© All Rights Reserved 2026 | Privacy Policy
Tax ID / EIN: 23-7441306
Skyline of Las Vegas
Real news. Real stories. Real voices.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Supported by
We are experiencing technical difficulties with our transponder in Elko, NV. Our engineers are currently working on the issue. For uninterrupted listening, tune in via the live stream on knpr.org or listen on the NPR App.

NASA is over, but space-age roadside architecture lives

One writer ponders the significance of Googie architecture -- that jaunty style obsessed with flare and lift -- in the context of NASA closing a chapter on the Space Race. But visit this site if only for the cool collage video on Las Vegas roadside signage and Googie buildings.

Ah, yes, architecture. Space and modernism connected to give us nearly 20 years worth of boomerang-shaped gas stations and amoeba-like signage. This pretty cool YouTube video shows Las Vegas architecture in this vernacular, but you can find it everywhere if you look hard enough.

Tags
As a longtime journalist in Southern Nevada, native Las Vegan Andrew Kiraly has served as a reporter covering topics as diverse as health, sports, politics, the gaming industry and conservation. He joined Desert Companion in 2010, where he has helped steward the magazine to become a vibrant monthly publication that has won numerous honors for its journalism, photography and design, including several Maggie Awards.