Holiday Inn
 -- The lost Icon
 
Hardly garish, Kemmons Wilson's Great Sign with its 1,500 feet of neon tubing and 500+ incandescent light bulbs was an American icon. It represented a visionary revolution in the hospitality industry and was the pinnacle of the art of brand creation.
 
Left: 8mm film clip ca. 1965:
Kummerlowe Archive
 
 

 
 
Postcard ca. 1960s: Kummerlowe Archive

Monroe, LA - 2102 Louisville Ave
  • Distinguishing themselves, many early HIs prominently featured the word "Hotel" in all caps on their Great Signs
  • Among the first in the Pelican State, Monroe opened about 1956
  • Modernised with a new Great Sign in the 1970s
  • Perhaps last branded as a Travelodge
  • Aerial View
 
Postcard ca. 1970s: Kummerlowe Archive
 
 

 
 
Sept. 5, 1972: Kummerlowe Archive
Shreveport-Bossier City , LA

- 150 Hamilton Ln

  • Opened about 1968 with 142 rooms
  • The photos taken a year apart, note the "environmentalisation" of the restaurant with the cedar-shake mansard
  • Popularly used as promotional tools, the Great Sign's marquee-reader boards welcomed many to HI's with clever puns--My Dad was attending a Gym Dandy swing set promotional meeting not a convocation of swingers!
  • Last branded as an America's Best Value Inn
  • Aerial View
 
Nov. 17, 1973: Kummerlowe Archive
 
 

 
 
Postcard ca. 1960s: Kummerlowe Archive

Alexandria, LA - MacArthur @ N. Bolton Ave.
  • Opened mid 1950s prior to 1958
  • All single level with 125 rooms--additional units added later
  • Abandoned in early 2000s but possibly recycled
  • Aerial View
 
June 15, 2002: Kummerlowe Archive
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
1968 Directory cover: Kummerlowe Archive
 
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