The Hollywood sign officially turns 100

On By marc-sternfield

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The Hollywood sign, one of the world’s most iconic and photographed landmarks, officially turns 100 years old on Friday.

The sign was first illuminated on Dec. 8, 1923, originally saying “Hollywoodland” to advertise an upscale residential real estate development.

The original 13 letters were 30 feet wide and approximately 43 feet tall, constructed of 3 by 9 foot metal squares rigged together by scaffolding, pipes, wires and telephone poles, according to the sign’s official preservation website.

“At night the Sign blinked into the Hollywood night: first “Holly” then “wood” and finally “land,” punctuated by a giant period. The effect was truly spectacular, particularly for pre-Vegas sensibilities.”

  • The Hollywood sign is seen as it is repainted in preparation for its 100th anniversary in 2023, in Hollywood on September 28, 2022. – A team of 10 painters will work eight weeks and use almost 400 gallons of paint as the iconic Tinsletown landmark gets a makeover ahead of it’s 100th anniversary in 2023. (Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP) (Photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
  • LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 27: The Hollywood sign stands at dusk on day 106 of the SAG-AFTRA strike against the Hollywood studios on October 27, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Contract negotiations between the actors union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) are expected to continue over the weekend in the strike which began July 14. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
  • Hollywood Sign
    People take photos beneath the Hollywood sign on October 27, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
  • The Hollywood Sign (formerly known as the Hollywoodland Sign) is a landmark and American cultural icon located in Los Angeles, California. It is situated on Mount Lee in the Hollywood Hills area of the Santa Monica Mountains. The sign overlooks the Hollywood district of Los Angeles.
  • The Hollywood sign is pictured on Sept. 29, 2022, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
  • A worker wheels equipment past the famous Hollywood sign as preparations continue Wednesday, Mar. 8, 2023, for the 95th Academy Awards on Sunday at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/J. David Ake)
  • The Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles is seen with several homes in the foreground in this undated photo (Vinicius Maciel/Pexels.com)
    The Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles is seen with several homes in the foreground in this undated photo (Vinicius Maciel/Pexels.com)

After years of neglect, the Hollywood Sign was repaired in 1939. Five years later, it was donated to the City of Los Angeles. In 1947, it was repaired again, and the word “LAND” was removed.

By then, it had become an emblem of the city’s entertainment industry.

To mark the 100th anniversary, on Friday night, leaders of the sign’s trust will illuminate it with some of the original lights from 1923, and two smaller replicas will recreate how it once blinked in the night as “Hollywoodland.”

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