Sassy signs of the times
Over its 77-year history, the Penthouse Night Club has been known for many things; lately it is getting local and international attention for its marquee signs.
January 27th, 2026
Benjamin "The Sign Guy' Jackson has written messages for the Penthouse Nightclub marquee for nearly a decade.
“It’s okay if people don’t know my name, or just call me ‘The Sign Guy.’ In the early days, on Reddit, they referred to me as ‘The Marquee Boy.’ I just like making the city laugh through that sign—and that’s the point in the end. The sign speaks for itself!”
Vancouver’s historic Penthouse Night Club has had its fair share of pushback over the years—from police raids during its time operating as an illegal bottle club to being temporarily shut down on Christmas Eve, 1975 and later charged with living off the avails of prostitution.
But it’s the Penthouse’s marquee with its sassy messages that has been getting attention in recent years, including getting its X account (@ThePenthouse604) suspended last January over letters that spelled out “Forever neighbours, never neighbors.” The message highlighted the way Canadians and Americans spell words differently but it was also around the time US president-elect, Donald Trump starting making swipes about Canada becoming the 51st state.
Four years previously, after the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot in Washington DC, the Penthouse marquee touted its bouncers with: “Better security than the U.S. Capitol.”
Marquee photographs by Justin Filipone, Joshua Coleman and Benjamin Jackson
At a Coldplay concert in July, 2025, a couple was caught embracing on one of the large overhead video screens and singer Chris Martin wondered out loud if the couple was having an affair because they had ducked out of view so quickly. It made headlines around the world and the couple’s “outing” led to job resignations as the couple worked together at the same company. The Penthouse quickly responded on its marquee with: “Relax Guys, Coldplay isn’t here.” Someone took a photo of the sign and posted it on social media, garnering 10,000,000 views by the end of the day, and 22,000,000 views on Instagram by the end of the weekend.
Now there’s a book celebrating the Penthouse’s special brand of humour, A Sign of the Times: The Best of the Penthouse Marquee (Anvil $30) by Benjamin Jackson & Aaron Chapman, featuring glossy photos of some of the more well-known marquee signs. Many are bawdy, some are political and others are just plain witty. Readers learn that the co-author, Benjamin (“The Sign Guy”) Jackson who works as a Penthouse bartender, is also the one who comes up with the jokes and messages. Jackson tells how he finds his ideas and shares some of his personal favourite signs from the past—many of which have been shared millions of times online.
“The whole thing started with me trying to make my friends at work laugh,” says Jackson, later adding, “We just wanted to have some fun and get some notice and promo for the club.”
Marquee photographs by Justin Filipone, Joshua Coleman and Benjamin Jackson
“It’s okay if people don’t know my name, or just call me ‘The Sign Guy.’ In the early days, on Reddit, they referred to me as ‘The Marquee Boy.’ I just like making the city laugh through that sign—and that’s the point in the end. The sign speaks for itself!”
Cultural historian, Aaron Chapman says the Penthouse signs have given attention to Vancouver and its local culture as well as the nightclub. “Vancouver doesn’t enter the national or global realm of pop culture too often,” says Chapman. “Our media is often overshadowed by images from New York or Toronto. We might see movies and TV shows where we recognize our own city street—but Vancouver never plays itself. When we see another of Ben’s outrageous or funny signs, online or in the news, we’re reminded that the sign is one of us. It’s from Vancouver, and from Seymour Street. It’s like spotting the face of a friend we know in a crowd of people. That’s the Penthouse marquee.” 9781772142501
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