Arizona Motel, South Tucson, Arizona

And speaking of neon, here's a picture of one of my all-time favorite signs -- the Arizona Motel on 6th Street, old US 89 in South Tucson. The first time I saw it I gasped. This picture is good (click the thumbnail to see the full-sized image), but it doesn't capture the effect on the eye of a passing driver.

Each letter is made out of two different neon colors, and the effect is three-dimensional. The lower and left sides of each letter are blue, the upper and right sides are red, creating a shadow effect.

Realizing this effect required some creative neon design. Take a look at the O in MOTEL. The blue tube runs along the bottom left outer ring, then crosses over and continues as the top right inner ring. The red tube does the opposite.