Post #233748 by John in Montreal on Wed, May 24, 2006 12:15 PM

Sabina,

Thanks for your interest in my writing about the Wildwoods... and thanks for posting the great pictures of a few of the remaining motels. (Have a look here for some of my pictures of vintage Wildwood neon signs: http://web.mac.com/jtbcmac/iWeb/JandB/Wildwood%20Neon.html)

I'm sorry to say that, after my last trip to Wildwood Crest last summer, I think I've given up on the Wildwoods. It seems to me that folks went a long way in building up a resurgence in popularity for the area over the past decade but then blew it when it came to real preservation efforts.

As great as it has been to see so much media coverage of the Wildwoods in the past few years, why have so few of the articles focused on actual, real preservation efforts... or on the architects who had a hand in designing Wildwoods' motels and commercial architecture... or on neon artists...? I've seen more articles mention Chubby Checker's introduction of The Twist in a Wildwood nightclub than I care to remember but features on the original architects of Wildwood are few and far between. Working class Wildwood was never upper crust Palm Springs and the anonymous architects who designed the motels in these NJ shore communities were not necessarily high profile folks like Frey, Neutra, Wexler et al... but a little respect and recognition may have helped foster a bit more appreciation of their work. It seems that those pushing to get Wildwood back on the map were more interested in creating a generic-50s-fun-rock-n-roll theme town rather than in fostering an appreciation for real mid-20th century design and architecture.

I also take exception with the whole "neo-Doo Wop" realm of thinking. Having guidelines to help folks build a new diner or motel in a "1950s style" does nothing to foster preservation of actual vintage design, in my opinion.

Anyway, just my thoughts and opinions... The Wildwoods (and the Kona Kai) meant a lot to me but I think, from now on, I will have to content myself with reminiscing about the ghosts of a neon past.