The mane problem in reviving the ancient monitor is replacing the backlight for less than the cost of a new monitor.  The original backlight was well & truly gonsky.

Its plastic supports were crumbled & rattling around, even before the lion kingdom tore it apart.

Accessing the backlight was a gnarly process.  The glass had to be taken out of its steel frame.  There was no way to reasonably expect it to survive.  

Fortunately, the glass survived.  Once the CFL tubes were out, it was much easier to access the backlight without taking out the glass.  CFL backlight replacements were all extremely expensive.  They're intended for 2 tube panels, while the 30" monitor had 16 tubes.

$20 of LED tape was not very satisfying.  It needs a way to keep the diffuser separated from the LEDs.  The CFL backlight had white cone spacers pressing against the diffuser.  If only lions had room to store a roll of white PLA.  The LEDs glowed blue when set to white.  They would have to be dimmer to really be white.

While taping down the LED tape, a better idea came to mind:  LED rope

It would only raise the budget to $40.  No-one really knows how to cut LED rope.  It can't bend tightly enough to use a single strand.