Helen Liu Fong

Helen Liu Fong (January 14, 1927 – April 17, 2005) was an American architect and interior designer from Los Angeles, California. Fong was an important figure in the Googie architecture movement, designing futuristic buildings like Norms Restaurant, the Holiday Bowl, Denny's, Bob's Big Boy, and Pann's Coffee Shop that helped usher in an era of boomerang angles, dynamic forms and neon lights. Fong worked with Armet and Davis on many of her most well-known projects. Many of Fong's best-known building designs feature large glass fronts and bold colors on interior walls, designed to stand out and entice potential customers.

Background and education Fong was born in Chinatown, Los Angeles to Chinese immigrant parents, one of five children. Fong grew up working in her family's laundry business, and knew by age 12 that she wanted to become an architect. She began attending University of California, Los Angeles in 1943, transferring to University of California, Berkeley after two years. Fong graduated with a degree in city planning from the University of California, Berkeley in 1949. One of her first projects with the firm was their first Googie-style building, The Clock Restaurant in Westchester, where Fong recommended the use of bright, strong wall colors that would be easily visible from the roadside.