Betty Willis: Artist who designed 'Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas' sign, dies aged 91

Neon creation has welcomed visitors to the Nevada city since 1959

Betty Willis' welcome sign was commissioned in 1959 (AP)

Betty Willis was never entirely satisfied with her most famous creation, but it was known – and loved – around the world.

For more than 50 years, her “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign played host to countless weddings and sightseers, and offered a bold, neon greeting to people arriving at the city in the desert.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Ms Willis, whose sign was commissioned and erected in 1959, had died at her home in Overton, 40 miles north of Las Vegas. She was 91.

Ms Willis’s daughter, Marjorie Holland, told The Independent that her mother had never been satisfied with the sign and thought the way the word “fabulous” appeared did not flow sufficiently.

“She liked the word fabulous to describe Las Vegas because Las Vegas is fabulous," she said. "But she did not like the font. Of course, all the letters had to be hand-drawn."

The artist’s sign sits in the middle of Las Vegas Boulevard, also known as Interstate 15. It was commissioned by a group of casino owners who wanted to welcome people to a city that was then still in its nascent days as a resort.

With typical Las Vegas gusto, Danielle Kelly, executive director of the Neon Museum in Las Vegas, said it was one of a kind. “It’s the most recognisable icon in the world,” she told the Associated Press.

Betty Willis' welcome sign was commissioned in 1959 (AP)

In 2008, the local authorities spent $400,000 to build a car-park to make it easier for sightseers to stop. In 2009, the sign was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Mrs Holland said her mother, who had attended art school in Los Angeles, last visited her creation on on May 20 2013, for her 90th birthday, when she marvelled at that expensive car park.

She said the sign was known by people around the world and that it had endured down the years in a city that barely sat still. She added: “It’s the one thing that they have not blown up or knocked down or changed.”