Ten Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Los Angeles

Ten Things You Probably Didn’t Know About La-La Land 

LA is a huge, sprawling city with plenty to do, see, and learn. Even if you’ve been there countless times, there is surely still plenty that you don’t know about the great city of angels.

1.    L.A. has always suffered from smog. The ancient Chumash tribe’s name for the L.A. Valley translates to “valley of smoke”. Something about the way it is situated made it susceptible to smog, even before the city was invaded by vehicles.

2.    The Watts Towers, or “Nuestro Pueblo” (our town), were constructed by Italian immigrant Simon Rodia on his lot over the course of 33 years in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. They are a collection of 17 interconnected sculptural structures, the tallest reaching a height of over 99 feet.

3.    Many stars are buried in Hollywood’s Forever Cemetery. One of those stars is Looney Tunes voice actor Mel Blanc, whose gravestone reads, “That’s all folks.” It is also one of the oldest Cemeteries in the city. You can also see the graves of some of old Hollywood’s favorite stars, including Rudolph Valentino, Mickey Rooney, and Clifton Webb.

4.    The Great Wall mural, at 2,754 feet long, is one of the longest murals in the world. It was designed by Judith Baca and completed by community youth and artists. The mural depicts the history of California in several panels, beginning with prehistory and colonialism. The mural also puts emphasis on Native Americans and minorities. 

5.    As of July 1st 2015, Plastic bags are banned in Los Angeles. Citizens are encouraged to bring their own reusable bags or to pay ten cents for a paper one at the store.

6.    Whimsic Alley, a Harry Potter themed store, sells butter beer, chocolate frogs, quidditch robes, wands, and more. The store also sells other fan paraphernalia, such as objects from famous books and movies.

7.    The Church of Scientology, who have their headquarters in Los Angeles, campaigned to have the city rename one street running through their complex “L. Ron Hubbard Way.” The church of Scientology was started by L. Ron Hubbard in LA in the 1950s. The church has been subject to a number of controversies, often being described as a dangerous cult or as a business.

8.    During the 1940’s dust bowl era, the Los Angeles police chief sent 125 policemen to act as bouncers at the state border, turning away “undesirables,” aka low-income “okies” from Oklahoma. The dust bowl was a period in the 1930s and 40s where there was a series of severe dust storms, causing crops to die. Many starved or died of dehydration.

9.    The Hollywood Walk of Fame has 2,518 stars. They take up 15 blocks on Vine Street in Hollywood. It is a popular tourist destination, boasting more than 10 million visitors a year.

10. Los Angeles is home to some of the best universities in the country, such as UCLA, California State University, Los Angeles, American Jewish University, Los Angeles college of music, Mount St. Mary’s college, and Southern California Institute of Architecture. If you have children thinking about attending one of these schools, you may want to look into Los Angeles summer camps for the youth such as the prominent UCLA summer camp.