The iconic Roy’s Motel & Cafe neon sign in Amboy, California, glowed for the first time in at least 30 years during a relighting ceremony Saturday night.
The event coincided with the Great Amboy Fly-In, Part 2, where private planes use Amboy’s nearby airstrip.
Here a video of the countdown to the relighting at twilight by Mike May:
Below are more images from Route 66 fans or neon-sign aficionadoes on social media:
According to a recent report in the Desert Sun of nearby Palm Springs, the sign hadn’t operated since the 1980s. The sign dates to 1959.
Karl Score of Ever-Glo Sign Co. in Crestline, California, did the neon restoration.
Kyle Okura, son of Amboy owner Albert Okura of the Juan Pollo restaurant chain, told the newspaper the sign’s restoration took about three months and $17,500.
Okura said his father plans to eventually reopen the cafe and the six motel cottages that line Route 66.
“Eventually, in the next few years, I want to see everything in Amboy reopened,” he said.
Albert Okura bought the entire town of Amboy in 2005. Roy’s cafe building reopened as a convenience store, and the gasoline pumps still work after being idle for many years.
Roy’s in Amboy opened in 1938 through owner Roy Crowl. But the most well-known owner of Roy’s was Buster Burris. By the late 1940s, Roy’s garage, motel and restaurant were open 24 hours a day to serve Route 66 travelers.
The property’s business declined after the opening of Interstate 40, and Burris retired in 1995. Burris died in 2000.
UPDATE 11/21/2019: The California Historic Route 66 Association confirmed the sign will be lighted nightly from dusk until closing about 10 to 11 p.m.
(Image of the restored Roy’s sign in Amboy, California, courtesy of Scott Piotrowski)
That is so AWESOME! Thanks so much to Albert and Kyle for making it happen. Now to get back out there and see it…. 🙂
Growing up in the 70’s, I spent a lot of time in Amboy. My family were very good friends with Buster and Betty Burris, one of the original owners of Amboy. At the time, Amboy was a little oasis in the middle of the desert. It’s so nice to see this revitalization.
Hopefully the motel cottages will get RETRO[reno]VATED!
I think the owners should still get some award for their route 66 neon sign repair-restore since they’ve done a really great thing here and they can use the money to help them get the cottages ready for rental (and make the business viable again so it stays restored!). I’ll keep an eye out when I start my retirment travels!
https://www.route66news.com/2019/12/20/cities-service-station-neon-tulsa/