Hollywood, a district of Los Angeles, population 123,436 and a median income of $33,409 is the most famous district of Los Angeles, CA. In 1853 on adobe hut stood in Napolar. By 1870 the land where Hollywood is today was an agricultural community thriving of many common and exotic varieties of plants. During this time land development began with plots being set up for residential living. The name "Hollywood" was coined by H.J. Whitley, the Father of Hollywood. He was a famous real estate developer who helped create the Hollywood subdivision. He and his wife named the town while they were on their honeymoon in 1886, In 1887 the real estate boom busted in the Los Angeles area except for Hollywood where it continued to grow. By 1900 it was a well established area of Los Angeles.
The famous Hollywood Towers Hotel opened in 1902 by Whitney. The hotel was opened to attract land owners and eventually became home to many Hollywood stars. It was expanded three times in the first 5 years of its opening and at one point the hotel was so large is took up an entire city block on Hollywood Blvd. It was home to several stars through the 1920s. Rudolph Valentino lived in room 264. He met his wife at the hotel, they were married at the hotel and they honeymooned in his room at the hotel. Many of the Hollywood Film giants also stayed at the hotel. In the late 1930's the hotel started to get show some wear since a new company bought the hotel and later the whole block was slated for redevelopment. The hotel was to be torn down but was saved by World War II starting and redeveloping ended. The hotel was completely run down in the 1950's and in 1956 it was razed in its current location to make way for a $10 million dollar development, a 12 story office building that was built in 1956. In 2001 the Hollywood and Highland center was built. It is a huge complex that has stores and restaurants and houses the Kodak Theater, home of the Academy Awards. I walked the red carpet, or the area it would be if it were down, nobody noticed me.
Hollywood became incorporated and a district of Los Angeles in 1903. Film making began in Hollywood in 1906 and by 1909 the first film studio began to be built. The first motion picture to be filmed in Hollywood was a 17 minute film, In Old California in 1910. The first feature film by a Hollywood Studio began shooting in 1911 at the Nestor Motion Picture Company. The film, The Square Man, was directed by Cecil B DeMille and premiered in 1914. By 1915 Hollywood became the place where most motion pictures were made. Four major film companies had studios in Hollywood; Paramount, Warner Bros, RKO and Columbia. By 1920 Hollywood became world famous as the center of the U.S. film industry. Hollywood continued to grow with the film industry and then television was added in the 1950s. There are not a lot of studions in Hollywood anymore. Most of the studios have moved to Burbank. Paramont's back lot is still in Hollywood. Hollywood still is the area where films get edited and all the film's premiers still happen at the theaters on Hollywood Blvd. It is more of tourist area and you don't see the stars, unless a premier is going on, but it is still fun to be in Hollywood especially is you are a movie buff like I am.
I have many more pictures of Grauman's Chinese Theater and Hollywood Walk of Fame that I will post later this week. By the way, I did make it to the "famous" Casting Couch - nothing happened. It was stone cold...check out the picture and you will know what I mean!
Today we are headed to Big Bear, CA. It is a mountain town that I visited a coupld of years ago. It is famous for it's lake and great ski slopes. It will also be cooler since yesterday reached 100 degrees.
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