Ben Frank's was a restaurant in West Hollywood, California, opened in 1962 by Arthur Simms and Bob Ehrman. The location, surrounded by the famous nightclubs of the

Sunset Strip The Sunset Strip is the stretch of Sunset Boulevard that passes through the city of West Hollywood, California. It extends from West Hollywood's eastern border with the city of Los Angeles near Marmont Lane to its western border with Beverly H ...

, led to a celebrity clientele, and the 24-hour restaurant became a popular late night destination. The distinctive googie architecture and eye-catching neon sign helped attract musicians like Jim Morrison and

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

, as well as patrons of the nearby music venues. The youthful patrons that frequented the restaurant inspired the producers of the '' Monkees'' TV show to place an ad seeking "spirited Ben Frank's types" when casting the show in 1965. Arthur Simms and his son Thomas Simms went on to open two more Ben Frank's locations and started the Copper Penny and Wooden Shoe restaurant chains. In 1976, they acquired The Kettle restaurant in Manhattan Beach, California. In the 1970s, they became partners in the French Market restaurant in West Hollywood, California, which became the model for their first Mimi's Cafe restaurant, which opened in Anaheim in 1978. The company was sold to Bob Evans in 2004 and the original Ben Frank's was closed. Mel's Drive-In renamed and rehabilitated the building in 2007, redesigning much of the interior and adding new windows but maintaining the distinctive A-Frame architecture and replacing the letters on the original sign structure. The original neon letters are on display at the

Valley Relics Museum Valley Relics Museum is a museum located in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. The ''LA Weekly'' named the Valley Relics Museum one of its 2017 winners of "Best Of L.A.: Arts & Entertainment". Founded in 2013 by Tommy Gelinas, Valley Relics ...

in Van Nuys, California. The sign and the original Ben Frank's are briefly visible in the 1966

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

concert film ''

The Big T.N.T. Show ''The Big T.N.T. Show'' is a 1966 concert film. Directed by Larry Peerce and distributed by American International Pictures, it includes performances by numerous popular rock and roll and R&B musicians from the United States and the United Kingd ...

''. In 2020, following widespread restaurant closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mel's reinstituted carhop service.

References

* (previously published in 1986 as ''Googie: Fifties Coffee Shop Architecture'' ) * * * {{Restaurants in Los Angeles County Defunct restaurants in Hollywood, Los Angeles Restaurants established in 1962 Commercial buildings in Los Angeles Modernist architecture in California Googie architecture in California Googie architecture Restaurants in Greater Los Angeles Companies based in Los Angeles County, California