100 years ago today, the Hollywood Sign illuminated the hills for the very first time.
But it was once a little more…verbose. When erected in 1923, the $21,000 eventual monument read “Hollywoodland.” The sign, which was created to promote a high-end real estate development, blinked first “Holly” then “wood” and finally “land,” according to the Hollywood Sign Trust. It was only meant to stand for a year and a half.
“Gradually it came to symbolize the showbiz that went on in the community below it and no one would ever dream of tearing it down or even letting it die a slow death,” a news broadcaster said about the sign in 1978 while reporting on the effort to save it.
The billboard has survived wildfires, pollution, and vandalism. By the mid-70s, the sign was in shambles. It was brought back to life thanks to a Hollywood Chamber of Commerce fundraising drive that fueled its facelift in 1978.
Fast-forward a few more decades, and here we are celebrating a century of the sign. The Hollywood Sign Trust will light up the billboard Friday with some of the original lights from 1923 to celebrate this momentous event.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok