Wednesday, 13 February 2008

Hollywood Walk of Fame

The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a sidewalk along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California which is embedded with more than 2,000 five-pointed stars featuring the names of not only human celebrities but fictional characters honored by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce for their contributions to the entertainment industry. The Walk of Fame is maintained by the self-financing Hollywood Historic Trust. The first star, awarded on February 9, 1960, went to Joanne Woodward.



The Walk of Fame runs east to west on Hollywood Boulevard from Gower Street to La Brea Avenue and north to south on Vine Street between Yucca Street and Sunset Boulevard. The Walk of Fame is nearly a three and a half (3 1/2) mile round trip walk. Locations of specific stars are permanent, except when occasionally relocated for nearby construction or other reasons. To be awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of fame is considered to be as sought after as the Academy Awards, Emmy Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, BAFTA and Golden Globe awards.

Each star consists of a pink five-pointed star rimmed with bronze and inlaid into a charcoal square. Inside the pink star is the name of the honoree inlaid in bronze, below which is a round bronze emblem indicating the category for which the honoree received the star. The emblems are:

  • Motion picture camera for contribution to the film industry
  • Television set for contribution to the broadcast television industry
  • Phonograph record for contribution to the recording industry
  • Radio microphone for contribution to the broadcast radio industry
  • Twin comedy/tragedy masks for contribution to live theater

There are a few exceptions. Disneyland's star has an emblem of a building, and honorary mayor Johnny Grant's star depicts the Great Seal of Hollywood. Also, the crew of the Apollo XI mission are named in four identical moons at the intersection of Hollywood and Vine.

Nominations are submitted annually by May 31, and the Walk of Fame committee meets the following month to pick the next year's group of honorees. Star ceremonies are open to the public and previously were led by honorary Hollywood mayor Johnny Grant.

Frank Sinatra star for music on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The Walk of Fame was created in 1958. Many honorees received multiple stars during the initial phase of installation for contributions to separate categories; however, the practice in recent decades has been to honor individuals not yet represented, with only a handful of previous honorees being awarded additional stars. In 1978, the City of Los Angeles designated the Walk of Fame as a Cultural/Historic Landmark.

The Walk of Fame began with 2,500 blank stars. A total of 1,558 stars were awarded during its first sixteen months. Since then, about two stars have been added per month. By 1994, more than 2,000 of the original stars were filled, and additional stars extended the Walk west past Sycamore to La Brea Avenue, where it now ends at the Silver Four Ladies of Hollywood Gazebo (with stars honoring The Beatles and Elvis Presley).

Link to Source Site:

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_walk_of_fame>

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