A new sign

Hollywood and Vine has a new sign, finally! It use to say "Pacific Travel School" for years, and that business was not even located there. Slowly that intersection is evolving, although I read in the LA Times that they don't expect construction on all projects to be completed for at least another five years! They haven't lit up the sign yet as far as I know, I'll bet it will look nice.

Ice Cream Man!

This is the ice cream man who pushes his cart up and down Hollywood Blvd and on side streets. He has a little bell he rings constantly that drives me CRAZY. How can he listen to that all day. I think a lot of people buy stuff from him. On occasion I see him pull up to this one particular gate where he rings and rings the bell cause he knows all these little Mexican children come running. It's kind of predictable yet amusing. A few years ago, I once saw one of these ice cream men with his hand down the back of his pants scratching his bare ass, while he pushed his cart with the other hand. I was scarred. Ever since then I have vowed not to buy that ice cream from his fecal fingers.

Jammin in July

Hollywood Blvd was almost completely abandoned today because of the holiday. But there were a couple guys in front the old fox theater playing keyboards and singing their hearts out. I'll bet they made a lot of money and they were really pretty good! At least somebody had some talent for once.

Getting screwed in Hollywood

I always thought working at Paramount was the biggest screw in Hollywood, but recently I saw this giant drill bit on display at Hollywood and Vine where they are building a new W hotel.

Hollywood fire

Here is a funny video from the not so funny Hollywood fire a few months ago.

50th Posting! A freak in Hollywood?? NEVER!

Wow! This is my 50th posting already. To celebrate, here is a picture of a freak I took walking down Hollywood Boulevard near the Pacific Theater. I'm sure his mom is proud.

Just when you think it couldn't get any bigger...

One of my first posts on my blog last month was of a woman with an enormous ass. The other day a woman with even bigger hind quarters was blocking almost everyone on the sidewalk. Ok, I totally realize she can't help it and I don't know her story. But the size of her arse is just amazing to me. There are so many overweight people in Hollywood, you would think that would be the opposite. So here's the image I took when she finally decided to cross the street and let me get around her. Part of me wonders if this is the same woman as in the other picture?

"You Are the Star" Mural

There are a lot of great murals in Hollywood. One that I pass by every day is the "You Are a Star" mural by Tom Suriya at Hollywood Blvd and Wilcox. It gives you the impression that Hollywood celebrities are all in the same movie theater looking up at you on the big screen. You can stand there and study the mural for a long time and spot many familiar faces. My favorite is "ET" who can barely be seen in the back lobby "phoning home" on a pay phone. If you ever visit Hollywood, you should be sure to find this mural.

Daddy Long Legs

Ok, I don't get this. Why is this man wearing stilts at the bus stop on Hollywood Blvd and getting into the bus with them on? How did he ever walk down the aisle inside the bus? He was at least 8 feet tall or more with the stilts on. I was able to take two pictures of him - one walking to the bus and a second one of him getting into the bus. I've lived here a couple of years now and some things never cease to amaze me. He needs to get a life. Am I mean to wish he would fall down? That would be hilarious.

Shining Star

Among the many regulars you might see on any given day walking up and down Hollywood Blvd is a man with one leg who sits along the walk of fame polishing the brass plate on each star one at a time! He slowly makes his way up and down the walk each week. It's really rather inspiring to see his dedication to polishing the stars! I think he may be a war veteran, I usually see an American flag nearby him when I walk past. I wish I wasn't so shy because I'd like to maybe chat with him and hear his story. Maybe one day I will just strike up a conversation with him. I know it is certain to be interesting!

Jungle Fever!

Today was a REALLY odd day in Hollywood, even more odd than usual! On my way to the gym, a man carrying an iguana like baby walked past me. I asked him if I could take a picture. Then two hours later on my way home I walked past a man with a snake wrapped around his neck. He was petting it's head like it was his baby. He told me he "caught it yesterday in the mountains." I was wondering why it hadn't already tried to strangle him. These are great photos!

Star Art

I have always been kind of curious about the paintings I see on gates that store owners pull down over their shops on Hollywood Boulevard. Some of them feature interesting portraits seemingly done by the same artist in the same style. They are not wearing well but have held up apparently over a long period of time. Some of the stars I have seen represented are James Cagney (shown here), Roddy McDowell, Mary Martin, John Raitt, Edgar Bergin, Betty Grable, and Ann Margaret. I am sure I am missing a few. Ann Margaret is intersting because half of her portrait was destroyed and replaced with new siding so you only see her from the nose up. I wonder who the artist was? They are all painted in a pale shade of green. I wish we had more art like this in Hollywood, and most of the gates are up during the day so few people get to see the portraits. I see tourists walking around and Hollywood is so filthy and dirty, I wish there was more for them to appreciate. I can only imagine what they are thinking - this is Hollywood?? People here complain about Hollywood all the time and then renovation starts on something and then it takes literally years to get anything constructed. Often the construction is cheap and tacky looking. I sometimes wonder why anyone even bothers. The renovation they have been doing at Hollywood and Vine is basically a myth. The Broadway Hollywood building is just as filthy, dirty, and run down (if not more) than before they started working on it over two years ago. The Walk of Fame is crumbling and in shambles. Whoever tells you Hollywood is a beautiful place, they are in denial. I can see that it might be better in then years but for now it is just a quirky historical area that is only a shadow of what it use to be.

These boots are made for walkin

If you walk down Hollywood Boulevard you will see a lot of shoe stores. They are full of the most obnoxious shoes and boots I have ever seen! They come in ever color imaginable, with platforms, sequins, sparkles and other extras that are unusual. But these stores are always empty and I see the shoes in the window gathering dust. So how do they stay in business? Does anyone buy those shoes? Where would there wear them?? It's a mystery.

Abandoned theaters galore

I have always been interested in the many boarded up theaters all up and down Hollywood Boulevard, and what they must have been like 60 years ago. It's so sad they are no longer in use. I think as Hollywood continues it's renaissance these theaters will probably end up as night clubs and restaurants. I know the Fox Theater, for example, is going to be renovated as "Crowbar" in the next year or so. I wonder what's going on with the Pacific Theater? I took a picture of it. The Pacific was one of the most expensive theaters of it's day and was built by the Warner brothers. The building takes up an entire city block and is used about once a month, if that. I always wanted to go inside but it is never open to the general public, only for special events and filming. Here is a link I found about old Los Angeles movie palaces. http://www.gmrnet.com/theaters.html and a specific listing of Hollywood theaters past and present, http://cinematreasures.org/search/query=Hollywood&search=city

A journey down Hollywood Boulevard

I don't understand why parents think that Hollywood Boulevard is a family friendly place. It's dirty, run down, and not very safe. Skateboarders constantly zoom by, nearly knocking everyone over and never apologizing. Homeless people lay all up and down the sidewalks, and ask for money. The walk of fame is in shambles - the stars faded, defaced, and crumbling. THEN there are all the x-rated manequins with huge breasts in the storefront windows. But every day I see the strollers, and the little kids eating ice cream, and the tourists. I dare say Hollywood may be eroticizing little kids who visit. I suppose I am not outraged over it, but why anyone would bring their child to Hollywood Boulevard is beyond me. I give the city credit because the entire area is under renovation and construction, and in a few years it will be a very clean and nice place to be. There is always hope for the future.

Crazy Puppetier Panhandlers

THIS you have to see to believe. A few months ago I noticed what is probably the oddest and strangest homeless display in Los Angeles, if not the entire country. There is an old man and woman who park themselves in front of an abandoned theater on Hollywood Boulevard. The woman is in a wheelchair and the man pushes her around. I don't know if they are married, dating, friends, relatives, or what - but clearly they are a pair. They each have a puppet they hold, ones that a ventriloquist would use in a stage act. The mouths move, the heads turn, and the eyes blink. Usually the female puppet has some long wig on, which looks really fake. As people walk by the homeless couple operate the puppets so they watch you walk down the sidewalk and ask for money. It's really freaky if you ask me! They look like one of those puppets that comes to life in a bad horror movie and chases you with a butcher knife. I have to hand it to the man and woman, they are creative and people do notice them. I do wonder what their story is and how they got to that point in their life. They sit there from dawn to dusk with those puppets asking for money, almost every day. Like everyone else, I pretend they are not there and walk by. But sometimes I want to stop and talk with them. I think I am actually a little intimidated by how crazy they appear to be. Well, that's Hollywood for you!

A brief respite from the chaos

This evening was rather unique in Hollywood. As I walked home from the gym, no homeless person asked me for money, and in fact I didn't see a single homeless person. It might have been free meal night somewhere. I didn't see any cracked-out psychos talking to themselves. I didn't have to put my fingers in my ears for passing fire engines and police cars. There weren't any Mexican children running radomly down Hollywood Blvd screaming and being wild. I didn't have to dodge any skateboarders on the sidewalk. I didn't see anyone almost get killed and nobody honked their horns.

What is going on??? ha.

Building Condoms

I don't know what to think about the building condoms popping up all over Los Angeles. There is one in Hollywood for the Transformers movie that is at least 10 stories tall. In one way I think it is so clever and innovative. In another way I think it is tacky, and detracts from the building. But Hollywood is looking pretty trashy these days during all the major construction so it needs some gift wrap for now. In five years this will be a completely different city, I am looking forward to that.