1 00:00:01,960 --> 00:00:07,240 Speaker 1: Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of iHeartRadio. Hey Brainstuff, Lauren 2 00:00:07,240 --> 00:00:11,800 Speaker 1: bolbabaum Here. The Hollywood Sign is California's most famous billboard 3 00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:15,480 Speaker 1: turned landmark. It's turning one hundred this year, so today, 4 00:00:15,680 --> 00:00:19,439 Speaker 1: let's look back at its first century of history. Perched 5 00:00:19,480 --> 00:00:22,120 Speaker 1: at the top of Mount Lee in Griffith Park above 6 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:25,400 Speaker 1: the sprawl of Los Angeles, the Hollywood Sign appears in 7 00:00:25,440 --> 00:00:29,160 Speaker 1: the background of countless film scenes and tourist photos for 8 00:00:29,320 --> 00:00:31,600 Speaker 1: the article. This episode is based on How Stuff Work. 9 00:00:31,680 --> 00:00:35,360 Speaker 1: Spoke with Casey Schreiner, author of the guidebook Discovering Griffith Park, 10 00:00:35,520 --> 00:00:39,000 Speaker 1: a locals guide. He said, it's hard to think about 11 00:00:39,159 --> 00:00:42,280 Speaker 1: LA and not picture the Sign. I'd be hard pressed 12 00:00:42,280 --> 00:00:45,199 Speaker 1: to think of a more iconic landmark. Angelino's think of 13 00:00:45,200 --> 00:00:48,320 Speaker 1: it the way Parisians think of the Eiffel Tower. People 14 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:51,159 Speaker 1: are drawn to it because it symbolizes a dream and 15 00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:54,760 Speaker 1: a kind of ambition that only exists in LA. But 16 00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:58,000 Speaker 1: while it now has iconic status that's helped it last 17 00:00:58,040 --> 00:01:01,800 Speaker 1: a century, the Hollywood Sign had much more humble beginnings. 18 00:01:02,360 --> 00:01:04,920 Speaker 1: When it was first constructed in nineteen twenty three, it 19 00:01:05,160 --> 00:01:08,560 Speaker 1: was basically a billboard. It served as an advertisement for 20 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:12,399 Speaker 1: the Hollywood Land neighborhood, and it spelled out Hollywood Land 21 00:01:12,440 --> 00:01:16,080 Speaker 1: with those four extra letters not present today. It was 22 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:18,880 Speaker 1: also covered in light bulbs, roughly four thousand of them 23 00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:22,319 Speaker 1: that blinked all night. It cost twenty one thousand dollars 24 00:01:22,360 --> 00:01:24,880 Speaker 1: to build that's over three hundred and eighty thousand in 25 00:01:24,920 --> 00:01:28,760 Speaker 1: today's money, and was designed to last just eighteen months. 26 00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:33,440 Speaker 1: Instead it stood for decades. Schreiner explained there was a 27 00:01:33,480 --> 00:01:35,440 Speaker 1: guy whose job it was to screw in the light 28 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:37,640 Speaker 1: bulbs when they went out. He lived in a shack 29 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:41,480 Speaker 1: below the sign. By the late nineteen forties, the sign 30 00:01:41,560 --> 00:01:44,520 Speaker 1: had fallen into disrepair and the Hollywood Land real estate 31 00:01:44,520 --> 00:01:48,200 Speaker 1: development had folded. Some said the sign should be bulldozed, 32 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:50,760 Speaker 1: but the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce stepped in and had 33 00:01:50,760 --> 00:01:54,960 Speaker 1: it rebuilt, this time without the land. By the nineteen 34 00:01:55,000 --> 00:01:59,200 Speaker 1: seventies the sign needed help again. Rather than an advertisement, 35 00:01:59,280 --> 00:02:03,640 Speaker 1: it was an Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy magazine, 36 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:07,080 Speaker 1: stepped in to raise money. He threw one nineteen seventy 37 00:02:07,080 --> 00:02:10,320 Speaker 1: eight gala at his famous mansion and auctioned each letter 38 00:02:10,360 --> 00:02:13,000 Speaker 1: of the sign to a different celebrity or corporate sponsor, 39 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:17,000 Speaker 1: including gene Autry, Andy Williams, Alice Cooper, and Warner Brothers 40 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:20,440 Speaker 1: records the price tag of just over twenty seven thousand 41 00:02:20,440 --> 00:02:22,920 Speaker 1: dollars a letter was enough to fund a total restoration. 42 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:25,440 Speaker 1: That's over one hundred and thirty thousand per letter in 43 00:02:25,440 --> 00:02:28,560 Speaker 1: today's money, in total, around three times what the original 44 00:02:28,600 --> 00:02:32,400 Speaker 1: sign cost to build. The old sign was torn down 45 00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,560 Speaker 1: and three months later a new one went up. Unlike 46 00:02:35,680 --> 00:02:38,160 Speaker 1: the wood and sheet metal construction of the original, the 47 00:02:38,200 --> 00:02:41,080 Speaker 1: new version was made of steel, mounted to steel columns 48 00:02:41,120 --> 00:02:45,600 Speaker 1: and sunk into a sturdy concrete foundation. Since the new 49 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:49,160 Speaker 1: sign was unveiled, it's been repeatedly powerwashed and repainted to 50 00:02:49,320 --> 00:02:52,880 Speaker 1: keep it in good condition. However, there have been other 51 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:56,320 Speaker 1: threats to the iconic view of the sign. It turns 52 00:02:56,360 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 1: out the beautiful undeveloped land around it wasn't part of 53 00:02:59,720 --> 00:03:02,679 Speaker 1: Great Park, which is the huge public park that now 54 00:03:02,760 --> 00:03:06,280 Speaker 1: also houses the Los Angeles Zoo, the Griffith Observatory, and 55 00:03:06,400 --> 00:03:10,480 Speaker 1: the Autrey Museum of the American West. A Scheiner said 56 00:03:10,800 --> 00:03:14,240 Speaker 1: it turned out it was private land tied to Howard Hughes. 57 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:16,680 Speaker 1: He wanted to build a mansion up there for some 58 00:03:16,880 --> 00:03:19,680 Speaker 1: starlet and she basically said, if I go up there, 59 00:03:19,840 --> 00:03:24,800 Speaker 1: I'm never coming down alive. The starlet was Ginger Rogers. Hughes, 60 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:28,160 Speaker 1: the fabulously rich businessman, bought the parcel of land when 61 00:03:28,200 --> 00:03:31,000 Speaker 1: the pair were engaged in nineteen forty and planned to 62 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:34,040 Speaker 1: build a massive castle with sweeping views of the city. 63 00:03:34,880 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 1: He even went to court with the city over the 64 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:40,440 Speaker 1: right to build an access road and one before anything 65 00:03:40,480 --> 00:03:43,960 Speaker 1: was built. However, the relationship dissolved and the parcel became 66 00:03:44,000 --> 00:03:47,880 Speaker 1: a forgotten piece of the Howard Hughes estate until after 67 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:50,960 Speaker 1: changing hands a number of times. In twenty ten, a 68 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:53,960 Speaker 1: developer put a big parcel on the market just to 69 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:57,400 Speaker 1: the left of the signs h The city scrambled to 70 00:03:57,440 --> 00:03:59,920 Speaker 1: pull together money to buy it, but only raised by 71 00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:03,080 Speaker 1: about six of the twenty two million dollar asking price. 72 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:08,560 Speaker 1: Enter Hugh Hefner again, as Shiner said, he helped again 73 00:04:08,720 --> 00:04:10,520 Speaker 1: and gave the city some of the money it needed 74 00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:12,840 Speaker 1: to buy the land and add it to Griffith Park. 75 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:16,320 Speaker 1: Griffith Park is one of the largest suburban wilderness parks 76 00:04:16,320 --> 00:04:18,960 Speaker 1: in the country. It's four times bigger than Golden Gate 77 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:21,320 Speaker 1: Park in San Francisco. It's right in the middle of 78 00:04:21,320 --> 00:04:24,200 Speaker 1: the city. From there you can see Universal Studios and 79 00:04:24,240 --> 00:04:27,360 Speaker 1: Warner Brothers Studios. You're near a lot of stuff, and 80 00:04:27,520 --> 00:04:30,520 Speaker 1: there is a huge amount of wildlife and native plants. 81 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:33,919 Speaker 1: In honor of the Sign centennial, the Hollywood Sign Trust 82 00:04:33,920 --> 00:04:37,240 Speaker 1: has announced plans to build a visitors center for now. 83 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 1: There are a number of ways to experience the landmark, 84 00:04:40,120 --> 00:04:43,240 Speaker 1: including hiking up Mount Lee. Keep in mind that the 85 00:04:43,240 --> 00:04:45,800 Speaker 1: trail ends behind the sign, so while it's a great 86 00:04:45,880 --> 00:04:48,080 Speaker 1: vista of La it's not a good view of the 87 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:52,039 Speaker 1: sign itself. Shiner said. You can drive to a viewpoint, 88 00:04:52,120 --> 00:04:54,720 Speaker 1: but it's in a residential neighborhood. The roads were built 89 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:57,599 Speaker 1: in the twenties and they're narrow. But there are dozens 90 00:04:57,600 --> 00:05:00,880 Speaker 1: of places to see the sign. He cited the views 91 00:05:00,920 --> 00:05:04,080 Speaker 1: from the Lake Hollywood Reservoir and from the West Observatory 92 00:05:04,120 --> 00:05:07,279 Speaker 1: Trail as his favorites, but said it's always well worth 93 00:05:07,320 --> 00:05:11,120 Speaker 1: a look. Quote. It's big. It's bigger than it looks. 94 00:05:11,560 --> 00:05:14,000 Speaker 1: I think most people when they come to Hollywood are 95 00:05:14,040 --> 00:05:17,040 Speaker 1: a bit disappointed at how small things look in real life. 96 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:26,760 Speaker 1: The sign is the opposite it over delivers. Today's episode 97 00:05:26,800 --> 00:05:29,600 Speaker 1: is based on the article Stardust and Scandal. The Hollywood 98 00:05:29,640 --> 00:05:32,159 Speaker 1: Sign turns one hundred on how Stuffworks dot Com, written 99 00:05:32,200 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 1: by Kate Morgan. Brain Stuff is production by Heart Radio 100 00:05:35,120 --> 00:05:37,400 Speaker 1: in partnership with how Stuffworks dot Com and is produced 101 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:40,120 Speaker 1: by Tyler Klan and Ramsey. Youm four more podcasts from 102 00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:43,160 Speaker 1: my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or 103 00:05:43,200 --> 00:05:44,880 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.