The Hollywood Walk of Fame began its life as a tactic on the Chamber of Commerce’s part. Today, it is one of Los Angeles’s most famous tourist attractions and draws around 10 million visitors each year.
It keeps adding new celebrities right from Minnie Mouse to Mark Hamill, there are still somethings about Hollywood’s Walk of Fame that is interesting, but we know nothing about it. Read on to find out more about Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
The Inception
The original germ of the idea for the Walk of Fame came from, E.M Stuart in 1953, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce’s volunteer president. The conception of this idea was when the building was under construction for seven years then. It was a marketing tactic that was supposed to maintain the glory of a community that stands for glamor and excitement. The proposal submission for this was in January 1956 to the Los Angeles City Council.
Who Gets a Star?
If you are a star, how can you attain a star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame? Well, all you have to do is have an ardent fan base to nominate you. That’s right. Anyone can nominate a celebrity to receive a star on the walk of fame. However, the hiccup is that the person nominating the star has to shell out $30,000 to complete the application.
Posthumous Star
The beauty of the Hollywood Walk of Fame is, even the departed stars can find a place on the fabled Walk of Fame. However, the star’s fans must wait five years after the star’s demise to file a nomination. Another interesting tidbit of information is you don’t have to be a real person to have a star on the Walk of Fame. And that’s why there are characters like jostling for space with the celebs such as Mickey Mouse, Godzilla, Kermit the Frog. It looks like Kermit the Frog deserves a revered spot under the sun too!
Star On The Wall
If you are a celeb and wonder why you need to shell out $30,000 for people to walk all over you, then you are not alone. We are sure every star nominated to have their star embedded on the ground would have thought of it. Muhammad Ali thought it too, and he was one of the only ones who refused to let people walk over him. Hence he’s star was on the wall.
The Initial Idea
Although the idea was on, people still wondered about the concept and color scheme. Many people even toyed with the idea of having the caricatures of stars planted on the sidewalks. They had to drop the idea as making the right caricatures became more difficult than they previously thought. The color scheme even clashed with a building that the real estate developer C.E. Toberman, popular as Mr. Hollywood, was erecting on Hollywood Boulevard.
Look for the Time Capsule Under the Hall of Fame
Yes, there is a time capsule, too, embedded right underneath the Walk of Fame and opened in 2060. The capsule contains various significant items to commemorate the landmark, complete with Bob Barker’s note asking future people to have their pets spayed and neutered!
Look Closer There Are Two of Them!
Two Walk Of Fame stars of the same people? No, they are not the same people but one with the same name. There was silent film actor Harrison Ford who earned a star in 1960, while Harrison The Fugitive Ford got his in 2003.
The other two celebs with clashing names were Radio personality Michael Jackson and the King of Pop, both of who earned a star in 1984. The two stars of Micael Jackson became the bone of confusion when Michael Thriller Jackson breathed his last in 2009. His fans came in huge numbers to pay tribute to him. However, they end up choosing the wrong star to do.
These are some of the weird yet true stories about the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which still intrigues people worldwide. And that fascination is evident from the increasing number of visitors every year. We understand people’s obsession with celebs. And the Hollywood Walk of Fame turns out to be another instance of the same which attracts people from all corners of the world. So, have you visited the Hollywood Walk of Fame? Do tell us more about your experiences.
