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Beginning with the color of the sky, the orange and purple represents the Phoenix Suns founded in 1968. The famous Mr. Lucky’s neon sign represents the energy of entertainment and a gambling-like Grand Avenue, in Las Vegas style. The silhouette of Camelback Mountain is on the horizon. Veterans Memorial Coliseum was built in 1965. Two cars are featured, including a Studebaker police car (the officers are shooting at unseen criminals…only seen by the fire out of their guns) and a 1957 Chevy Bel Air representing the fun of cruising on Central. Bob’s Big Boy restaurant on Central Avenue was an iconic landmark. Bob is holding a burger representing the Phoenix 40! Behind Bob is a vignette representing the fight for civil rights. Martin Luther King, Jr. visited Phoenix in 1964 and he is shown with Lincoln Ragsdale, an important activist for the rights of minorities. Included is a typical sign displayed at businesses who did not want to serve anyone but whites. The figure holding a sign is taken from a photograph of a civil rights protest in Phoenix. A canal flows through this scene at bottom left. The mural is by Lucretia Torva. Her website is http://www.torvafineart.com/

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Phabulous Phoenix History Mural