What is Hollywood?
Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, and the historic center of the American film industry. The word is also used to mean the US movie business as a whole.
Filmmakers began moving to Hollywood in the 1910s, attracted by sunny weather, varied landscapes and lower costs. The first feature film made in Hollywood, The Squaw Man, was released in 1914. By the 1920s and 1930s, major studios such as Paramount, Warner Bros., MGM and Universal had made Hollywood the world's film capital.
The period from the late 1920s to the 1950s is called the Golden Age of Hollywood, when studios controlled actors, directors and theaters. Today, many studios are actually located in nearby areas like Burbank and Culver City, but the name Hollywood still represents the whole industry.
Landmarks
Hollywood is home to famous sights like the Hollywood Sign, the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the TCL Chinese Theatre, where stars leave handprints in cement. The Academy Awards are held at the Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard each year.
Did You Know?
The Hollywood Sign originally read HOLLYWOODLAND when it was built in 1923 to advertise a housing development. The LAND was removed in 1949.