California’s most famous sign turns 100 years old this year, and while it’s a familiar sight to people the world over, there’s a lot you might not know about the sign. When it was first erected in 1923, it was essentially a billboard, an advertisement for the Hollywoodland neighborhood. It was also covered in light bulbs — roughly 4,000 of them — that blinked all night. It cost $21,000 to build and was designed to last 18 months. Instead, it has stood for decades. By the 1940s, the sign had fallen into disrepair, and Hollywoodland Real Estate Development had folded. Some said the sign should be bulldozed, but the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce stepped in and had it rebuilt — this time without the “land.” By the 1970s, the sign needed help again. It was an eyesore, so Playboy Magazine’s Hugh Hefner stepped in to raise money by throwing a gala at his famous mansion. Entertainers contributed $27,000, which was enough to fund a total restoration. Since the new sign was unveiled, it's been repeatedly power washed and repainted to keep it in good condition. Peg Entwistle, dubbed by tabloids as the “The Hollywood Sign Girl,” was only 24 years old when she climbed 50 feet up a workman’s ladder to the top of the “H” and plunged to her death after trying to make it in Hollywood and finding no success. Legend has it that the very next day, a letter arrived offering her the lead in a play at the Beverly Hills Playhouse.
