.
And we entered into a dialogue with our preservation pals at the Museum of Neon Art, who share our belief that cool historic signs should not be carted off to distant private collections and ticketed museums, but maintained in the communities where they spark Affective Ownership whenever possible.
The advocacy is working!
On Tuesday, property owner Blake Megdal told KTLA “We have a vested interest in making sure the community is happy with what we do with the property, including the sign. As a native Angeleno, it’s important to me.” And KTLA noted the sign’s listing on Survey LA.
On Thursday morning, at the Cultural Heritage Commission hearing, Commission President Barry Milofsky announced that he wanted the Arby’s sign to be put on a future agenda for discussion.
And later that day, we brought all this news to the council office, along with our wish for a vintage and modern neon sign corridor along Hollywood’s main east-west boulevards, in an encouraging conversation with Emma Howard, Hugo Soto-Martinez’ Community Development & Planning Director.
We are hopeful that there can be a creative new life for the Arby’s hat sign, in the spirit of the recent rediscovery and conversion of the ADOHR MILK FARMS neon in Pasadena, with the “HR” now blinking bright to designate the site of a Howlin’ Ray’s hot chicken shop. So watch this space for news as we have it!
Update 7/11/2024: As the rumor mill has been buzzin’, property owner Blake Megdal has inked a deal with Prince Street Pizza to operate a 4pm-4am drive-thru Sicilian slice pop-up from August 8 through Hallowe’en. And while the renderings provided to the press show that Prince Street had hoped to rebrand the iconic Arby’s neon sign using that brand’s trademarked color scheme and Old West typography, that’s no longer the plan. For now, at least, customers will need to make the thoughtful leap from seeing the old school Arby’s hat and knowing it is the temporary home of Prince Street Pizza. We think they can do that, and we’re glad the sign is getting the love it deserves.
Update 7/18/2024: At the regular Cultural Heritage Commission meeting, it was decided that the CHC would initiate landmark consideration of the Arby’s sign and direct city staff to prepare a nomination. It is extremely unusual for the CHC to act in this way, and would not have happened without people speaking up about how much they love it! You can hear the audio starting at 10:25 here.
Update 7/23/2024: The Cultural Heritage Commission has sent out an official letter to the current and prior property owners, letting them know that while the Arby’s sign is under consideration for landmarking, it cannot be changed, demolished or removed. Next step: there will be an official site visit on 8/8/24. Watch this page, and we’ll update it with the dates of public hearings you can attend and be heard at as the nomination works its way to City Council.
Update 8/17/2024: The Arby’s sign is illuminating a new neighbor: Prince Street Pizza’s pop-up hot slice operation is now serving via the drive-thru window, with pizza box branding riffing on the vintage sign.
Update 11/13/2024: On November 21, 2024 at 10am in Los Angeles City Hall, the Cultural Heritage Commission will consider landmark status for the Sunset Boulevard Arby's Ten Gallon Hat sign. The property owner has hired Teresa Grimes to argue it should be moved off-site or donated to a museum. Will it be designated—and will it stay put? Stay tuned! Do you want to help save the big hat sign? Members of the public can submit written comments expressing support, call/Zoom in during the hearing, or speak in person. For instructions, see the agenda here, and read the nomination here.
And for those of you tracking the Marilyn Monroe house landmarking chaos, it should all be over by lunchtime on Wednesday. City Council is scheduled to go into closed session to discuss the ongoing legal challenges from the billionaire property owners, and then to vote on if the home will be named an Historic-Cultural Monument, or if the demolition permit will be allowed to stand. This is agenda item #7, and you can still send a message to City Council by Tuesday afternoon by clicking the envelope icon under the letter “T” in the word “CONNECT” here.
You can also scroll down the right hand side “Online Documents” section to read the comments from other concerned citizens compelled by their Affective Ownership for Marilyn Monroe’s memory and the home she loved to ask elected officials to honor both. We were especially moved by the remarks of Terrence Anthony London, and hope that his thoughtful and gracious words find a receptive audience in City Hall and in Brentwood.
Whatever happens with the vote and future plans for Marilyn Monroe’s house, this high profile preservation crisis has brought international attention to the convenient incompetence of LADBS, and the city’s abject refusal to comply with its own rules and the law.
We need a much better notification process when demolitions are sought, something that preservation pal Mike Callahan recently presented—using this case as an example—to the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council.
We’re giving a private tour today, then we’re back next Saturday for the debut of a Downtown Film Noir locations walk, interspersed with real life L.A. Noir lore that inspired Hollywood to craft its lurid on-screen tales. Includes a wild Double Indemnity Easter egg and special guest Joan “Red” Renner. She’ll be riding shotgun again on July 6, as our flagship Real Black Dahlia gets a walking tour remodel. Join us, do!
Yours for Los Angeles,
Kim & Richard
Esotouric
Our work—leading tours and historic preservation and cultural landmark advocacy—is about building a bridge between Los Angeles' past and its future, and not allowing the corrupt, greedy, inept and misguided players who hold present power to destroy the city's soul and body. If you’d like to support our efforts to be the voice of places worth preserving, we have a tip jar and a subscriber edition of this newsletter, vintage Los Angeles webinars available to stream, in-person tours and a souvenir shop you can browse in. We’ve also got recommended reading bookshelves on Amazon and the Bookshop indie bookstore site. You can share this post to win subscriber perks. And did you know we offer private versions of our walking and bus tours for groups big or small? Or just share this link with other people who care.
UPCOMING BUS & WALKING TOURS
• Film Noir / Real Noir (Sat. 6/29) • The Real Black Dahlia (Sat. 7/6) • Angelino Heights & Carroll Avenue (Sat. 7/13) • Miracle Mile Marvels and Madness (Sun. 7/21) • Know Your Downtown L.A.: Tunnels To Towers To The Dutch Chocolate Shop (Sat. 7/27 - sorry, sold out) • Evergreen Cemetery, 1877 (Sun. 8/4) • West Adams Sugar Hill and Angelus Rosedale Cemetery (Sat. 8/10) • Broadway: Downtown Los Angeles’ Beautiful, Magical Mess (Sun. 8/25) • Raymond Chandler’s Noir Downtown Los Angeles (Sat. 8/31)
The Preservation Imp visits Arby's in Hollywood