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This Joe Marty's sign
advertised Joe Marty's bar and restaurant at 15th and Broadway
in Sacramento California. Joe Marty was a Sacramento sensation
in his baseball playing days, starting in 1934 with the San
Francisco Seals. Thereafter the seals sold him to the Chicago Cubs for
$50,000.00 at the end of the 1936 season. He also played for the
Philadelphia Phillies, and Sacramento Solons.  Joe
Marty's bar and restaurant opened in 1938, according to the
front awning, and closed from a fire on June 25th 2005, fire report. The site sits empty today. Sacramento
Solons historian Alan O'Connor clued me that Joe Marty's was
originally downtown on J Street before moving
to 15th and Broadway around 1950.
This
is the only
vintage sports related neon sign I've ever seen. It's a big country and hopefully there's
another in Des Moines
or Scranton or somewhere. But over my 20 plus years in the
hobby I've never even heard of a sports related vintage neon
advertising sign, much less seen one in an auction, or anywhere
for that matter. Vintage neon signs are usually unique
works. That is, generally only one of a given sign was made.
Moreover, many vintage neon signs in America have been discarded
and destroyed over time. Typically this has happened when
buildings or properties have been remodeled or demolished. So
this is a very rare sign.
I wouldn't say
the sign is
stunning, but it certainly commands respect. Not only does it
have a 4 1/2 foot tall die cut style outline of a baseball, but
it's double sided. That's a considerable feature. The designer
did a remarkably good simulation of the ball seams in neon tubing!
The colors of tan and white with maroon scripting wouldn't
have been my choice. Now maroon and white with white
scripting....now you're talking. But those are color
combinations of the 1930's. This sign was made in the late
1940's and designs had chilled by then. Had I designed it, I'd
have at least worked in some crossed bats, if not other
equipment.
The sign has a personal
connection to me; in 6th grade I lived just blocks from
it in the Land Park area of Sacramento. I would
walk under it on my way to Ed Friel's Barber shop where I had an
after school shoeshine job. Although
Joe Marty's was a restaurant as well a bar; to me it
just seemed like your ordinary dark sticky bar with
grownups who weren't at work in the middle of the day.
To
understand this establishment better we should probably first
understand how the neighborhood has evolved. Today when
you drive by the sign you see an assortment of business' in the surrounding vicinity. Jamba Juice,
Starbucks, The Tower Cafe, a Chinese Buffet, etc. However, when
it was first built, Edmonds Field, home of
the now defunct Sacramento Solons of the Pacific Coast League,
was a block away. So in it's day Joe Marty's was within the circumference of
baseball central for all of Sacramento. When the Giants moved to San Francisco in 1958 the
Solons' popularity waned. After the 1960 season
the Solons were sold and moved to Hawaii. Then in 1964 Edmond's field was
torn down to make way for a Gemco department store. I
can remember when it was being torn down. There was a Harvey's
Hamburgers drive- in across the street that is long gone too.
An
interesting aspect of this Joe Marty's sign is that there is
another incredible neon sign on the same building. Actually,
describing it as incredible would be an understatement. Let me take you thru the building
a little so you can understand this other sign.
To
the best of my recollection, back
in the 1960's, on the north-west side of the theater, within the same
building, there was a drug store. Then next door to that was Tower Records, then next door was Joe
Marty's. By the way, an interesting side note is that Russ Solomon who founded Tower Records first started
selling records there in the drug store which his father
owned. Speaking of interesting side notes, syndicated radio talk show
host Dr. Dean Edell at one time lived in a vintage bus in the Tower
Theater parking lot in his hippy days. But back to the neon
signs. I'm not exactly sure who commissioned it, but above where
the drugstore was, and where the  Tower Cafe is today, is the
greatest neon sign I've ever seen. As a matter fact, I would
speculate it's one of the greatest...perhaps thee greatest vintage
original neon sign in the world for it's size and subject. The sign I speak of is not your ordinary rectangular format,
but features a die cut type outline of a huge record with a couple dancing
in the  center
of it. I'd guesstimate the whole sign to be about 15 feet wide by
8
foot tall. For
the dancing couple the designer used an illustration style
remarkably similar to Archie's comics. You can't hear the
music but you can see it's wavy flow across the sign, along with
G clef, octave, crotchet, and quaver music notes. The sign
has Dick Clark written all over it and seems like something you
would more likely see in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, or
Philadelphia than Sacramento.
Clearly
the sign advertises vinyl records foremost, and film and
cosmetics secondary. This seems to suggest Russ Solomon had
something to do with the design, and that it may mark the beginning
of Tower Records. Both the records sign and the Joe Marty's
sign are remarkable works. How they both ended up on the same
building raises interesting questions. Is
that a coincidence or were they both created by the same
concern? When exactly were they made and who commissioned them?
Who conceived them? Were they made by a Sacramento sign company?
If so, who were the sign maker technicians who actually
fabricated it? Where did they learn their skill? Chicago? Los
Angeles? Or were they home grown Sacramento natives who were
just very talented?
Back
to the Joe Marty sign specifically; over the years I had considered trying to
buy the sign. Recently I was in the Starbucks across the street
from the Joe Marty's site and saw a for lease sign in the
window. Figuring the sign could possibly be removed to make way
for another type business, I emailed the reality company to
inquire about the sign. I received back an email explaining the
building was considered historical by the city of Sacramento,
and the sign wasn't for sale. I wasn't too put out. While
waiting for a reply I was walking around thinking, "what
have I done, how am I gonna work in a 4 1/5 foot tall by 7 foot
wide sign?" But if they'd have said yes I would have fit it
in...even if it meant a lot of ducking!
Without
deeper research impractical for this weekly feature, I can
only speculate on the cultural impact Joe Marty's may have once
had. Perhaps this brief examination will encourage further
scholarly study of this landmark establishment and it's sign.
But based on it's location
near Edmond's Field, and Marty's notoriety as a local baseball hero,
it seems possible, in it's day Joe Marty's could have been a
Sacramento institution. Perhaps in the tradition of New York City's
Toots
Shore's,
or
Chicago's Billy Goat
Tavern.
*
* *
 Thanks
to Sacramento Solons historian Alan O'Connor for his assistance
on this article. Alan is the author of Gold on the Diamond: Sacramento’s Great Baseball Players 1886 to 1976,
available
here
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