The Dames Hit Hollywood! Day One: The Walk Of Fame, Grauman's, And A Break-In At The Roosevelt

Today I’m beginning the play-by-play of my Hollywood vacation! By the end of this series, you’ll hopefully feel as though you’ve been there with me vicariously through tons of photos and explanations. It’s your guide of modern-day Hollywood for the Classic Film Fan!

On my first day in Hollywood, I took no time to rest, and went straight to Hollywood Boulevard (which is where most of the action is!) We then did some of the Walk of Fame (my parents were so not going to do the whole thing. Me, being a big walking person, would not have at all minded seeing all 2500 stars that go on for miles on Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street. Oh well.) It’s amazing to see them in person! Unfortunately, some people graffittied the empty ones, which is just low, cheap, and disgusting. Some are also ruined, and need to be fixed. Nonetheless, here are some of the luminaries we saw:

Lon Chaney’s was the first star we saw. Let me also take the chance to say Hollywood is even more unique than any other place because it is totally acceptable to take pictures on the ground.

Ernst Lubitsch!!

Charles Butterworth, who I adored in Forsaking All Others with Clark Gable and Joan Crawford.

Vivian Vance! LOVE her!!

Douglas Fairbanks Sr, who did a lot to establish Hollywood in its early days.

Calling all Windies! It’s David O Selznick!

Errol Flynn. The poor man has evidently suffered some damage at the hands of tourists and pedestrians

One of my all-time favorite comediennes, Carole Lombard

And last but definitely not least, the Boy Wonder Irving Thalberg! (More on him later!)

Now let me take the opportunity to post a picture of an extremely pale-faced statue of James Dean outside a gift shop:

Heheheh. Anyway, let’s continue. Baby and I quickly lost interest in the Walk of Fame, however, when we saw one of the spires of the legendary Chinese Theatre, the location in which thousands of stars attended glamorous premieres of their films and entered their hand and footprints in a specially made cement. It gave me the CHILLS just to be in its presence! But since we were across the street from the Theatre, we decided to take our chances and sneak into the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, founded by Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, and Charlie Chaplin and once home to Marilyn Monroe, Montgomery Clift, and Gable and Lombard. It was also the home of the first Academy Awards celebration (which lasted fifteen minutes) and it is nothing short of a LEGEND in every sense of the word. It is beautiful inside, with a medieval castle theme mixed with wonderful 20s and 30s Deco:

The sign outside the door. We’re such tourists, aren’t we?

A really cute plaque of Charlie Chaplin, also outside the door.

The lobby. Can you imagine the amount of stars that once walked in this same room?

There were two thrones on either side of the hallway. Here’s one of ‘em

And here’s the other!

The chandelier in the lobby. Ain’t it a beaut?

The walls

This ADORABLE vintage letterbox on the far end of the lobby

A photo of Marilyn Monroe upstairs. Apparently, her ghost (one of the many!) haunts the hotel.

The upstairs hallway. We were real stinkers!!

That oh-so-famous sign!

After acting like criminals at the Roosevelt, Baby and literally pounded down the pavement into Grauman’s. It was just so overwhelming and beautiful, I broke down and cried like a little baby. It was the biggest thrill of my life, and I didn’t wash my hands for a full 24 hours afterwards.

Our first look at Grauman’s, when we were still across the street by the Roosevelt

When we got there

 
Dick Powell

and Joan Blondell’s!

Donald O’Connor (my newest actor obsession) and his mom

And lastly, Ginger Rogers, who had a helluva fancy signature!

Hope you enjoyed day one of my Hollywood vacation! Plenty more to come!

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