The World's Most Famous Billboard Celebrates 100th Birthday

(Patria) - Renovated and freshly painted, the iconic 15-meter-high "Hollywood" sign in Griffith Park, in the mountains above Los Angeles, celebrates its 100th birthday.

After special events throughout the year and the announcement of major plans for this attraction, the main celebration will be held in December on Hollywood Boulevard.

Although the exact date of its installation is unknown, on the evening of December 8, 1923, the enormous sign of thirteen 15-meter-high letters was lit for the first time, and in stages: "Holly" then "Wood" then "Land", and then the entire "Hollywoodland".

It was supposed to be just an ordinary illuminated advertisement for the sale of real estate in a new city district and be dismantled after a year and a half. However, although it was both loved and hated, it still stands.

It long ago became an indispensable detail on postcards and in films, a symbol of an entire world and industry, and a cultural attraction of Los Angeles, writes Punkufer.

It was erected during 1923 as a large illuminated advertisement for a residential complex being built at its base in the Hollywood Hills.

It had four more letters than the one we know today because it spelled the name of the new neighborhood - Hollywoodland.

The first newspaper articles about the "electric" sign, which was, in fact, "enhanced" with 4,000 light bulbs that illuminated it at night, appeared in December 1923.

First, the first five letters "Holly" would light up, then "Wood", then "Land". This previously unseen effect was a true wonder because nothing similar existed in the world at the time: Vegas began to be built only two decades later.

In 1932, young actress Peg Entwistle, whom the tabloids dubbed "The Hollywood Sign Girl", jumped to her death from the 15-meter-high letter "h" and became a tragic and lasting inspiration for discussions about the attractions and dangers of Hollywood.

The sign became hated, and by the early 1940s it was completely dilapidated, and it had long since stopped shining because it was too expensive, until at the end of the decade it was finally decided to renovate it, but without the last four letters, and it became - an advertisement for Hollywood.

The sign was declared a cultural-historical monument of Los Angeles in 1973, but despite this, it was still not properly maintained, so when the first letter collapsed and it remained "Ollywood", they mocked it for speaking in a "cockney" dialect.

Later, the top of the letter "d" and the entire third "o" spectacularly rolled down Lee Mountain, and the second "l" was set on fire by an arsonist. At the end of the 1970s, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner saved it.

He organized a "sales party" at his famous mansion, and the buyers were celebrities or companies, including Alice Cooper and Warner Bros. The amount of about $27,000 per letter was enough for a complete restoration.

The old sign was demolished, and three months later a new one was erected. Made of steel, on steel pillars and a solid concrete foundation, it was incomparably more durable than the old one, which was made of wood and sheet metal.

But a new problem arose in 2010 when the land in Griffith Park on which the sign stands was put up for sale - the city of Los Angeles did not have the money to buy it, so Hefner - again - came to the rescue.

Although the sign has undoubtedly become a symbol of Los Angeles and Hollywood, it has also built a successful film career - with frequent appearances in the frame, it has been destroyed at least eight times, such as in "Superman" or "The Day After Tomorrow".

The foundation that manages it therefore even demands that it have its own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The same foundation - the Hollywood Sign Trust, on the sign's 100th birthday, announced the construction of a visitor center with lecture halls, a cinema, a museum, a souvenir shop, and restrooms.

The last is probably highlighted due to tense relations with neighbors. The beloved attraction, namely, was accessed through residential neighborhoods, so residents even forced IT companies to change navigation instructions, and around the sign itself there are no facilities for the crowd of visitors coming to the Santa Monica Mountains.

The only permitted access to the sign is actually via a hiking trail, and tour guides will gladly recommend several places in the city from which the sign is clearly visible and which are easier to reach.