This article first appeared in Antique Trader Weekly in 1996. Everywhere you look these days, there's Neon.
Television programs reflect the public's renewed interest in the bright illumination.
Alex's Show and Sisters television series both open with neon signs. But my favorite is the John Larroquette Show opening, when he strolls alongside the big red and green neon sign and gives it a thump to stop the blinking message. Whimsy and fun, along with bright colors bordering on gaudy are important elements in fulfilling Neon's main job as a powerful visual medium. To understand how the color gets inside the glass tubes however, calls for some background information. DO NOT plug in an old neon sign if you are unsure of its operating condition.