TI's skull gone but not forgotten

Sign change paves way for Boneyard growth

The valley's biggest bonehead is the newest guest of honor at the Neon Museum's Boneyard.

The skull from the Treasure Island sign was taken down July 10 to make way for a new TI marquee to be completed in the fall. While much of the old skull and cross bones sign will be scrapped, a single 27 1/2-foot fiberglass skull was removed and trucked to the boneyard.

Neon Museum director Sandra Harris said she hopes to mount the giant skull on a stake as the centerpiece for the boneyard. The museum is still under development, but Harris said if all goes as planned, the boneyard portion of the museum could be open to the public as soon as the end of this year.

Paid public tours are available now. Harris has enlisted the help of volunteer tour guides to direct tourists and locals through the outdoor neon sign storage yard near Cashman Field. Large tour groups are charged $5 for adults and $3 for children. Smaller groups are welcome with a minimum $50 donation to the museum.

As the sole full-time staff member, Harris said it's difficult to keep the boneyard open for regular hours or individual tours. Volunteer guides help, but with only 25 docents, the program is still in its infancy.

Volunteer tour guide Jan Fair said helping out at the Neon Museum is a truly unique opportunity.

"Let's face it, this type of museum could only happen in Las Vegas," she said.

Robert Mackey said he was attracted to the developing museum the moment he moved here.

"To me, the neon signs of Las Vegas are the greatest symbols of the city's energy, prosperity and excitement, both past and present," said the Summerlin resident. "Much like Las Vegas itself, the signs are larger than life. They combine the best of art and advertising and each sign serves as a window into and a part of the culture of Las Vegas."

Treasure Island president Scott Sibella said the new TI sign and a revamped, "sexier" pirate battle will serve as a better reflection of the hotel's target image.

For the last three years the hotel has undergone a face-lift on the inside. The arcade was reduced from 25,000 to 12,000 square feet. Pirate images were removed. Ultra lounge areas were added and rooms were redecorated.

"We knew the day would come when the outside would have to be changed, too," Sibella said as he waited outside the hotel for the skull and crossbones sign to come down.

While the new sign highlighting the "T" and "I" is a big change, the company president said people will get used to it.

"You can't satisfy 100 percent of the people, but the majority like the new sign design," he said. "It emphasizes the 'TI,' that's what a majority of our employees and guests call the place today."

The company president said showgoers can expect a revamped hotel exterior facade as a backdrop to the pirate battle. A cast of 21st century pirate men will face off against a cast of sexy siren women. The battle won't be a dated tale. Sibella said the girls' costumes came by way of the runway from a pirate-themed fashion show. He said while the show will be sexy, it won't be too risqué and he would have no qualms about his own children watching.

Sibella's 7-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son were disappointed with him when they learned their dad was changing the pirate battle. But the father said the time has come to remake a show that hasn't had an update in 10 years. The new show will most likely run longer and later at night, with fewer shows. As for whether the men beat the women, Sibella isn't ready to say.

"You're just going to have to wait and see the outcome," he said.

As local residents Jessica Uballe and Adriana Carillo watched the fireworks erupt from the fiberglass skull head, the 10-year-old cousins speculated about whether or not they will like the new pirate battle.

"It's not fair that it's for grown-ups. We should be able to see it too," Uballe said.

"I love the pirates. It will be kind of weird but kind of cool to have girls up there too. I've never seen a girl pirate," Carillo said. "But it might be cool."


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