The world view of Hollywood has come a long way since the infamous landmark signature sign was built in 1923. At that early age, Hollywood was not yet the motion picture capital of the world it is today. In fact, the huge letters spelled 'HOLLYWOODLAND' and were built to advertise and sell the properties of a development in a new housing subdivision below it in the Beechwood Hills.
Perched on top of Mount Lee, the tallest peak in L.A., the letters for the original sign were thirty feet wide and fifty feet tall. They were studded with four thousand low wattage light bulbs, which were lit each night and changed daily by a caretaker who actually lived in a house behind one of the 'L's'! The total cost for the sign's construction was $21,000.00. As time went on, the light bulbs were all stolen.
The original sign which was maintained (except for the stolen bulbs) until 1939, was largely neglected until it was rebuilt in 1949. At this time, the last four letters were permanently removed. In 1978, a fund raiser granted $27,200 towards the installment of new all- steel letters and the sign was unveiled a third time to a television audience of six million. Now it stands 450 feet across, is still fifty feet tall and weighs in at 450,000 pounds.
Legendary Tinseltown has always been notorious for being glittery and glamorous, but at the same time, for being sordid and scandalous. It is all depending on who you talk to (or who you talk about)! Hedy Lamarr, glamour girl and starlet of the `30's once said 'Any girl can be glamorous. All you have to do is stand still and look stupid.' It was not so easy it seemed, to aspiring actress Peg Entwhistle who, in 1932 dramatically dove to her death from one of the sign's enormous letters. Apparently, after silent films with the advent of 'talkies,' many would-be stars lost hope for lack of having star quality voices! Cary Grant, elite Hollywood star even said, 'Everyone wants to be Cary Grant... Even I want to be Cary Grant!'
Today, it is illegal to trespass on the property. Far from the roads on an undeveloped hillside, it is fenced in and armed with a high-tech alarm system. There are still ways to enjoy a glimpse of this piece of Hollywood heritage. For the closest view possible, drive up Beechwood Blvd, which is North of Hollywood Blvd, Northeast of the downtown area. This is a long, windy road that still has many of the original 'Hollywoodland Development' homes on it. From most of the way up, the sign is in plain view. Towards the top, it is obscured. At home, log on to http://www.rfx.com/hollywood to see a twenty-four hour live spy-cam that takes random pictures at the site. Of course, when you are in Hollywood, it is always there, looming proudly above the city with many points of vantage. It isn't hard to miss -- or to marvel at-- when you see it.
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