70 Years after its debut, last remaining Dunes Hotel Sign will shine again at The Neon Museum

The Neon Museum will reilluminate a lost icon of American pop culture on Friday, Sept. 26: the only remaining publicly displayed sign from the legendary Dunes Hotel and Casino, one of the original glamour resorts that helped make Las Vegas a global capital of entertainment.

Purchased by The Neon Museum in 2002, the restored Dunes entrance sign is the sole surviving public artifact of its famed signage. The hotel opened in 1955, hailed as the “Miracle in the Desert.” As Las Vegas entered its Golden Age, The Dunes helped define the city’s transformation into an international entertainment destination with extravagant shows, luxurious dining, over-the-top amenities and a towering 180-foot neon pylon that later won the coveted General Electric award for most significant neon achievement.

The relighting ceremony will also honor the visionary leaders who helped shape its legacy. The restoration was made possible by renowned interior designer Roger Thomas in honor of Joyce and Jerry Mack and Peggy and Parry Thomas, whose financing and legal reforms ushered in Las Vegas’ era of corporate gaming. Guests at the relighting will enjoy a celebratory champagne toast, sponsored by Tim and Amy Hunter.

“The Dunes Hotel and Casino holds deep significance in our family’s history,” said Roger Thomas. “My father, E. Parry Thomas, along with his partner Jerry Mack, made the loans that allowed The Dunes to expand. When they helped change state and federal laws to allow publicly traded corporations to own casinos, The Dunes became the first Las Vegas property acquired under the new framework. It marked the start of a transformative era in gaming, and years later, the property was imploded to make way for Bellagio, my first luxury hotel design. The Dunes was both a finale and a beginning.”

The five-month restoration, led by local artisans at Hartlauer Signs, included:

• Craned extraction from the Neon Boneyard and careful reshaping of its onion dome silhouette
• Recreation of its original animation pattern using historically accurate bulbs
• Repair of a large crack in the sign’s face using acrylic backer sheeting, left visible to preserve its story
• Faithful reproduction of the sign’s distinctive orange façade using custom-poured, textured resin

“This restoration represents everything The Neon Museum stands for: preserving the artistry, ambition, and bold spirit that built Las Vegas,” said Aaron Berger, Executive Director of The Neon Museum. “The Dunes sign represents a time when the city was rapidly reinventing itself through spectacle and imagination. To see this rare sign glow again is to feel the energy of that era come alive. This is not just Las Vegas history – it’s part of America’s cultural fabric.”

As a defining symbol of mid-century Las Vegas, The Dunes was conceived as a modern reimagining of Arabian Nights Baghdad. Guests were welcomed with costumed greeters, opulent décor and themed architecture. Designed by Bob Dorr and built by McNeil Construction, the property was financed by a group of entrepreneurs that included a theater owner, restaurateur and costume jewelry maker. Among its many innovations were the Sultan’s Table fine-dining experience and risqué productions like Minsky’s Follies, the city’s first topless revue.

The resort evolved over the years, opening the longest 18-hole golf course in Nevada in 1964 and merged with Continental Connector Corp. in 1968 under the leadership of E. Parry Thomas and Jerry Mack. In 1993, The Dunes became the first Las Vegas Strip resort imploded by explosives, drawing more than 200,000 spectators. Its former site became Bellagio Resort & Casino in 1998, then the most expensive hotel ever built.