73. Before Sex and the City

Once upon a time (1923) in a land far, far away known as Hollywoodland, 45-foot tall white letters were placed in the Hollywood Hills area of Mount Lee in Los Angeles, California as an advertisement to sell homes in a new housing development.

At that time, who in the movie biz may have predicted the current nature of the film industry today?  Had they owned an accurate crystal ball allowing them to tell the tale of the current film industry, might those in 1923 have thought it one of the most outlandish fairy tales ever told?

You see, in 1923 there were no movies in color and sound was just being introduced.  The top grossing film was, "The Covered Wagon".  Number two on that list was Cecil B. DeMille's first, silent version of, "The Ten Commandments".

There was no Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) or AMPAS members nominating and voting for Best Picture of the Year or any other Oscar categories for that matter.  AMPAS would not be dreamed of until 1927 with Louis B. Mayer credited as its patriarch.

Thus in 1923, there were not yet plans accepted in May 1928 for an award ceremony where all films released from August 1, 1927 through July 31, 1928 would be eligible for the first Academy Awards.  It would be 1934 before considered films were based on the previous calendar year.

In 1923 there was no Roosevelt Hotel located on the corner of Orange Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard (7000 Hollywood Boulevard).  It would be 1926 before architect H. B. Traver would design the Spanish Colonial Revival structure known as the Roosevelt Hotel, which was commissioned by investors such as, Douglas Fairbanks, Louis B. Mayer and Mary Pickford.  It would be May 15, 1927 before the $2.5 million, 12-story, Roosevelt Hotel opened its doors for business.

It would be May 16, 1929 before the Roosevelt Hotel was home to the very first, only non-broadcast, five minute Academy Award ceremony inside its Blossom Ballroom.  I venture to guess that no one at the very first award ceremony would have predicted there would one day be a Kodak Theatre kitty-corner from the Roosevelt Hotel where the 82nd Annual Academy Award ceremony will be hosted on March 7, 2010.

It would be less than a short sixty years later that the Roosevelt would be in such decline there was serious talk of tearing it down.  It would be 2005 and $35 million invested to bring this historic landmark to its current shine.

And it would be March, 2010 when said hotel would play host to a "little" six-story advertisement for a sequel to a movie which was spawned by a hit cable tv-show phenomenon, known as "Sex and the City".

All I can say is "Carrie On" and live happily ever after.  Isn't that how all good fairy tales end?

P.S. and BTW.  Your CaliforniVacation SoCal gal created her own short sequel, "TTHD - The Totsquel".   She's not bitter...no not one little bit...that the Academy passed it over for consideration.  No.  That is not one glistening, slowly moving tear gliding down her cheek.  Is someone cutting an onion?  Someone must be cutting an onion.