In 1935, Clifford Clinton purchased the Boos Bros. cafeteria at 7th St. and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. He renamed it Clifton’s Cafeteria, and, to create visual flair, he commissioned artists to decorate transparencies as part of the restaurant’s forest-themed décor. Neon backlighting installed within the walls embellished the pieces. In 1949, a basement renovation closed off one such piece behind layers of plastic and plywood. Workmen neglected to disconnect its electricity.
In 2012, L.A. restaurateur Andrew Meieran purchased the property and closed it for renovation (he plans to reopen later this year). While working with a renovation crew, he noticed a faint light through a wall. Tearing out the wall revealed six rows of neon tubing; blockout paint obscured half of them.
Kim Koga, curator of L.A.’s Museum of Neon Art, marveled at the tubing’s endurance: “This installation was unusually well protected from the typical hazards [rodents, corrosion, electrical shorts, etc.] that might befall neon tubing. The enclosure kept the temperature constant. Also, it was nowhere near plumbing, where water could reach it. The white, phosphor-coated tube dates to 1942, and appears to be the oldest, continuously operated, concealed-neon installation. Fortunately, Mr. Meieran treated the tubing like it was an archaeological dig, and approached it with extreme care.”
She continued, “I think this type of neon backlighting was a trend during that era. Mr. Clinton clearly loved neon; exposed neon and neon-backlit transparences were abundant throughout the restaurant.
Fluorescent tubing replaced neon as the primary panel-back-lighting method, but the technology is similiar.”
Other artifacts included were a steel support post for wayfinding from when the property was a furniture store, its first incarnation when built in 1904. Meieran intends to create a display area of numerous items unearthed during the renovation. As a centerpiece, it will feature the recovered tubing backlighting a reproduction of one of the original transparencies.