Who owns the HOLLYWOOD sign?

Question

When was it put up?

Answer 1

The sign is on Mt. Lee and is now owned by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Parks and Recreation...The original 13 letters were constructed by the Cresent Sign Co., cost $21,000., and was officially dedicated on July 13, 1923 by it's owners, the Hollywoodland Real Estate Group (including the owner of the Los Angeles Times and actor Max Sennett) . Like another icon, the Eiffel Tower, it was merely intended to be temporary in nature and planned to last no more than a year and a half..It has, however, become, perhaps, the most famous sign in the world. It originally had 4,000 light bulbs and was built of wood (among other things)/ Because of its massive size and wood construction the sign had been in an up and down cycle of disrepair for most of its early life..The "land" part was removed in 1945. The 9 letter sign was rebuilt (of metal) in 1978 with the help of Hugh Hefner and a number of other generous celebrities...
The letter "H" has an active history.....
1. used for suicide leap of starlet in 1932
2. In 1940's caretaker runs his auto into the H and knocks it down---Oh yeh he was drunk and totalled the car.....
It is currently inaccessible as it is heavily fenced off from the public. The sign is maintained by a non profit organization.
The original letters were 50' high (the height of a five story building), the new letters are 45' feet high, so it is a lot bigger than it looks....

Answer 2

Who Owns The Hollywood Sign

Answer 3

Hollywood, which by 1923 represented not just a city, but also an industry, a lifestyle and, increasingly, an aspiration, was officially coronated when the “Hollywoodland” sign was erected in 1923.

Built by Los Angeles Times publisher Harry Chandler as an epic $21,000 billboard for his upscale Hollywoodland real estate development, the Sign soon took on the role of giant marquee for a city that was constantly announcing its own gala premiere.

The “billboard” was massive. Each of the original 13 letters was 30 feet wide and 50 feet tall, constructed of 3x9’ metal squares rigged together by an intricate frame of scaffolding, pipes, wires and telephone poles – all of which had to be dragged up Mt. Lee on dirt paths.
(Side note: It is not Mt. Cahuenga or Mt. Hollywood, as stated by a previous poster. Mt. Hollywood is where the observatory is located, several miles away).

In 1949, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce finally came to the rescue of the ailing Sign, removing the letters that spelled “LAND” and repairing the rest, including the recently toppled “H.” As the century hit the halfway mark, a leaner, cleaner Sign was reintroduced in its now-iconic form.

During the 70s – as Hollywood continued to decline – the top of the “D” and the entire third “O” toppled down Mt. Lee, and an arsonist set fire to the bottom of the second “L.” Adding insult to injury, pranksters altered the Sign’s letters to read “Hollyweed” in 1973 (advocating looser marijuana laws) then later, to “Holywood”, commemorating a visit from Pope John Paul II in 1987.

By the late 1970s, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce determined that the Sign required a complete rebuilding – carrying a price tag of a quarter million dollars. Hugh Hefner hosted a gala fundraiser at the Playboy Mansion, where individual Sign letters were ceremonially ‘auctioned’ off at $27,700 per letter. The effort to preserve the Sign brought together an odd mix of celebrity sponsors: Glam-rocker Alice Cooper ‘bought’ an “O” (in honor of Groucho Marx), while singing cowboy Gene Autry sponsored an “L” and Paul Williams sponsored the “W.” The sign was rebuilt in 1978, better and stronger than ever.

In 1992, the California Attorney General granted distinct legal rights and responsibilities to three official agencies – the City of Los Angeles (which owns the land the Sign stands on), the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce (which owns the licensing rights for the Sign’s image), and the Hollywood Sign Trust (formed to maintain, repair and provide capital improvements to the Sign for the benefit of the public – with the larger mission of helping to preserve Hollywood’s standing as the worldwide center of motion pictures and cinema arts).

Answer 4

The city of Los Angeles owns it, but private funds were raised to refurbish it. It originally said "Hollywoodland" and was a real estate sign back in the 20s-30s. The "land" part fell down/was removed and now it's a landmark.

Answer 5

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Who owns the HOLLYWOOD sign?
When was it put up?

Answer 6

Hollywood is part of Los Angeles and its a good argument.

Answer 7

LA Parks and recreation and was put up in the 1920 as a sign for a housing development, HOLLYWOODLAND.

Answer 8

Hollywood sign in great britain..directs you to hollywood.think the local council own it..ok.
hope this helps.

Answer 9

Put up in the 1950's it was a realestate Co. Now the city owns it ,.

Answer 10

The Y is dedicated to Hugh Heffner (sp?)

cause he helped rebuild it