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The Hollywood Sign is a famous landmark in the Hollywood Hills area of Mount Lee, Santa Monica Mountains, in Los Angeles, California.
The iconic sign spells out the name of the area in 45-foot-tall (14 meters) and 350-foot-long (110 meters) white letters. It was created as an advertisement in 1923, but garnered increasing recognition after the sign was left up. The sign was a frequent target of pranks and vandalism but has since undergone restoration, including a security system to deter vandalism. The sign is protected and promoted by the Hollywood Sign Trust, a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to physically maintain, repair and secure the sign, to educate the world about its historical and cultural importance, and to raise the funds necessary to accomplish these projects.
The sign was first erected in 1923 and originally read “HOLLYWOODLAND”. Its only purpose was to advertise the name of a new housing development in the hills above the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. It’s expected life was to be about a year and a half, but after the rise of the American cinema in Los Angeles it became an internationally recognized symbol, and was left there.
DIRECTIONS TO THE HOLLYWOOD SIGN:
(From Hollywood Blvd/Kodak Theater)
- Head east toward Gower St
- Turn left at Gower St and continue toward Franklin Ave
- Turn right at Franklin Ave and merge into the left lane
- At next intersection, turn left at Beachwood Dr
- Follow Beachwood Dr for about 1.2 miles to Ledgewood Dr
- Turn left at Ledgewood Dr and continue up until you reach a fork in the road
- Turn slight left and continue up following Ledgewood Dr for 2 more blocks
- After passing Heather Dr, look for a very sharp right hand turn onto Rockcliff Dr
- Follow Rockcliff Dr up-hill until you reach Deronda Dr
- Turn left on Deronda Dr and follow it to the end of the cul-de-sac
