Above Los Angeles
The Hollywood Sign: A Temporary Billboard That Never Left
Los Angeles, California, United States
It began as an advertisement — a giant billboard for a housing development that was supposed to come down within the year. Instead it became the most recognizable set of letters on earth, perched just out of reach on a dry hillside.
Everyone knows the shape of it. Nine white letters strung across a brown ridge, standing in for an entire industry and an entire idea of California.
What most people don't realize is that it was never meant to last.
Why It Stands Out
The sign went up as a real-estate pitch, advertising a subdivision to prospective buyers below. It was supposed to be temporary — a season or two of marketing, then gone.
The city had other plans, or rather no plans, and the letters simply stayed: weathering, collapsing, and getting rebuilt until they became a landmark in their own right. There's something honest about that.
The most famous symbol of manufactured glamour started life as an ad and never fully stopped being one, which is about as Los Angeles as a thing can get.
Before You Go
You can't walk up and touch it — the sign is fenced off and closely watched — but several vantage points get you a clean view. Trails in the surrounding park climb toward the ridge, and the light is best early, before the haze settles over the basin.
The nearby Old Zoo Picnic Area is another notable feature of the park. Wear real shoes, bring water, and treat the streets near the trailheads with respect, since people actually live there.
The Garden of Oz is a secluded hillside site located in the same neighborhood.
More in West Coast
All West Coast places →
Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels
Los Angeles, California
This 333-foot-long architectural marvel houses the largest collection of Spanish alabaster in the U.S. and a sprawling basement mausoleum where Hollywood legend Gregory Peck rests alongside ancient Roman martyrs.
La Brea Tar Pits Dragonfly Fossils
Los Angeles, California
While mammoths and sabertooth cats grab the headlines, these fragile dragonfly fossils are some of the rarest finds ever recovered from the asphalt, providing vital clues about the ancient climate.
Pink's Hot Dogs
Los Angeles, California
This 1939-era institution evolved from a humble pushcart into a global landmark where Hollywood legends and hungry locals wait in line for dozens of varieties of snappy, chili-topped franks.