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The Walk of Fame ~ Los Angeles

by Tsvete Popp
written by Tsvete Popp
Hollywood Walk of Fame star in Los Angeles, USA, with golden letters on a speckled tile.

On our second day in Los Angeles, we checked some must-see places like Hollywood Walk of Fame in the morning and Santa Monica Pier on the afternoon. The day before was definitely the time to get “acclimatized” to this city as we literally dashed away from Downtown L.A. to the mountains, where we spent some great time at Getty Center and later on – at Griffith Observatory:

To be honest with you – this was not my greatest feeling walking through the streets of Los Angeles … I don’t know the exact reason. Maybe I didn’t feel that safe, maybe because of the strange people everywhere, maybe because I was generally a bit disappointed by what I was expecting to see and by what we actually experienced. Or maybe the bar was set really high by everything we saw in the weeks before. Or for sure a combination of all these things.

 

Tourist walking on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, with iconic star plaques and cityscape.

Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

And of course, if you are in L.A. you almost SHOULD visit one of the world’s most famous, 2.1 km longs street, which is also the number one most visited place in the United States – The Walk of Fame! In 2016 there were more than 500 Hollywood Stars spread across the Boulevard and we had to walk awhile till we finally detected some familiar celebrity names.

 

Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles, USA, with a bustling street view.

TCL Chinese Theatre, Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

“You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Boulevard
Some that you recognize, some that you've hardly even heard of
People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame
Some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain” …
“Celluloid Heroes” The Kinks

 

… And some of them will be at least as pissed off as the stars were (if they only knew how dirty this street actually is) …

 

Tourists admire celebrity handprints at TCL Chinese Theatre, Los Angeles, USA.

TCL Chinese Theatre, Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

Handprints and signatures in Hollywood's Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, USA.

TCL Chinese Theatre, Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

The Hollywood Stars on the Walk of Fame honour not only the movie stars but also celebrities from radio and TV, theatre performers, singers, directors, songwriters, etc. Beneath each name there is a small round badge which reveals the category celebrity's – e.g. there is a camera pic for movie stars and directors, a theatre mask for live stage performers, the phonograph record for people from the music industry, a TV set for TV Stars, and a radio microphone for those from the radio branch.

 

Tourist posing by Arnold Schwarzenegger's handprints at TCL Chinese Theatre, Los Angeles.

TCL Chinese Theatre, Walk of Fame, Hollywood


Woman posing at Meryl Streep's star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, USA.

TCL Chinese Theatre, Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

And the fun begins when you finally start to see „your” stars! I’m not going to lie – I made more than 100 photos and it was really difficult to pick only some of those for this blog post. And unfortunately, the one I didn’t find (despite walking several times up and down the street, and I even googled it in Google Maps…) was the star of Leonardo DiCaprio! And guess what?!? He doesn’t have one! Wtf? Other famous personalities which are celebrating the club of “No-Star-Stars” are Robert De Niro, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Denzel Washington, etc. Even non-existing characters (like Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, Snow White, The Simpsons, Donald Duck, Shrek, etc.) have their place on the walk of fame and some celebrities can even manifest themselves with two or more stars (Gene Autry 5 Stars, Harrison Ford 2 Stars, Michael Jackson 2 Stars, Charlie Chaplin 2 Stars, etc.).

Ornate building with Assyrian motifs in Hollywood, Los Angeles, USA, under a clear sky.

Dolby Theatre,Walk of Fame, Hollywood


Woman posing by Jimi Hendrix's star on Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, USA.

Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

Meryl Streep's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, USA.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
Woman posing with Johnny Depp's star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, USA.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
Tom Hanks' star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, USA.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
David Bowie's Hollywood star on the Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, USA.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
Morgan Freeman's star on Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, USA.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, USA.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
Hollywood Walk of Fame star in Los Angeles, USA, with a film camera symbol.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
The Doors star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, USA.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood
Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, USA, honoring Steven Spielberg.
Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

Bustling street scene on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, USA, with iconic buildings and palm trees.

Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

But if you want to have your fun like we did – just visit The Walk of Fame in the early mornings! The same thing also applies to Grauman's Chinese Theatre (known as TCL Chinese Theatre). The TCL is famous for its more than 200 Hollywood celebrity handprints, footprints and autographs, and again – go there as earlier as you can, if you want to get a good shot with your favourites … And definitely, I found this place to be very interesting and would recommend it if you’re on your L.A. trip.

 

Hollywood Walk of Fame plaque commemorating its origins in Los Angeles, USA.

Walk of Fame, Hollywood


Hollywood Walk of Fame star in Los Angeles, USA, with golden letters on a speckled tile.

Walk of Fame, Hollywood


Urban scene with busy street and Hollywood sign in Los Angeles, USA.

Walk of Fame, Hollywood

 

Our last station on The Walk of Fame was the wax museum of Madame Tussauds. This was my first time in Madame Tussauds, it was not planned, but it was cooler than I thought it would be! Especially when having above 30° outside, the wax museum is a super place to visit! We got some “Buy one, get one free” vouchers at our hotel and believe it or not – we got our two cards for the price of one!

 

Woman posing with a wax figure of a man in Los Angeles museum.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Woman posing with wax figures in a museum in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Woman posing with a wax figure in a vibrant outfit in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood

 

Madame Tussauds in Los Angeles offers more than 110 wax figures of famous celebrities. The first two figures (Beyoncé and Jamie Foxx) cost the “tiny” amount of USD 300.000,00 each! The interesting thing is that each figure is made in close physical proximity to its celebrity so it is interesting to see how big/small compared to you they actually are.

 

Well, we made soooo many photos, that I could literally have a single Madame Tussauds blog post … Here there are some of my favourites:

 

Woman posing with a wax figure in Los Angeles museum.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Woman with wax figure in elegant attire at a museum in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Man posing with a wax figure in a museum in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Madame Tussauds wax figure scene of a director in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Woman taking selfie with Marilyn Monroe figure in Los Angeles museum.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


A woman poses with a cowboy statue at a museum in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Woman whispers to a wax figure in Los Angeles, USA museum.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Two people posing with 'guilty' and 'gangster' signs in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Man poses with martial arts figure in Los Angeles, USA exhibit, showcasing dynamic action pose.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood


Woman poses with a wax figure of a man in a museum in Los Angeles, USA.

Madame Tussauds Hollywood

 

Next time we will visit Santa Monica Pier, the most famous Venice Beach and the Venice Canals Walkway!

Enjoy the day!

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