The Boneyard at the Neon Museum

October 9, 2006 1:44 PM

The Boneyard at the Neon Museum (Google Map view from above) is where old Vegas casino signs go to die; while the sign graveyard is only open by appointment, a virtual tour courtesy of these Flickr sets is the next best thing to a visit in person for fans of decaying gaudiness & faded glamour.
posted by jonson (7 comments total)

Interesting, because according to Thomas Hawk, the museum doesn't want any photos of the signs on Flickr.

"Although many people have taken it upon themselves to post photos of the Boneyard on Flickr and other photo-sharing websites, we ask that no one do so. We are an educational facility first and foremost - and therefore do not allow stock photography. Photos that are uploaded to sites such as Flickr are not copy protected, and therefore are able to be lifted and used by unscrupulous people. As a result, we are trying to limit the number of images from our collection that are hosted on the web."
posted by mrbill at 2:42 PM on October 9, 2006

Cool!
posted by brundlefly at 2:45 PM on October 9, 2006

Ha! Screw the man!!! Rock and ROLLL!!!!!
posted by jonson at 2:54 PM on October 9, 2006

Good post, you rule-breaking madman!
posted by The Deej at 4:22 PM on October 9, 2006

I don't think they have any way to legally limit the distribution of photos just because the objects that the photos depict are on their property, especially if they are actually letting people in with cameras and allowing them to take pictures. The copyright of those photos belongs to the photographer.

Christ, what an asshole.

Good post, though.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 5:05 PM on October 9, 2006

JZ, they can limit terms of use for the privilege of letting you within camera range, and if you agree to those terms you're expected to follow them. While I agree they're being overprotective of their teeny little IP they aren't legally out of bounds, even under a reasonable interpretation of the Berne Convention.

It's of course a different story if you photographed any of these signs before they landed in their nifty graveyard, but then the context would obviously be different.
posted by localroger at 8:08 PM on October 9, 2006

They make you pay $5 for a release to take photos. It's a fascinating place.
posted by A189Nut at 2:26 AM on October 10, 2006