72. Hollywood and Highland Closing?

So...your CaliforniVacation SoCal gal has a series of blog posts coming up dedicated to sights in Los Angeles relevant to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) past and present.  Tis the season considering their 2010 Award Ceremony takes place on Sunday, March 7th.

The evening of Monday, March 1, your SoCal gal was cleverly putting together her wish list of locations to visit and film, many of which happen to be located on Hollywood Boulevard.

Needless to say, she was a little put off when she saw on the news the next morning that Hollywood Boulevard was shut down due to the above mentioned award show.

What?  That couldn't be true.  How could the city possibly get by with shutting down Hollywood Boulevard?  What about all the stores and things like that at Hollywood and Highland that must thrive on tourists?  Say it ain't so!

Being a non-believer, your SoCal gal, me, Lori Bjork, had to go find out for myself.

Dang!  If the news hadn't gotten it right for once.  Sort of.  Was that mean?

Hollywood Boulevard was indeed shut down to any sort of vehicle traffic between Highland Avenue and Orange Avenue through March 9 (the subway stop will also be closed March 6 and 7).  The off limits area for all except those with proper credentials is limited mostly to the street area and in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater.

Watch the video and you may note I start out on the south side of Hollywood Boulevard assuming not only the street is closed off but entrance to the Hollywood/Highland Center, which houses the Kodak Theatre.  I walk all the way around the back of Hollywood/Highland Center finally reaching the north side of Hollywood Boulevard again to find entrance to the center is not restricted.

Live and learn people.  Live and learn.

One of my favorite ways to get digital images is from up high.  The video includes some images from the 4th level of the Hollywood Highland Center.  It also includes showing the guarded entrances inside to the actual Kodak Theatre.

The street level entrance to the Kodak Theatre has an Oscar statue in front of it.  This is probably the closest I will ever get to an Oscar in my life.  Although, you never know, eh?

And just because I can, I am including a photo of the view from behind the curtain.  What do you know?  Another theater.  It's the El Capitan.

P.S.  The wide view would also show the venue where Jimmy Kimmel Live! is filmed.