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Hollywood has been anything but static, however, and after a few decades as the capital of film glamour, the neighborhood changed again. Although much of the studio work remained in Hollywood, many stars moved to Beverly Hills, and the elegant shops and restaurants left with them.
In the 1960s, music recording studios and offices began moving to Hollywoodan offshoot of the nightclubs further west on Sunset Boulevard. Other businesses, however, continued to migrate to different parts of the city. Hollywood today is a diverse, vital, and active community striving to preserve the elegant buildings from its past. Much of the movie industry remains in the area, although the neighborhood's outward appearance has changed.
In 1985, the Hollywood Boulevard commercial and entertainment district was officially listed in the National Register of Historic Places protecting the neighborhood's important buildings and seeing to it that the significance of Hollywood's past would always be a part of its future.
World's Largest Movie Studio and Theme ParkSM
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Face the rage of the world's first blockbuster roller coaster,Revenge of the MummySM – The Ride. Now open! |
Escape into the thrilling worlds of Jurassic Park®, Terminator and other blockbuster movies.
Enter, if you dare, into the dark and supernatural world of 19th century Transylvania in Van Helsing: Fortress Dracula, now open!
Immerse yourself in the movie action with pulse-pounding rides and full-sensory attractions.
Universal Studios Hollywood puts you so close you can hear the cameras rolling. Get an inside look at the sets and uncover the behind-the-scenes secrets of legendary films.
Hollywood Walk of Fame
A tribute to over 2000 artists who have made significant contributions to film, radio, television, theatre and the recording industries. The first star placed on February 9 1960, was for Joanne Woodward. One of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions, the Walk of Fame lies on both sides of Hollywood Blvd. from Gower to La Brea and both sides of Vine Street, from Yucca to Sunset. The Silver Four Ladies of Hollywood Gazebo, at Lea Brea, should not be missed.
The lyrics of "Celluloid Heroes"*, an old song by The Kinks, tell us:
"You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Blvd... "
Well, most days you are unlikely to see any real movie stars here on the Boulevard, but if you look down at your feet, you'll see the kind "stars" Ray Davies sang about: the bronze star-plaques, embedded in pink & charcoal terrazzo squares on the world's most famous sidewalk: the Hollywood Walk of Fame.These renowned sidewalk "stars" salute the celebrities who made Hollywood great - from the silent film stars of yesteryear to the modern action heroes of today's blockbusters. As the song says, you'll see the names of:"...Some that you recognize,some that you hardly even heard of; People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame, Some who succeeded, and some who suffered in vain..." *
Hollywood's Grauman's Chinese Theater is home to the hand & footprints of the Hollywood Stars
To visit Hollywood and not the see Grauman's Chinese Theater is like visiting China and not seeing the Great Wall.
Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood is the most famous movie theatre in the world. Millions of visitors flock here each year, drawn by its famous forecourt with its hands & footprints of the Hollywood Stars set in cement. Ted Mann purchased Grauman's in 1973, becoming the first individual to own the Chinese Theatre. In 1986, Mann sold the theater to Paramount Pictures, which sold a half interest to Warner Bros. Warner Bros. and Paramount continue to own the theater today. The theater was known as Mann's Chinese from 1973 until 2001, when the original name of Grauman's was restored.
Hollywood Sign
If there is one landmark that says "Hollywood" to the world - literally! - it is the famous Hollywood Sign, perched high atop Mount Lee, the tallest peak in L.A.
The Sign measures 450 feet long, its mammoth letters are 45 feet high, and it's visible from all parts of Hollywood. Erected in 1923 as an advertising sign for a real estate development in Beachwood Canyon, the Sign originally read "Hollywoodland." The last four letters were removed in 1945, after Hollywood had become the world's movie capital, and the Sign had already become a well-known landmark. (In fact, it's been officially declared "Los Angeles Cultural-Historical Monument #111.")
In 1932, during the Great Depression, one despondent young actress, Peg Entwistle, even jumped to her death from the Sign's giant letter "H."
The original sign contained thousands of light bulbs, which were changed daily by a caretaker who lived in a small house behind one of the Sign's giant "L's."
And in the 1998 Disney remake of "Mighty Joe Young," the oversized ape climbs the Hollywood Sign and perches in one of its giant letter "O."s
Hollywood Guinness of World Record Museum
This isn't really a Hollywood museum, so much as it is a museum located in the heart of Hollywood.
The Guinness World of Records is a new attraction located right onHollywood Boulevard, just a block east of the Chinese Theatre.Given the sad state of affairs on the Boulevard back in 1994, we were grateful when anything new opened on that formerly faded thoroughfare. And at least this new museum contains a special section about Hollywood. It is also housed in the historic Hollywood Theatre, which was built in 1938 (although most of the theatre's exterior is now hidden behind a gaudy new facade.)
As you might expect, the new Guinness museum is devoted to the same kind of world records that you would find in the famous Guinness Book of World Records - from the world's heaviest man, to the world's largest apple. Its displays include records set in sports, eating, architecture, the animal kingdom... you name it.
For the most part, the Guinness museum does not try to exploit the bizarre and freakish aspects of life, as its neighbor Ripley's does. While you may see displays about the world's tallest or heaviest people here, you will find nothing to compare to, say, the disgusting bottle of "fetal mice wine" which is on display at the Ripley's next door. There are, fortunately, no shrunken heads or six-legged pigs here.
And the Guinness museum is neither musty nor dated like the Hollywood Wax Museum across the street (despite the fact that both museums are owned by the same people). This new exhibition is professional, spacious, bright, colorful, clean, and modern.
For a while there, it looked like glamour is dead on Hollywood Boulevard. But no more. The El Capitan Theatre (just east ofMann's Chinese Theatre) has recently been restored to its former glory by the Walt Disney company.
Actually, "restoration" doesn't do justice to what the company has accomplished. The El Capitan has been transformed once more into a classic movie palace of exquisite beauty, complete with a grand, glittering marquee out front, and a plush, classic interior that will knock your socks off. The theatre may not be as large as some others, but no local theatre has looked this grand since the glory days of Hollywood.
The El Capitan began as a live theatre in 1926. It boasted a 120-foot stage, and featured plays on stage with stars that included Clark Gable, Buster Keaton, Will Rogers, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Henry Fonda, Lon Chaney, Jr., and Jason Robards. It was a "legitimate" theatre until 1942, when it became the Paramount movie theatre. It was the site of the world premiere of "Citizen Kane."
Today, Pacific's El Capitan shows new, first-run movies from the Walt Disney / Touchstone studios. In fact, all of Disney's recent major animated classics, such as "The Lion King," "Aladdin," "Beauty & the Beast," "Hercules," and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" have had their world premieres at this theatre.
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