VIDEO VAULT | Meet the woman who kept Las Vegas shining bright

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — Take a drive through the Resort Corridor these days and most of the large-scale signs you see utilize the modern possibilities of LED lighting.

News 3 has looked into the business of illuminating Las Vegas many times over the years.

Three and a half decades ago, reporter Darwin Morgan was searching for a new angle.

"There are hundreds and thousands of light bulbs here in Las Vegas, and we've done the stories on people who go and change those light bulbs so that the lights stay bright," said Morgan in January of 1985. "Tonight, we're doing the story of the person who goes and finds the lights when they're out, so they can be replaced."

"Meet Blanche Lenford," continued Morgan, as viewers were transported to the inside of a car making a left turn from westbound Fremont to southbound Main in front of the Golden Gate Casino.

"She has - on and off for the last 20 years - done nothing but drive the downtown area and the Strip. Her sole mission: to find lights that are burnt out."

The view switched to the famous sign from the Dunes Hotel, where the Bellagio is today. One of the red neon lights on the perimeter had gone dark.

"Tonight, she's with her daughter," said Morgan, "and with tape recorder in hand, they make verbal notes of what is not right, and what crews need to fix during the daylight hours."

The story then focused on the Silver Slipper, which used to be in front of the casino of the same name. Today it can be found on Las Vegas Boulevard North with the toe pointing at the Neon Museum.

"Blanche is proud of the fact that in her own small way, she is responsible for keeping the Strip bright for all of us and all the tourists."

"The city, you know when tourists come to Las Vegas and they see things in working order...things are nice looking, they like to come back," reasoned Lenford.

"And that makes you feel good knowing that you had a little part in that?" queried Morgan.

"Mm-hm," Lenford nodded in the affirmative.

"Blanche's husband is the owner of a local sign company," said Morgan. "And they are on contract with nearly all the major casinos. They even try to pick up a little extra business by going to the ones that aren't their customers and telling them when they have lights out."

The camera then showed the famous Frontier sign, which was demolished along with the hotel of the same name in 2007.

Viewers were also treated to the exterior of the Stardust, which was imploded in 2005 to make way for Echelon Place, a project which stalled out during the recession in 2008. Today it's where Resorts World is taking shape.

"For Blanche, her nightshift is only a few hours long, two nights a week," concluded Morgan. "But in Las Vegas, it's an important shift. On the Strip, Darwin Morgan, News 3 Nightside."

Morgan left Channel 3 to work as a public information officer for the Department of Energy, a position he still holds today.