Here Is How The Hollywood Sign Became The Face Of American Cinema

Hollywood has been around since 1907. Here바카라�s how the sign became the centre of the Hollywood landscape

Updated on: 18 January 2024 10:35 am

The sign was originally nothing but an advertisement technique to sell houses

The Hollywood sign has always been one of the biggest symbols of American cinema. It바카라�s also one of the first images that flash in front of your eyes when someone starts talking about Hollywood. And to think that it was originally nothing but a flashy advertisement technique to sell houses!

The brainchild of Los Angeles Times publisher Harry Chandler, 바카라�Hollywoodland바카라� was a $21,000, 45-feet-high sign erected in the Santa Monica hills on Mount Lee to promote an upmarket real estate project. Flaunting white block letters, the sign was illuminated by 4,000 light bulbs that coruscated 바카라�Holly바카라�, 바카라�Wood바카라� and 바카라�Land바카라� separately, which grabbed a lot of eyeballs. The sign was supposed to stay up for 18 months only but ended up being the face of the American film industry. But mind you, it didn바카라�t always look this pretty.

We have the Playboy founder Hugh Hefner to thank for saving the sign Shutterstock

The Hollywood sign has had its fair share of ups and downs. After a lot of wear and tear, with the sign reading 바카라�Ollywood바카라� for a while, in the 70s, it needed a makeover. Apparently, the third 바카라�O바카라� had rolled down the hill and someone tried to light an 바카라�L바카라� on fire. The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce decided to rebuild the sign from scratch. We have the Playboy founder Hugh Hefner to thank for saving the sign, since he was the one who, with the help of Alice Cooper and eight other donors, raised $250,002. The nine individuals were each credited with a letter! It took a shock rocker, a film producer and some other affiliates to rebuild the sign.

The citizens of Los Angeles have witnessed the sign reading a lot of interesting things over the years. In 1976, they woke up to the sight of a huge white 바카라�HOLLYWEED바카라� running across the Santa Monica hills. Artist Zachary Cole Fernandez had gotten a little artsy to celebrate the legalization of recreational marijuana in California.

The Hollywood Sign has a number of urban myths and legends tied to it. Although it has a rocky past, the Hollywood Sign has always remained a sign of American pop culture and movie magic.