Wilshire Center is a neighborhood in the Wilshire region of Los Angeles , California .
53-480: The name "Wilshire Center" is a relatively modern moniker that refers to much of the eastern portion of the Wilshire Community Plan area (CPA), generally from Virgil Avenue and Hoover Street on the east to Wilton Place and Crenshaw Boulevard on the west. It borders Hollywood to the north at Melrose Avenue , and Koreatown and part of Harvard Heights to the south. The area was historically known as part of
106-555: A hot-summer Mediterranean climate ( Köppen : Csa ) or dry-summer subtropical climate . Winters are typically mild and with light rain, but there are still plenty of warm, sunny days in the winter, as well. Summers are hot, sunny and dry, with virtually no rain falling between April and October; while summer days can be warm, they are considerably cooler than in the San Fernando Valley . Spring and fall are generally warm, sunny, and pleasant. Santa Ana winds typically occur during
159-578: A campaign for the area to secede from Los Angeles and become a separate municipality. In June of that year, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors placed secession referendums for both Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley on the ballot. To pass, they required the approval of a majority of voters in the proposed new municipality as well as a majority of voters in all of Los Angeles. In the November election, both measures failed by wide margins in
212-625: A restaurant in a mini-mall. In 1929, the elegant Art-Deco Bullocks Wilshire was built at Wilshire and Westmoreland as the city's first branch department store in the suburbs. It closed in 1993 and now houses the library of Southwestern Law School . A section of Germain Pellessier's sheep farm became the site of the Pellessier Building and Wiltern Theatre , which began construction at the corner of Wilshire and Western in 1929. The theater, operated by Warner Brothers , opened in 1931. In 1929,
265-417: Is 112 °F (44 °C) on June 26, 1990, and the all-time record low temperature is 24 °F (−4 °C) on both December 8, 1978, and December 23, 1990. The 2000 U.S. census counted 77,818 residents in the 3.51-square-mile (9.1 km ) Hollywood neighborhood—an average of 22,193 people per square mile (8,569 people/km ), the seventh- densest neighborhood in all of Los Angeles County . In 2008
318-431: Is a neighborhood and district in the central region of Los Angeles County, California , mostly within the city of Los Angeles . Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Sony Pictures , Walt Disney Studios , Paramount Pictures , Warner Bros. and Universal Pictures , are located in or near Hollywood. Hollywood
371-460: Is also served by the Metro B Line , which continues north through Hollywood to North Hollywood . Wilshire Boulevard is named for Henry Gaylord Wilshire —a millionaire who in 1895 began developing a 35-acre (140,000 m) parcel stretching westward from Westlake Park (MacArthur Park) for an elite residential subdivision. A socialist , Wilshire donated to the city a strip of land for a boulevard on
424-789: Is part of the ongoing rebirth of Hollywood. The Art Deco-style studio complex, completed in 1938, was once the Hollywood headquarters for CBS . It became home to a new generation of broadcasters when cable television networks MTV , Comedy Central , BET and Spike TV consolidated their offices there in 2014 as part of a $ 420 million office, residential and retail complex. Since 2000, Hollywood has been increasingly gentrified due to revitalization by private enterprise and public planners. Over 1,200 hotel rooms have been added in Hollywood area between 2001 and 2016. Four thousand new apartments and over thirty low to mid-rise development projects were approved in 2019. In 2002, some Hollywood voters began
477-642: Is responsible for police services. The Hollywood police station is at 1358 N. Wilcox Avenue. Los Angeles Fire Department operates four fire stations, 27, 41, 52, and 82 in the area. The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Hollywood-Wilshire Health Center in Hollywood. The United States Postal Service operates the Hollywood Post Office , the Hollywood Pavilion Post Office, and
530-492: Is served by city buses, including several Metro Rapid lines, and three subway stations along Wilshire Boulevard . The Metro D Line , which begins at Union Station in Downtown Los Angeles , has stations at Vermont Ave., Normandie Ave., and Western Ave., at which it currently terminates. An extension of the D Line subway under Wilshire Boulevard to Westwood is scheduled for completion in 2027. The Vermont station
583-604: The 1992 Los Angeles riots and the 1994 Northridge earthquake . Subsequently, the Wilshire Center Streetscape Project [2] used federal funds to rejuvenate Wilshire Boulevard. It was one of the most ambitious and significant urban rehabilitation projects found anywhere in America and in 1999 was awarded the Lady Bird Johnson Award from The National Arbor Day Foundation . Wilshire Christian Church
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#1732869599804636-655: The Los Angeles Public Library is located at 7th and Oxford Streets. The Anderson-Munger branch of the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles is at 3rd and Oxford Streets. There are no city parks or community gardens in Wilshire Center, and only small parks in the surrounding communities. This is one of the most 'park-poor' areas of the city. Hollywood, Los Angeles This is an accepted version of this page Hollywood , sometimes informally called Tinseltown ,
689-527: The vineyards , barley fields, and citrus groves. A single-track streetcar line ran down the middle of Prospect Avenue from it, but service was infrequent and the trip took two hours. The old citrus fruit-packing house was converted into a livery stable , improving transportation for the inhabitants of Hollywood. The Hollywood Hotel was opened in 1902 by Whitley, president of the Los Pacific Boulevard and Development Company. Having finally acquired
742-428: The 1920s, Hollywood was the fifth-largest industry in the nation. By the 1930s, Hollywood studios became fully vertically integrated , as production, distribution and exhibition was controlled by these companies, enabling Hollywood to produce 600 films per year. Hollywood became known as Tinseltown and the "dream factory" because of the glittering image of the movie industry. A large sign reading HOLLYWOODLAND
795-458: The 53.8% of the residents who were born abroad, a figure that was considered high for the city as a whole. The median household income in 2008 was $ 33,694, considered low for Los Angeles. The average household size of 2.1 people was also lower than the city norm. Renters occupied 92.4% of the housing units, and home- or apartment owners the rest. The percentages of never-married men (55.1%), never-married women (39.8%) and widows (9.6%) were among
848-523: The Chapman Market drew motorcars to the world's first drive-through grocery store at Sixth St and Alexandria. The San Francisco-based I. Magnin opened a store in 1939 at Wilshire and New Hampshire. In 2001, David Y. Lee was the largest landlord in the district, owning 20 buildings comprising about 7 million square feet of space in Mid-Wilshire and three buildings in nearby Park Mile . In 1952, on
901-501: The Hurd ranch and subdivided it, Whitley built the hotel to attract land buyers. Flanking the west side of Highland Avenue , the structure fronted on Prospect Avenue (later Hollywood Boulevard ). Although it was still a dusty, unpaved road, it was regularly graded and graveled. The hotel became internationally known and was the center of the civic and social life and home of movie stars for many years. Whitley's company developed and sold one of
954-612: The Kodak Theatre at the Hollywood & Highland Center mall, is the site of the annual Academy Awards programs. The mall is located where the Hollywood Hotel once stood. After the neighborhood underwent years of serious decline in the 1980s, with crime, drugs and increasing poverty among some residents, many landmarks were threatened with demolition. Columbia Square , at the northwest corner of Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street ,
1007-495: The L.A. sewer system. With annexation, the name of Prospect Avenue was changed to Hollywood Boulevard and all the street numbers in the new district changed. For example, 100 Prospect Avenue, at Vermont Avenue, became 6400 Hollywood Boulevard; and 100 Cahuenga Boulevard, at Hollywood Boulevard, changed to 1700 Cahuenga Boulevard. By 1912, major motion-picture companies had come West to set up production near or in Los Angeles. In
1060-696: The Sunset Post Office. Hollywood is included within the Hollywood United Neighborhood Council (HUNC), Hollywood Hills West Neighborhood Council, and the Hollywood Studio District Neighborhood Council. Neighborhood Councils cast advisory votes on such issues as zoning, planning, and other community issues. The council members are voted in by stakeholders, generally defined as anyone living, working, owning property, or belonging to an organization within
1113-700: The Wilshire District. As the Wilshire area expanded westward, neighborhood names emerged to distinguish parts of the district from each other. Wilshire Center includes some of the Wilshire CPA's oldest streetcar suburbs dating to the early 20th century. Historic Preservation Overlay Zones within Wilshire Center include Wilshire Park and Country Club Park. Within the neighborhood, the Wilshire Center Regional Commercial Center, as defined in
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#17328695998041166-495: The boundaries of the council. Hollywood residents aged 25 and older holding a four-year degree amounted to 28% of the population in 2000, about the same as in the county at large. The Will and Ariel Durant Branch, John C. Fremont Branch, and the Frances Howard Goldwyn – Hollywood Regional Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library are in Hollywood. Norma Talmadge Too Many Requests If you report this error to
1219-660: The capital of the film industry in the United States. The mountains, plains and low land prices made Hollywood a good place to establish film studios. Director D. W. Griffith was the first to make a motion picture in Hollywood. His 17-minute short film In Old California (1910) was filmed for the Biograph Company . Although Hollywood banned movie theaters—of which it had none—before annexation that year, Los Angeles had no such restriction. The first studio in Hollywood opened in early 1913, on Formosa Avenue down
1272-415: The city estimated that the population had increased to 85,489. The median age for residents was 31, about the city's average. Hollywood was said to be "highly diverse" when compared to the city at large. The ethnic breakdown in 2000 was 42.2% Latino or Hispanic , 41% Non-Hispanic White , 7.1% Asian , 5.2% Black , and 4.5% other. Mexico (21.3%) and Guatemala (13%) were the most common places of birth for
1325-499: The city's general plan, is generally bounded by 3rd Street on the north, 8th Street on the south, Hoover Street on the east, and Wilton Place on the west. Google Maps uses the general boundaries of the Regional Commercial Center for the neighborhood. Services provided by the business improvement district are limited to the commercial area between Wilton Place, Hoover Street, Third Street and Eighth Street. Wilshire Center
1378-517: The city's less congested Westside as well as the San Fernando Valley, and businesses and affluent residents eventually followed. I. Magnin closed, while Bullocks Wilshire held out until 1993. Rental rates in office buildings plummeted from an average of $ 1.65/sq ft to a dollar between 1991 and 1996; property values dropped from a high of $ 120/sq ft to $ 30 or $ 40 per foot in 1998. Wilshire Center lost most of its remaining original glitter following
1431-528: The citywide vote. According to the Mapping L.A. project of The Los Angeles Times , Hollywood is flanked by Hollywood Hills to the north, Los Feliz to the northeast, East Hollywood or Virgil Village to the east, Larchmont and Hancock Park to the south, Fairfax to the southwest, West Hollywood to the west, and Hollywood Hills West to the northwest. Street limits of the Hollywood neighborhood are: north, Hollywood Boulevard from La Brea Avenue to
1484-402: The conditions that it would be named for him and ban public transit, railroad lines, and commercial or industrial trucking and freight trains. A Los Angeles Times overview of the area referred to "the corridor's former glory as a haven for blue-chip corporations and fine shopping." In the early 1900s, steam-driven motorcars started sharing Wilshire Boulevard with horse-drawn carriages . At
1537-504: The county's highest. There were 2,640 families headed by single parents, about average for Los Angeles. In 2000, there were 2,828 military veterans, or 4.5%, a low rate for the city as a whole. These were the ten neighborhoods or cities in Los Angeles County with the highest population densities, according to the 2000 census, with the population per square mile: In 2022, there were 1,374 homeless individuals in Hollywood. KNX
1590-684: The driving range on the south side of Wilshire between Mariposa and Normandie, the first three 12-story Tishman Plaza buildings were built in 1952 (they're now known as Central Plaza), designed by Claude Beelman . Insurance companies began locating their West Coast headquarters in Wilshire Center because of tax incentives provided by the State. Some 22 high-rise office buildings were erected on Wilshire Boulevard from 1966 to 1976 to provide office space for such companies as Getty Oil Co., Ahmanson Financial Co., Beneficial Standard Life Insurance, Wausau, and Equitable Life Insurance. The Chapman Park Hotel, built in 1936,
1643-487: The early 1900s, most motion picture camera and equipment patents were held by Thomas Edison 's Motion Picture Patents Company in New Jersey , which often sued filmmakers to stop their productions. To escape this, filmmakers began moving to Los Angeles, where attempts to enforce Edison's patents were easier to evade. Also, the weather was ideal for filmmaking and there was quick access to various settings. Los Angeles became
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1696-585: The early 1950s, the State of California constructed the Hollywood Freeway through the northeast corner of Hollywood. The Capitol Records Building on Vine Street , just north of Hollywood Boulevard, was built in 1956. The Hollywood Walk of Fame was created in 1958 as a tribute to artists and other significant contributors to the entertainment industry. The official opening was on February 8, 1960. The Hollywood Boulevard Commercial and Entertainment District
1749-534: The early residential areas, the Ocean View Tract. Whitley did much to promote the area. He paid thousands of dollars to install electricity and arrange for electric lighting, and he built both a bank and a road into the Cahuenga Pass . The lighting ran for several blocks down Prospect Avenue. Whitley's land was centered on Highland Avenue . His 1918 development, Whitley Heights , was named for him. Hollywood
1802-511: The east boundary of Wattles Garden Park and Franklin Avenue between Bonita and Western avenues; east, Western Avenue ; south, Melrose Avenue , and west, La Brea Avenue or the West Hollywood city line . In 1918, H. J. Whitley commissioned architect A. S. Barnes to design Whitley Heights as a Mediterranean-style village on the hills above Hollywood Boulevard. It became
1855-459: The fall and winter months, although they can occur during any month; Santa Ana winds bring heavy winds, higher temperatures and lower humidity levels, which increases the risk of wildfires , especially in dry years. Smog can sometimes occur during the summer months. May and June can be foggy and cloudy in Hollywood, a phenomenon known by southern California residents as "May Gray" or " June Gloom ". The all-time record high temperature in Hollywood
1908-540: The first celebrity community. Other areas within Hollywood are Franklin Village , Little Armenia , Spaulding Square , Thai Town , and Yucca Corridor . In 1994, Hollywood, Alabama , and ten other towns named Hollywood successfully fought an attempt by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce to trademark the name and force same-named communities to pay royalties to it. Like the rest of Los Angeles , Hollywood has
1961-716: The former site of Reuben Schmidt's dairy farm. In approximately 1929, the Academy Awards ceremony was moved from the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel to the Ambassador Hotel . It closed in 1989 and, despite efforts of historic preservationists, has been demolished. The site is owned by the Los Angeles Unified School District , which in 2010 opened the Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools and a small park on
2014-648: The last broadcasters (television or radio) with Hollywood addresses, but KCET has since sold its studios to the Church of Scientology on Sunset, and plans to move to another location. KNBC moved in 1962 from the former NBC Radio City Studios at the northeast corner of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street to NBC Studios in Burbank. KTTV moved in 1996 from its former home at Metromedia Square on Sunset Boulevard to West Los Angeles, and KCOP left its home on La Brea Avenue to join KTTV at
2067-666: The modern-day Fox Television Center. KCBS-TV and KCAL-TV moved from their longtime home at CBS Columbia Square on Sunset Boulevard to a new facility at CBS Studio Center in Studio City . As a neighborhood within the Los Angeles city limits, Hollywood does not have its own municipal government. A person was appointed by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce to serve as an honorary " Mayor of Hollywood " for ceremonial purposes. Johnny Grant held this position from 1980 until his death on January 9, 2008. The Los Angeles Police Department
2120-589: The new town with General Harrison Gray Otis , publisher of the Los Angeles Times , and Ivar Weid, a prominent businessman in the area. Daeida Wilcox , who donated land to help in the development of Hollywood, learned of the name Hollywood from an acquaintance who owned an estate by that name in Illinois. Wilcox is quoted as saying, "I chose the name Hollywood simply because it sounds nice and because I'm superstitious and holly brings good luck." She recommended
2173-408: The opening of a plush, $ 35-million spa, mall and golf complex called Aroma Wilshire Center just east of Western Avenue that caters to the city's affluent Korean population, many of them entrepreneurs who own businesses in the area." Distinguished high-rise apartment buildings and hotels were erected along Wilshire Boulevard. The lavish Ambassador Hotel was built in 1921 on 23 acres (93,000 m) of
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2226-490: The same name to her husband, Harvey H. Wilcox , who had purchased 120 acres on February 1, 1887. It was not until August 1887 that Wilcox decided to use that name and filed with the Los Angeles County Recorder's office on a deed and parcel map of the property. By 1900, the region had a post office, newspaper, hotel, and two markets. Los Angeles, with a population of 102,479, lay 10 miles (16 km) east through
2279-871: The site. It is the most expensive public school in the United States. The area nearby became the site of elegant New York-style apartment buildings such as the Asbury, the Langham, the Fox Normandie, the Picadilly, the Talmadge (after Norma Talmadge ), the Gaylord, and the Windsor. Many film stars lived in these buildings. As of 2021, a building boom fueled by density bonuses and the City of Los Angeles's Transit-Oriented Community incentives has increased
2332-681: The street from Helen Muir's home. Her father John Muir returned from his tour of Europe and East Africa a few months later and continued work on Yosemite and his book, The Yosemite . The Nestor Film Company was the first studio, established in October 1911 by the New Jersey–based Centaur Film Company in a roadhouse at 6121 Sunset Boulevard (the corner of Gower ). Four major film companies – Paramount , Warner Bros. , RKO , and Columbia – had studios in Hollywood, as did several minor companies and rental studios. In
2385-520: The supply of apartments and condominiums in the area, and older office buildings have been converted into apartments and condos. Large apartment buildings have been constructed at the Metro stops at Wilshire/Western and Wilshire/Vermont. Gloria Swanson 's husband, Herbert Somborn, opened the Brown Derby Restaurant, a hat-shaped building at Wilshire and Alexandria, in 1926. The hat now sits on top of
2438-463: The turn of the century, Germain Pellissier raised sheep and barley between Normandie and Western Avenues. Reuben Schmidt purchased land east of Normandie for his dairy farm. In the mid-1990s, it had a reputation for "crime and grime," and many businesses had left the area, but by 2001 it had recovered. The Los Angeles Times noted that: "Another sign of the district's popularity emerged this summer with
2491-468: Was erected in the Hollywood Hills in 1923 to advertise real estate developers Woodruff's and Shoults' housing development. In 1949, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce entered a contract with the City of Los Angeles to repair and rebuild the sign. The agreement stipulated that LAND be removed to spell HOLLYWOOD so the sign would now refer to the district, rather than the housing development. During
2544-501: Was incorporated as a municipality in 1903. The northern and eastern parts of the neighborhood were consolidated with the City of Los Angeles in 1910. Soon thereafter a prominent film industry emerged, having developed first on the East Coast. Eventually it became the most recognizable in the world. H. J. Whitley , a real estate developer, arranged to buy the 480-acre (1.9 km ) E.C. Hurd ranch. Whitley shared his plans for
2597-455: Was incorporated as a municipality on November 14, 1903, by a vote of 88 for and 77 against. On January 30, 1904, the voters in Hollywood decided, 113 to 96, to banish the sale of liquor within the city, except for medicinal purposes. Neither hotels nor restaurants were allowed to serve wine or liquor before or after meals. In 1910, the city voted for a merger with Los Angeles in order to secure an adequate water supply and to gain access to
2650-604: Was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. In June 1999, the Hollywood extension of the Los Angeles Metro Rail Red Line subway opened from Downtown Los Angeles to the San Fernando Valley , with stops along Hollywood Boulevard at Western Avenue ( Hollywood/Western Metro station ), Vine Street ( Hollywood/Vine Metro station ), and Highland Avenue ( Hollywood/Highland Metro station ). The Dolby Theatre , which opened in 2001 as
2703-481: Was the first church on Wilshire Boulevard in 1911. The church property at Wilshire and Normandie was donated by the Chapman Brothers, owners of Chapman Market, whose historic building remains nearby on Sixth Street. Some of the buildings are: Wilshire Center is zoned to the Los Angeles Unified School District . All areas are zoned to Los Angeles High School . Schools include: The Pio Pico–Koreatown branch of
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#17328695998042756-572: Was the last radio station to broadcast from Hollywood before it left CBS Columbia Square for a studio in the Miracle Mile in 2005. On January 22, 1947, the first commercial television station west of the Mississippi River , KTLA , began operating in Hollywood. In December of that year, The Public Prosecutor became the first network television series to be filmed in Hollywood. Television stations KTLA and KCET , both on Sunset Boulevard, are
2809-432: Was torn down to make way for the 34-story Equitable Plaza office building erected in 1969. By 1970, firms such as CNA, Pacific Indemnity, and Pierce National Life were starting construction of their own high-rise buildings. Southwestern University School of Law moved from its downtown location of 50 years to a four-story campus just south of Wilshire Boulevard on Westmoreland in 1973. In the 1970s and 1980s, commerce moved to
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