IAMNOTASTALKER

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  • The Best Place to View the Hollywood Sign!

    There is one site in Los Angeles that I absolutely never get tired of, no matter how many times I see it. Even though I can now officially call myself a native Angeleno, I am not ashamed to admit that I still get a little jolt of butterflies in my stomach every time I see the Hollywood Sign in person. All of my hopes and dreams are represented in those big white letters and the sign is probably my favorite landmark in all of LA. Every time I am on the freeway or in Hollywood and the sign comes into view, I am reminded of why I moved to Los Angeles.

    A few years ago, in my fave Hollywood tour book, I found directions to a spot with a view of the sign like no other. High atop a hill in Burbank on Canyon Lake Drive, one can view the Hollywood Sign up close and personal. Driving up there, I am always amazed at the sheer size of the individual letters, which become absolutely ginormous the closer you get to them, in a way that almost feels eerie. From Canyon Lake Drive you can also see incredible views of Lake Hollywood and Downtown Los Angeles’ skyline. I highly recommend stalking the sign from Canyon Lake, even if you have lived in Los Angeles for years and have seen the Hollywood sign more times than you can count, as I can pretty safely guarantee that you’ve never seen it like this!

    The Hollywood sign, which originally spelled out “Hollywoodland”, was erected in 1923 as a real estate advertisement for a housing development known as Hollywoodland. The sign was deeded to the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce in 1945 and the “land” part was subsequently removed so that the sign would be a more accurate representation of the city it sat above. The original letters measured 50 feet in height and 30 feet in width. Over the years the sign became more and more dilapidated, with no one stepping in to repair it. At one point in time, half of the first “O” had fallen off along with the entire third “O” so that the sign read “HuLLYWO D”. In 1978, rock star Alice Cooper spearheaded a campaign to repair the sign, rallying huge donations from celebrities including Hugh Hefner, Gene Autry, and Les Kelly, creator of the Kelly Blue Book. The old sign was taken down and a new one was completed in November of 1978, with letters measuring 45 feet high and 31 to 39 feet wide, and a combined total weight of a whopping 480,000 pounds. The original sign sat in storage for over 20 years until 2005 when it was sold on EBay to an artist named Bill Mack, who is currently creating a piece of artwork out of the letters. You can read an article here about Bill’s artistic renovation of the sign, which includes painting old Hollywood legends onto each letter, including Rita Hayworth, James Dean, Greta Garbo, and my favorite, Marilyn Monroe. Something of a stalker himself, Bill also owns Marilyn Monroe’s bed and the original gate to her home. Sigh!

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: For the best views of the Hollywood sign, take Lake Hollywood Road off of Barham Boulevard. Follow Lake Hollywood for quite a while until you come to Lake Tahoe Drive. Make a left there. Follow Lake Tahoe to Canyon Lake Drive and make a right. You will see the looming sign on your left hand side. If you follow Canyon Lake past the large park on the left, you will see a little dirt look-out area with amazing views of Downtown LA and Lake Hollywood.

  • All Marilyn, All the Time!

    I dragged my mom to Hollywood last Friday to do a little Marilyn stalking. She wasn’t too keen on the idea, but I was absolutely dying to do something I had yet to do in all the years I have lived in LA – I wanted to put my hands in Marilyn Monroe’s handprints outside of the famous Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. I can’t tell you the number of times I have been to Grauman’s Theatre, but never once had I put my hands in her handprints or even made it a point to go look at them. I was so excited to be there on Friday, that I actually walked right past Michael Caine’s freshly made handprints on prominent display in front of the theatre without so much as even taking a picture for the blog. LOL I am kicking myself now for not taking a picture as it was very cool to see how the handprints looked in an unfinished state. But what can I say, I was just too excited to see Marilyn. 🙂

    Grauman’s Theatre has long been an iconic Hollywood symbol – almost a celebrity in and of itself. Grauman’s Chinese Theatre opened its doors on May 18, 1927. The Theatre was the brainchild of movie theatre owner Sid Grauman, who in 1922 built Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre, and his partners Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. Grauman, who passed away in 1950, now has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (near 6379 Hollywood Boulevard), and he was also one of the original founding members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The Chinese theatre was purchased by the Mann’s Movie Theatre chain in 1973 and the name was changed to Mann’s Chinese Theatre. But in 2001 the original name was reinstated and the theatre is once again officially known as Grauman’s Chinese Theatre.

    The handprint tradition began one day in 1927 while the Chinese Theatre was still being built. Sid accidentally stepped into some fresh cement in front of the theatre, leaving his footprints behind which sparked a magical idea. He says he immediately ran to get his two partners, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, who did the same with their feet. The rest as they say is history. There are currently over 200 stars’ handprints and footprints immortalized in cement at the entrance to Grauman’s, including Tom Cruise, Betty Grable, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Tom Hanks, Harrison Ford and even R2D2 and Donald Duck.

    It is interesting to note that Marilyn’s handprints are absolutely black with dirt, one hundred times dirtier than any of the other handprints at the Theatre. (You can see the dirt in the picture to the left.) Seeing that, it becomes quite apparent just how many fans come on a daily basis to place their hands in Marilyn’s famous handprints. Marilyn’s handprint ceremony took place along with Jane Russell on June 26, 1953 during the promotion of their movie Gentleman Prefer Blondes. You can watch their handprint ceremony here. If you look closely at the dot in the “i” of Marilyn’s name, you can see that it looks a bit odd. Marilyn had wanted to put a real diamond in the cement to mark the dot of the “i” in her name in honor of the song “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” which she sings in the movie. The studio refused out of fear of it being stolen, but Marilyn was allowed to use a rhinestone instead. Apparently less than three days after the handprint ceremony that rhinestone was indeed stolen, so the theatre replaced it with a glass bead which has remained embedded in the cement ever since.

    Several movies and TV shows have also been filmed outside the theatre, including Hollywood Homicide, I Love Lucy, The Beverly Hillbillies, Forest Gump, Blazing Saddles, Mighty Joe Young, Rush Hour, Borat, Goldmember, Earthquake, and A Star is Born. Although the theatre is a complete tourist trap and is always crowded with hordes of people, I highly recommend stalking it if you have not yet had the chance to do so. Grauman’s is a true Hollywood icon and a place everyone should see in person at least once in their lives. 🙂

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: Marilyn’s handprints can be found in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, which is located at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard, right in the heart of Hollywood. Her handprints are close to the doors of the Theatre, on the left hand side as you face the front of it. If you can’t find them, there are many theatre ushers standing around who can direct you to the right spot. You can still catch a movie at Grauman’s and I highly recommend doing so, as the theatre has recently been restored to its original grandeur and the interior is quite a sight to see.

  • A Joint Stalking Adventure

    This past weekend, I finally had the pleasure of meeting Mike from MovieShotsLA in person! Mike and I decided to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak, by getting some stalking in during our meeting. 🙂 So we met up on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica to grab some coffee and to stalk the Owen Wilson movie Drillbit Taylor. Drillbit Taylor was filmed all over Santa Monica, and the Third Street Promenade, an outdoor shopping district, was featured frequently in the movie, so it was the perfect place to meet. My boyfriend and I had a great time hanging out with Mike and his fiance and as Bogart once said, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. 🙂

    About two years ago, I actually saw Drillbit Taylor being filmed inside the Johnny Rockets on the Promenade. Johnny Rockets was used for the scene where Drillbit meets the boys for lunch and makes them pick up the tab. They sit at the table near the door in front of the window. Besides Johnny Rockets, the outside of the Promenade’s Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf was used several times in the movie, although producers added a lot of foliage to the exterior so it looks quite different in person. For interior shots of the coffee house, I believe they used a different Santa Monica Coffee Bean location – the one located on Ocean Park Boulevard.

    On a side note, Adam Ho who played the “Hendrix Kid”, the guitar playing boy in Drillbit Taylor, actually grew up playing guitar on the Third Street Promenade. For those who have never been there, the Promenade has long been a haven for street performers. My boyfriend, who used to work nearby, often saw Adam as a young child playing the guitar on the Promenade. How ironic that he’d one day end up in a movie which was filmed in the very spot where he got his start. You can see pictures of Adam performing on the Promenade here.

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: The Johnny Rockets from Drillbit Taylor is located on the Third Street Promenade, at 1322 Third Street, in Santa Monica. The Coffee Bean that was used for exterior shots can be found just down the block from Johnny Rockets at 1312 Third Street. The Third Street Promenade was also featured in Pee Wee’s Big Adventure as the location where Pee Wee’s beloved bike was stolen and in the movie Freaky Friday as the street where Jamie Lee Curtis goes shopping. The Coffee Bean used for interior shots in Drillbit Taylor can be found at 3150 Ocean Park Boulevard in Santa Monica, right near 31st Street.

  • The Pasadena Playhouse

    My boyfriend and I happened to walk past the Pasadena Playhouse this past weekend, and I just had to walk inside to stalk it. 🙂 The Pasadena Playhouse, although not a filming location, is one of the oldest and most distinguished community theatres in the US. The Playhouse has hosted hundreds of notable actors on its stages throughout the years and the talent of countless Hollywood stars of yesterday and today was cultivated at its distinguished theatre school.

    The Playhouse was started in 1917 by an actor/director named Gilmore Brown in a burlesque house in Pasadena. In 1925 it moved to it’s current location, a Spanish adobe style building in what is now called the Playhouse District of Pasadena. A theatre school was also established on the property during the ’20s. It was at this point that the Playhouse became recognized in Hollywood as the go-to place to find talent. George Bernard Shaw even called the Playhouse “the Athens of the West”.

    The Playhouse’s theatre school eventually became known in Hollywood as the “Star Factory” due to the many famous actors and actresses that studied there. Famous alumni include Gene Hackman, George Reeves (TV’s Superman), Eve Arden, Sally Struthers, Dustin Hoffman, Raymond Burr, Frances Farmer, Tyrone Power, Charles Bronson, William Holden, and Gloria Stuart, just to name a few. And writer Tennesse Williams premiered all of his plays at the Playhouse. Besides its famous students, countless big names have also performed on the Playhouse’s stage over the years, including William H. Macy, Scott Bakula, and Marilu Henner. Hopefully one day I, too, will be gracing the hallowed stages of this famed theatre.

    The Playhouse is one of the best places in Los Angeles to see live theatre. Valerie Harper is currently starring in the world premiere of the play Looped, which was written by celebrated playwright Matthew Lombardo. Looped is based on the life of actress Tallulah Bankhead, who has been dubbed “Hollywood’s first bad girl”. Looped also stars former teenage heartthrob Chad Allen – remember him from My Two Dads???? – who looks completely different today!

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: The Pasadena Playhouse is located at 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, just off Colorado Boulevard. Looped, starring Valerie Harper and Chad Allen, is currently playing through the 3rd of August. After seeing a show, you can grab a bite to eat and a drink at Bazaar Restaurant, located on the Playhouse property.

  • The Smoke House

    I am a little embarrassed to admit that my latest guilty pleasure is the reality show The Two Coreys on A&E. I love it! So when Corey Haim met with Scott Carlson, the other Corey’s manager, at the Smoke House restaurant in Burbank in one of the first episodes of the season, I of course had to go stalk the place! So I dragged my boyfriend out there last week for a little Smoke House lunch! 🙂 The Smoke House, which was established in 1946, has long been a celebrity magnet. Its close proximity to Warner Bros. Studio – it’s pretty much right across the street – has made it a frequent stomping ground of the stars who often stop in during breaks from filming.

    Throughout the sixty years the Smoke House has been in business countless famous names have popped in for a meal, including Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Errol Flynn, Judy Garland, Robert Redford, Kevin Costner, Andy Garcia and Frank Sinatra, who even has a steak named after him. The entire cast of Friends used to drop in on a weekly basis to hang out after filming (sigh!). A Tonight Show episode hosted by Jack Parr was filmed at the restaurant. And George Clooney became such a fan of the place during the filming of ER that he even named his production company, Smoke House Productions, after the restaurant. According to our waitress, besides The Two Coreys, a few episodes of Desperate Housewives were also filmed at the restaurant, but I am not sure which episodes.

    The Smoke House serves up some GREAT food in a very cool, Old Hollywood environment. While there, I could almost picture Frank Sinatra walking through the doors to sit in one of the shiny red booths. I definitely recommend stalking the restaurant if you find yourself in the area. I hear that the best time to stop in is around noon – the time when many stars working on the WB lot take their lunch breaks and head across the street for a bite to eat.

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: The Smoke House is located at 4420 W. Lakeside Drive in Burbank. Be sure to order up some of their famous garlic bread – it is amazing!!

  • Frank The Tank!

    I have been a student at The Groundlings School for about two years now. The Groundlings is an exceptional improv school that was started in 1972 and is practically a breeding ground for Saturday Night Live actors. Some of the comedic greats who got their start at the Groundlings include Kathy Griffin, Lisa Kudrow, Paul Reubens, Phil Hartman, Jennifer Coolidge, Pat Morita, Chris Farley, Jon Lovitz, Chris Kattan, and Frank the Tank himself, Will Ferrell. Every few months the Groundlings invites some of its famous alumni to participate in a question and answer session a la Inside the Actors Studio for the current Groundlings students. This past Monday night I was lucky enough to attend a Q&A session with funnyman Will Ferrell. I was even more excited because my Groundlings teacher, Roy Jenkins, was the one interviewing Will.

    The evening was so much fun!! I had expected Will to be extremely hyper and keyed up during the interview, but he was actually very down to earth and normal. And absolutely hilarious! As an actress, it was amazing to be able to hear acting advice in person and straight from the horse’s mouth, so to speak. Will shared many stories with us about his acting career and his long road to success. He even told us that at times he still gets stage fright, as he did the last time he performed in a Groundlings show! That was very heartening to hear! Here I thought I was the only one. LOL 🙂

    He even did a few impersonations for us – one of James Lipton, host of Inside the Actor’s Studio, and another of Harry Caray, an announcer for the Chicago Cubs – which were incredible to see in person. It was also a great learning experience to see my teacher, Roy, onstage with Will. The two studied at the Groundlings together and have known each other for over 16 years. It was amazing to see that not only was Roy just as funny as Will, but how they were able to work off of each other the entire time to make us laugh. I definitely saw them using some of the same Groundlings techniques and trainings during the interview that I am being taught in class. It was amazing to watch. 🙂

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: You can stalk the Groundlings at 7307 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. The improv and sketch comedy shows are HILARIOUS and are put on practically every single night of the week. Famous alumni even stop in on occasion to perform alongside current Groundlings castmembers! I recommend catching The Crazy Uncle Joe Show, my personal favorite, which is a long form improv show held every Wednesday night at 8pm. Tickets are $12.50 per person. If you are interested in studying with the Groundlings, you can set up an audition here.

  • Casa Vega and the Great Mexican Food Debate!

    I have long been a fan of Spencer and Heidi’s favorite Mexican restaurant Don Antonio’s in West LA. As far as I can see, it’s the only thing Spencer and I agree on. 🙂 Don Antonio’s serves up the best Mexican food I’ve ever tasted! In fact, the restaurant was the subject of my very first blog post. I really can’t say enough about the place!! But fellow stalkers Mike from MovieShotsLA and EJ from The Movieland Directory have both been telling me that the best Mexican food in LA can actually be found at a place called Casa Vega in Sherman Oaks. On their recommendation, I dragged my boyfriend out to Sherman Oaks this past Friday night to stalk the place.

    After eating there, though, I can definitely say that Casa Vega does not hold a candle to my beloved Don Antonio’s. While the food was definitely yummy, and one of the better Mexican restaurants I have eaten at in the LA area, for me, it just does not compare to D.A.’s. Don Antonio’s is just in a league of its own. I also found Casa Vega’s menu to be on the pricey side and the service wasn’t the best. Very odd thing happened while we were there, too -while waiting for a table, my boyfriend and I snagged a seat at the bar and I ordered a glass of champagne – my fave. The bartender poured some champagne into a huge tumbler glass and then filled it to the top with CLUB SODA! Four days later I am still absolutely perplexed by that and cannot figure out what he was doing! LOL

    Apparently, Casa Vega is somewhat of a celebrity haven. Numerous stars frequent the small restaurant, including Jessica Simpson and Tony Romo. Ironically, Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo just dined there, as well, while on a recent trip to LA. While there, Mike from MovieShotsLA has seen Travis and Shana Barker, Brian Austin Green, Nikki Sixx, and Jillian Barberie. Sadly, we did not spot any celebs while we were there. 🙁

    If you happen to be in the Sherman Oaks area, I definitely suggest stopping in for a bite at Casa Vega. But as for the best Mexican food in LA, this stalker’s heart will always belong to Don Antonio. 🙂

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: Judge for yourself! Casa Vega is located at 13301 Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks. Don Antonio’s can be found at 11755 West Pico Boulevard in West LA. Both restaurants can get pretty packed so be prepared for a long wait.

  • Go Team Nicole!

    My mom called me in a complete tizzy last week screaming at me to immediately turn my TV onto Bravo. It turns out that Nicole, Nick Arrojo’s assistant who worked on my mom’s hair during her appointment with Nick last December, is currently competing on Season 2 of the TV show Shear Genius. Shear Genius is a reality show hosted by Jacklyn Smith in which hair stylists compete in on-air styling challenges in order to win $100,000 and a styling job for a photo spread in Allure Magazine.

    My mom and I absolutely fell in love with Nicole during the appointment with Nick. She was completely down to earth and adorable and she really could not have been nicer. She had a really sweet relationship with Nick, too. Nicole has been doing great on Shear Genius and I really think she has a good chance of taking home the final prize! Until then my fingers are crossed! Go Team Nicole!

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: You can catch Shear Genius on Bravo, Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Nick Arrojo’s studio is located at 180 Varick Street in the SoHo area of New York City. You can also visit the Arrojo Studio website here. I highly recommend making an appointment with Nick – he is truly amazing!

  • Interview With the BBC!

    Got a comment on my blog this morning from a man named Iain Mackenzie who works for the radio station BBC Radio 1 out of New York. Iain is currently in LA doing a piece on the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) and he thought that, while in town, he’d record a brief segment on the new 90210 series that is coming out this fall. He wanted to interview me as a sort of 90210 expert. How cool is that?? Good to know I’m an expert on something! My parents must be so proud. LOL 🙂 Anyway, I was very excited to do the interview and met up with Iain this morning at – where else? – Vroman’s Bookstore in Pasadena.

    Iain is the US news reporter for BBC Radio 1 and an all around nice guy. We had a great chat about life and Hollywood and, of course, the first 90210 series and its stars. It seems he was quite a bit obsessed with the show back in the day, too. 🙂 He asked me some questions about the new 90210, if I thought it was going to be a hit, and why I thought the first 90210 became such a huge phenomenon. Iain was super friendly and I had an absolute blast doing the interview. I can’t wait for it to air!

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: BBC Radio 1 is the second biggest radio station in the UK, with over 13 million listeners each week. Iain reports on the Newsbeat program which broadcasts twice a day. You can listen to Radio 1 on SIRIUS Satellite Radio’s Channel 11. You can also listen to the station on Radio 1’s website. I am not sure when the 90210 segment will air, but hopefully I can get an audio file of the interview to post here.

  • Marilyn Merlot

    I am still very much in the throws of my Marilyn Monroe obsession, and it is definitely true what they say – the more you think about something, the more you attract that thing to you. My father happened to be going through his wine collection last week and discovered a bottle of “Marilyn Merlot” wine that he had purchased almost a decade ago. No one in my family has ever been a big Marilyn fan, so it was a fairly random purchase. My dad says he came across the wine one day many years ago in a grocery store and he grabbed it thinking it might one day be a collector’s item. Due to my recent obsession, he of course gave the bottle to me and I quickly put it on display in my kitchen. Flash forward to this past weekend, when my parents were vacationing in Monterey, California. They made a visit to their favorite wine shop there, Terranova Fine Wines, and lo and behold, sitting on a shelf in the store was a vast collection of the Marilyn Wines, including the one my father had just given me. It’s present day worth? $225!! Guess he was right about it one day being a collector’s item. 🙂

    Bob, the owner of Terranova, filled my dad in on the history of the Marilyn Wines. Apparently, in 1985 two Napa area brothers gained exclusive rights to Marilyn’s name and certain images of the starlet and decided to use them on bottles of wine. Beginning in ’85, the brothers released a new vintage of Marilyn Merlot each year on her birthday – June 1 – each with a different photograph of the screen legend. The wine was not extremely popular until its fourth vintage when it caught the attention of a Japanese businessman who formed a partnership with the brothers. They agreed that 60 percent of each year’s vintage would be sold exclusively in Japan, as Marilyn is still a huge icon there. They also agreed to only release a limited quantity of each year’s wine, so as to prevent overflooding of the market. Today the wines are hugely successful, with some vintages costing upwards of thousands of dollars. The brothers have branched out and now also produce Marilyn Cabernet, Norma Jeane Wines, the Velvet Collection, and Blonde de Noirs, their latest creation of sparkling wines. All royalties from the sales of the wines go to Anna Strasberg, the wife of Marilyn’s beloved acting coach, Lee Strasberg, to whom Marilyn left everything in her will. Anna allocates the money to the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute and the Anna Freud Fondation in London.

    That same day that my parents learned the history of the Marilyn Wines, my boyfriend and I were actually stalking the Beverly Hills home Marilyn shared for a few short months with husband Joe DiMaggio. Monroe and DiMaggio rented the house in April of 1954 while Marilyn was in town filming There’s No Business Like Show Business. The home, which is most often referred to as Joe and Marilyn’s honeymoon home, is a very cute, but nondescript Elizabethan style house. It is amazing to me to that she lived in such a normal home at the height of her career.

    On October 6, 1954 a distraught Marilyn held a press conference on the front lawn of this home announcing her divorce from Joe DiMaggio. The press were out in force that day, camped out in Marilyn’s front yard, to document the event. Marilyn vacated the home shortly thereafter. You can see a slide-show of the press conference that took place that day here. Although it is a very long slide-show, there are quite a few photographs where you can see the home in the background.

    Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

    Stalk It: Marilyn and Joe’s honeymoon home is located at 508 North Palm Drive in Beverly Hills, just off Santa Monica Boulevard. Terranova Fine Wines is located at 315 Calle Principal in Monterey, California. If you visit the store, be sure to ask for Bob, who has a vast knowledge of Marilyn Monroe and the Marilyn Wines. You can also visit the Terranova website here.