Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Vacation: Feb 2012 [Hollywood and Highland Center and Hollywood Walk of Fame]


The Hollywood Walk of Fame..
It runs along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and 3 blocks of Vine Street, Hollywood, California. The Walk of Fame has more than 2,400 stars. Each star is a coral-pink terrazzo 5-pointed star, rimmed with brass, inlaid into a charcoal-colored terrazzo background. The upper portion of the pink star field, has name of the honoree, inlaid in brass block letters. Below the inscription, a round inlaid brass emblem indicates the category of the honoree's contributions.

There are five different categories represented by five different emblems..
Motion Picture - represented by Classic Film Camera
Broadcast Television - represented by Television Receiver
Audio Recording/ Music - represented by Phonograph Record
Broadcast Radio - represented by Radio Microphone
Theater/ Live Performance - represented by Comedy/ Tragedy Masks..

In the above image shows five stars, each has a different emblem representing the five different categories in the entertainment industry..
Beginning top left..
Classic Film Camera [for Motion picture], Television Receiver [for Broadcast Television], Phonograph Recorder [for Music], Radio Microphone [for Broadcast Radio], and Comedy/ Tragedy Masks [for Theater/ Live Performance]..

The marker reads..
This is where it all began..
At this location on August 15, 1958, the first eight Stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame were dedicated to Olive Borden, Ronald Colman, Louise Fazenda, Preston Foster, Burt Lancaster, Edward Sedgwick, Ernest Torrence and Joanne Woodward.
The Walk of Fame was completed in 1960.
Time Capsule dedicated November 2010.



Barbara Streisand

Olivia Newton-John

Antonio Banderas

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Julie Andrew

Nathan Lane

B.B.King


Hollywood and La Brae Gateway gazebo..
Known locally as: The Four Ladies of Hollywood..
A tribute to multi-ethnic women of Hollywood, features, Dorothy Dandridge [African-American], Anna May Wong [Asian-American], Dolores Del Rio [Mexican] and Mae West [Brooklyn-born American]. On the top is Marilyn Monroe in her iconic "billowing skirt" pose from the movie, "The Seven Year Itch".

Hollywood and La Brae Gateway gazebo..


Apart from the Walk of Fame, another of the highlights of the Hollywood Boulevard is the Gruman's Chinese Theater. It opened in 1927, with original silent movie "King of Kings" by Cecil B. DeMille. Since then, it has been site of more Hollywood movie premiers than any other theater.

The theater's plaza is famous for Hollywood celebrity handprints, footprints, and autographs..


Forecourt of Stars' Footprints, with
Footprints, handprints and autographs..
Location: Gruman's Chinese Theater..
There are about 200 Hollywood celebrity handprints, footprints, and autographs in the concrete of the theater's forecourt.

Tom Bradley, Mayor

Clint Eastwood

Meryl Streep

George Clooney

John Travolta

Jack Lemmon

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

Harry Potter

Star Treck


Hollywood and Highland Shopping Mall and Entertainment Complex
Next to Gruman's Chinese Theater is the Hollywood and Highland Complex, which also has the famous Hollywood and Highland Center [former Kodak Theater] - home of Academy Awards..
Here's an interesting take on, "Road to Hollywood How some of us got here" ..

[Former] Kodak Theater is now Hollywood and Highland Center..
In 2012, Eastman Kodak filed for bankruptcy protection and its sponsorship of the theatre ended. The theatre's name was changed to The Hollywood and Highland Center under the suggestion of the venue's landlord..



The Grand Staircase entrance columns hall to the Hollywood and Highland Center is flanked by columns displaying the names of winners of the Academy Awards for Best Picture since 1927-1928, with blank spaces left for future Best Picture winners well into the 21st century..


Like here we see.. the winners of 1964, 1965 and 1966..
1964 [My Fair Lady], 1965 [The Sound of Music] and 1966 [A Man of All Seasons]..

In the early 1920s, real estate developer Charles E. Toberman [the "Father of Hollywood"] envisioned a thriving Hollywood theatre district. With Sid Grauman, he opened ..
- The Egyptian (1922),
- El Capitan /"The Captain"(1926), and,
- Chinese Theatre (1927).


Egyptian Theater..
The Egyptian Theatre was the venue for the first-ever Hollywood premiere, Robin Hood, starring Douglas Fairbanks.


Egyptian Theater


El Capitan Theater
Location: 6838 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
Built/Founded: 1926
El Capitan Theatre is owned by Pacific Theatres and operated by the Walt Disney Company. It serves as the venue for many of Walt Disney Pictures' movie premieres.. The 1941 movie Citizen Kane had it's world premier here.


Chinese Theater..
It opened May 18, 1927, with the premiere of Cecil B. DeMille's film The King of Kings. Since then, been home to many premieres, including the 1977 launch of George Lucas's Star Wars. In 1944, 1945, and 1946 the Academy Awards ceremonies were held at the Chinese Theatre; they are now held at the adjacent Hollywood and Highland Center [former Kodak Theatre].
The Chinese Theater is especially famous for the numerous celebrity handprints, footprints and signatures in the cement of its forecourt.

RELATED LINK:
Vacation: Feb 2012 [Los Angeles, Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Hoover Dam, back to Los Angeles and then back to Chicago]..

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