Louie Keen, the self-proclaimed “mayor” of the Uranus Missouri complex near St. Robert, Missouri, said he’s planning to commission additional and elaborate neon signs there and is soliciting contractors for those projects.
The signs would be on the west wall of the fudge factory, plus the miniature golf course and the hamburger and ice cream shack.
Here are two Facebook posts where Keen solicited companies to pull off his vision, and he provided examples of what he’d like:
In case you’re wondering about the Campus Drive-In theater, the San Diego venue was demolished almost 40 years ago to make way for a shopping center. Its neon sign was 46 feet tall.
Anyone who’s a neon-sign contractor between the triangle of Columbia, St. Louis and Springfield in Missouri had better contact Keen at the complex or call 573-336-8758 and leave a message.
Keen has commissioned elaborate neon signs before — namely, the big one out front that features 2,000 feet of neon tubing and hundreds of chasing bulbs. That one came online in 2018.
Keen’s ideas and antics are a throwback to the goofy and gimmicky roadside attractions that drew tourists in the old days, including on Route 66.
At Uranus Missouri, Keen has opened a sideshow museum, escape room, an ax-throwing venue, a bar and grill, an outdoor outfitters store, a creamery and funnel cake stand and the now-infamous Uranus Fudge Factory and general store. Upcoming are a microbrewery and a wedding chapel.
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The Goal here is to create some new neons that will draw people from all over the world to see them.
We are building some great art on Route 66 and that helps everyone on the Route.