Wayne McAllister (1907-2000) was a Los Angeles-based architect who was a leader in the Googie style of architecture that embraced the automobile. Inspired by tail fins and gleaming chrome, he elevated the drive-in restaurant and the theme hotel to futuristic works of art. His 1941 El Rancho Vegas was the very first resort hotel on the Las Vegas Strip and his iconic 1949 Bob's Big Boy restaurant in Burbank, California is a state of California hist...
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Wayne McAllister (1907-2000) was a Los Angeles-based architect who was a leader in the Googie style of architecture that embraced the automobile. Inspired by tail fins and gleaming chrome, he elevated the drive-in restaurant and the theme hotel to futuristic works of art. His 1941 El Rancho Vegas was the very first resort hotel on the Las Vegas Strip and his iconic 1949 Bob's Big Boy restaurant in Burbank, California is a state of California historical landmark. He created the iconic circular drive-in restaurants in Southern California, including Simon's, Herbert's and Robert's in the 1930s.
His first major commission was the Agua Caliente Casino and Hotel of 1928, a resort casino and race track that presaged his work in Las Vegas. McAllister designed restaurants and nightclubs including Pig 'n Whistle, Mike Lyman's, Van De Kamp's, Lawry's, Cinegrill in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and restaurants and nightclubs at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel including the Biltmore Bowl, home to...
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