The HOLLYWOOD sign, on a typical smog-filled Los Angeles day
The Hollywood Sign originally said "Hollywoodland" before it was shortened in 1945. The Hollywood Sign is the most famous sign in the world. It is located on Mount Lee in Griffith Park overlooking Hollywood. It is illegal to hike to the Hollywood Sign
The Sign
was built in 1923 to read Hollywoodland, as a publicity ploy to promote sales of
homes in a subdivision by the same name along Beachwood Canyon. Original cost
was $21,000. Letters were 30 feet wide and 50 feet tall, and were studded with
low wattage light bulbs, 4,000 altogether. The Sign was expected to last a year
and a half. Maintenance of the Sign was discontinued in 1939. Late in 1944, the
M. H. Sherman Company, developers of the Hollywoodlands, quit claimed to the
City of Los Angeles about 455 acres of land adjoining Griffith Park, which
property included the Sign. In 1949, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce entered
into a contract with the Department of Recreation and Parks to repair and
rebuild the Sign and to remove "land" so that it would spell HOLLYWOOD. The cost
was estimated to be $4,000. The light bulbs had long before been stolen, and the
City stipulated that any new illumination would be at the expense of the
Chamber. The Sign was declared Los Angeles Cultural-Historical Monument #111 in
1973 by the Cultural Heritage Board of the City of Los Angeles. A fundraising
campaign was launched in April of 1978 by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce to
rebuild the Sign after it had seriously deteriorated. Donors contributed $27,700
each to buy a replacement letter. Work to rebuild the Sign began in August of
1978 and was finished by November. Pacific Outdoor Advertising Company, in
conjunction with Hughes Helicopters and Heath Sign Company, demolished the
remains of the old Sign and installed new all-steel letters in its place. The
Sign now stretches 450 feet across the side of Mount Lee, and is still 50 feet
tall. It weighs 450,000 pounds. The new Hollywood Sign was unveiled live on
November 14, 1978, on Hollywood's 75th anniversary before a television audience
of 60 million. Primary responsibility for the maintenance and preservation of
the Sign rests with the Hollywood Sign Trust. The trustees are named by the
Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and the City of Los Angeles.
Altering the Sign
The current Hollywood Sign.
It is illegal and highly dangerous to make alterations to the Sign. Although the
City in the past has allowed it on occasion for commercial purposes, current
City policy does not permit changes to be made, due to neighborhood opposition
and accidents that have occurred in the past. However, a great deal of interest
has been shown in some of the times that the Sign was unofficially altered. Some
of the more famous illegal modifications have included:
HOLYWOOD -
September 1987, for Pope John Paul II's arrival
OLLYWOOD - July 1987, during Iran-Contra hearings
CALTECH - May 1987, on Hollywood's 100th birthday
FOX - April 1987, promotion for the TV network
HOLLYWOOD II - April 1986, to mark revitalization of area
RAFFEYSOD - January 1985, meaning never determined
HOLLYWEED - December 1983, for a movie filming
GO NAVY - November 1983, before a game at the Rose Bowl
HOLLYWEED - January 1976, noting new state marijuana law
Believe it or not, this is the road (now closed with a barricade) which gets you to the sign. Without a car, its quite a long hike. Should once decide to go for it anyhow, you would find that the area around the sign is fenced off, and I think it would be a wise idea to heed warning and no trespassing signs.
