Hollywood

Understand

A business and residential district in the city of Los Angeles, the core of Hollywood for a tourist is its three fascinating boulevards: Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood Boulevard, and Melrose Avenue, all of which are worth seeing. Hollywood Blvd is known for its entertainment history, Sunset Blvd for its clubs and nightlife, and Melrose Ave for its shopping, nightlife, and eclecticism. Hollywood was founded as an independent city in 1903 and voted to merge with the City of Los Angeles in 1910. That same year also saw the birth of the Southern California motion picture industry when D. W. Griffith relocated his Biograph Company, sparking a westward migration of East Coast filmmakers. As movies exploded in popularity in the 1910s and 20s, the name Hollywood became synonymous with the American film industry. In the decades following World War II, Hollywood's glitz and glamour began to fade as most of the leading film studios moved to other places. By the 1980s, Hollywood was considered one of the worst neighborhoods in Los Angeles. The 1990s, however, saw the beginning of community redevelopment efforts, and today Hollywood is once again one of the region's most vibrant areas. Paramount is the only major film studio still headquartered in Hollywood, but the area nonetheless remains an important center of the entertainment industry with its myriad production and broadcast facilities. Smaller studios still in Hollywood include Sunset-Gower Studios, Hollywood Center Studios, Raleigh Studios, Jim Henson Studios, and Sunset Bronson Studios (housed on the original Warner Bros. lot). The other major studios are located to the north in the San Fernando Valley, particularly in Universal City (Universal), Burbank (Disney, Warner Bros.), and Glendale (DreamWorks). Most of the rest are to the west: Century City (Fox, MGM), the Fairfax District (CBS), and Culver City (Sony). Many of the studios offer tours if you want to see where films are shot. If you want to see celebrities, pack yo

Getting there

By public transit Hollywood's location is central to most other popular attractions. Metro's B Line subway service stops at Hollywood/Vine and Hollywood/Highland, and is the most direct transit connection to Downtown. Due to the traffic along the 101 freeway, it's usually quicker to take the Red Line to or from Downtown than it is to drive. It also continues north to its terminus in North Hollywood, with a stop in Universal City. Visitors from Orange County can get to Hollywood by taking Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner or Metrolink's Orange County Line to Los Angeles Union Station and then transferring to the Red Line. The stretch of Hollywood Blvd between Highland and Vine is served frequently by Metro bus lines 217 and Metro Rapid 780, while the 180 and 181 from the east terminate just before Hollywood/Vine. Sunset Boulevard is served frequently by bus lines 2 and 302, Santa Monica Boulevard by the 4 and Metro Rapid 704, and Melrose Avenue by the 10. For frequent north-south service, Vine Street is served by the 210 and La Brea Avenue by the 212 and 312. Long-distance bus service is not available into Hollywood. If taking Greyhound, the best option is to take one to the station in North Hollywood, then walk to the Metro Red Line. Other intercity bus options can be found in Downtown LA.

By car Hollywood is close enough to the Westside to make car trips there relatively easy. If you're beginning your trip in Downtown Los Angeles—the proverbial center of Southern California's intricate freeway network—you can head north on U.S. Highway 101 (Hollywood Freeway) and exit on Hollywood Blvd or Gower Street. If traffic is a problem (and it will be around the hours of 1PM-6PM), consider an alternate route such as one of the surface streets. From the west, Santa Monica Boulevard is a major thoroughfare that links Hollywood with Beverly Hills and Santa Monica.

By plane Hollywood is served by Los Angeles International Airport (LAX IATA) or the closer Hollywood Burbank A

Getting around

Hollywood sits roughly between the 101 freeway on the east, Melrose Avenue on the south, West Hollywood on the west, and the Hollywood Hills on the north. The main east-west streets of central Hollywood are Hollywood Blvd and Sunset Blvd, intersected by the main north-south streets of La Brea Ave, Highland Ave, Cahuenga Blvd, Vine St, and Gower St. Night-time pedestrian activity in this area is focused on Hollywood Blvd. The main areas of Hollywood are walkable, and you could walk all the way from Hollywood Blvd to Melrose Avenue, but the distance is far enough that most people would probably drive or take the bus.

See

Hollywood is the place for fiction tourism. If you're lucky, you can see a taping of a TV show; most of America's sitcoms, game shows, and quite a few of its talk shows are taped at any one of the major studios in the Hollywood area (quite a few dramas are filmed in these studios as well, but since they tend not to be filmed before a live studio audience, your chances of getting to see one of those live are virtually nil). Nearby Studio City, Burbank, Century City, Fairfax, and Culver City hold the most prominent studios, but in Hollywood proper, Paramount Studios is the filming location of many sitcoms and Dr. Phil, Hollywood Center Studios provides production facilities for Disney and Comedy Central, and Jimmy Kimmel Live! broadcasts from a complex adjacent to the El Capitan Theatre. In general, you'll have to call or go to the website of the show itself to get tickets.

1 Hollywood Sign. Hollywood's most recognizable landmark is easy to spot high up on Mount Lee in nearby Griffith Park. You can drive part way up for a closer look, but you can't hike all the way to the sign. The best viewpoints of the sign are from the Griffith Observatory in Griffith Park, on Mulholland Drive above the Hollywood Bowl, and from the Hollywood and Highland Center. For a rare view of the Hollywood sign with lines of palms trees on the side, go to 650 S Windsor Blvd, or further north.

2 Hollywood Walk of Fame, along Hollywood Blvd btwn La Brea Ave and Gower St, and along Vine St btwn Sunset Blvd and Yucca St. The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of a series of stars embedded in the sidewalk to commemorate famous movie, radio, theatre, and TV personalities. Since 1960, over two thousand stars have been immortalized; the schedule for upcoming star ceremonies is listed on the Walk of Fame's website. 3 Capitol Records Building (Capitol Studios), 1750 Vine St (between Hollywood Blvd and Yucca St). One of the most iconic buildings in Los Angeles. The circular tower—which contrary to popul

Do

1 Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N Highland Ave, ☏ +1-323-426-2829. America's most famous outdoor theatre hosts a summer concert series by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, a spectacular Fourth of July fireworks show set to classical music, as well as numerous other concert events. Traffic and parking can be a nightmare, so the $5 round-trip public shuttles are highly recommended