Wildwood Doo Wop.com

An architectural expression of the creavitiy, exuberance and optimism of the nation at the dawn of the Space Age, the Satellite was arguably Will Morey's masterpiece, and one of the Wildwoods' signature "Doo Wop" landmarks. Despite a valiant effort to save it, the motel was closed and demolished after the 2004 season, setting off a wave of redevelopment (particularly in the Crest) that winter. The Satellite was located on the northeast corner of Atlantic & Aster in the Crest, two blocks west of the beach and six blocks south of the Wildwood border. It was neighbored to the north for many years by Schumann's Restaurant/Hudson's Restaurant, with which it shared a visual symmetry. To the immediate east was (and remains) the Crystal Sands Motel.

• Will Morey not only designed the Satellite, but was the motel's original owner.
• 1958 was a banner year for motel construction in the Crest. Along with the Satellite, the Caribbean Motel, El Reno Motel (later South Beach Motel), Sand Castle Motel, Swan Motel and Tangiers Motel all opened for business. The Rio Motel, in Wildwood proper, also made its debut that spring.
• The motel featured a two-story lobby building that included the office and a lounge. It opened to a sun deck from the second floor, which overlooked the pool area and Atlantic Ave.
• The Satellite was featured prominently in Thomas Hine's 1986 book, Populuxe.
• The complex that was erected in the motel's place was named the Satellite Condominiums, though it bears no resemblance to the former.
• The Satellite's famed rooftop neon sign was installed as part of the Neon Garden at the Doo Wop Experience museum in May of 2008.

The Satellite was located in the Crest Historical District. Info on Populuxe by Thomas Hine
http://thomashine.com/work5.htm Al Alven, Wildwood Doo Wop Team

In my opinion (and many others'), the Satellite ranks among the top three most significant 'Doo Wop losses' of all-time, along with the Ebb Tide Motel and Casa Bahama Motel. It was a truly special, one-of-a-kind structure that can never be replaced. It would be great, however, to see a new structure, or the refurbishment of another motel, with design elements that echo that of the Satellite, and/or other classics that have been lost.