Betty Willis
Born
Betty Jane Whitehead

(1923-05-20)May 20, 1923
Overton, Nevada, U.S.
DiedApril 19, 2015(2015-04-19) (aged 91)
Overton, Nevada, U.S.
OccupationGraphic designer
Years active1942–1999
Known forDesigning the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign
ParentStephen R. Whithead
Willis' Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign, completed in 1959.

Betty Jane Willis (née Whitehead; May 20, 1923 – April 19, 2015) was an American visual artist and graphic designer.[1][2] Born in Overton, Nevada,[3][4] she is best known for having been the designer of the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign, and has been attributed to being an influencer in defining modern Las Vegas' visual image.

Biography

Willis born on May 20, 1923, in Overton, Nevada,[5] the daughter of Stephen R. Whitehead, the first assessor of Clark County, Nevada,[2] and homemaker Gertrude Meader.[5] She grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada in the first two-story building that was built there.[6] She went to Los Angeles in 1942 where she attended art school.[1] Willis returned to Las Vegas where she first took a job at the courthouse, then worked as a commercial artist. She began her career as a commercial artist at YESCO, ad-art sign companies, and Fox West Coast Theaters.[6] She then moved on to designing neon signs at Western Neon.[6] She died at the age of 91 at her home in Overton, Nevada.[1]

Career

Willis was the only female commercial artist at her first job at YESCO, because creating neon signs had traditionally been a man’s trade.[6] She designed various newspaper advertisements before designing neon signs. Willis designed many signs for motels including the Moulin Rouge Hotel, the Blue Angel Motel and Blue Heaven bar, and the Del Mar Motel.[1][6] Her designs are mid-century modernist and examples of Googie architecture.[7] Her signs are drawn by hand and the sign that she designed for the Moulin Rouge Hotel was her own hand lettering inspired by French-style lettering that she studied.[1] In her design for the Del Mar Hotel, she wanted one section of the neon to be seen from multiple angles.[1][8] Willis continued to design signs until she retired at the age of 77.[1]

Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas Sign

It was at Western Neon that Willis designed her signature piece, the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign, completed in 1959.[1] She was approached by a salesman named Ted Rogich, who was in contact with Clark County officials, who wanted a sign that would be located on the highway and would welcome people into Las Vegas.[6] After studying other signs around Las Vegas and southern California, Willis created a design that was unique from other signs at the time. It had a diamond shape, a shape that was unusual for signs, and flashing neon lights that created movement.[6] The word “Welcome” was created with silver dollars as the backing to attribute to Nevada's nickname, the Silver State.[6] The back of the sign featured the words, “Drive Carefully and Come Back Soon” that were meant to welcome people visiting Las Vegas.[6] Willis never trademarked the design, later saying "It's my gift to the city." The sign has now become an icon of Las Vegas and is highlighted on many objects today.[6] The sign appeared on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "People & Events". PBS. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
  2. 1 2 Brown, Patricia Leigh (January 13, 2005). "At Home With: Betty Willis; A Neon Come-Hither, Still Able to Flirt". The New York Times. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
  3. ↑ "Betty Willis, whose sign welcomed visitors to 'fabulous' Las Vegas, dies". Washington Post. April 19, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Betty Willis, who designed iconic 'Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas' sign, dead at 91 (VIDEO)". New York Daily News. Associated Press. April 19, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Roberts, Sam (April 22, 2015). "Betty Willis, Whose Sign Defined Las Vegas, Dies at 91". The New York Times. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Welcome to Las Vegas Sign Designer on Her Creations & Life, archived from the original on 2021-12-20, retrieved 2021-05-05
  7. ↑ "Out Of This World: Designs Of The Space Age". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-05-05.
  8. 1 2 "The Neon Museum". Archived from the original on 2020-05-19.
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