Hollywood, an iconic landmark sign. It is on Mount Lee in the Santa Monica Mountains.
HOLLYWOODLAND was spelled out in 45 foot tall capital letters. It was created in 1923 as an advertisement for a local real estate development. The same type of sign had worked well in the past for them at Whitney Heights. It was meant to last a year and a half, but became an international symbol, so was left up.
In 1949 the Hollywoodland sign was in bad condition, so the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce arranged for the sign to be repaired and rebuilt, without the LAND part.
Many residents of the neighborhoods that adjoin the sign are not happy it is there. The residents say that the streets are not meant to handle all of the traffic and congestion caused by tourists and sightseers attracted by the sign.
Due to the winding confusing streets, it used to be difficult to find, and people would give up. That changed when GPS came out. Suddenly the streets were always filled with tourists parking on local streets to walk to get closer to take pictures. The residents got even more frustrated. Many locals posted "Warning - Tourist Free Zone" and other illegal signs and painted their curbs red illegally to signal no-parking zones.
The residents pleaded with the city for help. A local council-member started contacting companies to changed the Hollywood sign's official GPS coordinates.
So Google maps and other GPS providers now will show the Hollywood sign, but when you ask for directions, they will take you to Griffith Observatory (or further locations), one mountain to the East, and then tell you where to look to see it....
When this map was embedded, it went from Glendale to the Hollywood Sign, but you could see it took you to Griffith Observatory instead.
So even though there is a trail system that leads right to the sign, all GPS providers won't tell you how to use that trail.
Does it make a lot of sense for us as people to erect large signs like Hollywood, then pretend they are not actually there? Do we ever do the same things in our own life? Do we ever try to hide part of our life from God?
Jeremiah 23:23-24
“Can a man hide himself in hiding places
So I do not see him?” declares the Lord.
“Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the Lord.
© Vivian P. Kirkpatrick, 2015