Grauman’s (TCL) Chinese Theatre – Hollywood

I know what you’re thinking: TOURIST TRAP WHY???

And trust me I usually don’t like a lot of the tourist stuff and I really feel Hollywood Blvd is much like Times Square in NYC (HELL) but I do find the outside of the Chinese Theater very interesting, provided you aren’t there late morning – early evening (AKA when the tourists are out). I love to see it very early in the morning when the sun is just up and the tourist haven’t quite crawled out of bed yet. That means you will need to get yourself up early, but to be able to go through and see all the names, hand prints, and footprints, of some of the great Hollywood Legends (and some new wannabes) without hassle it’s worth it.

I myself grew up on films from the Golden Era of cinema (and have been in the film and television industry most of my adult life) so to see some of those greats, Humphrey Bogart, Paul Newman, Bette Davis, Rita Hayworth, Jimmy Stewart, Cary Grant, just to name a few was a dream. To put my feet in their foot prints, my hands in their hand prints, to compare them to my own, gives me some perspective. They look like giants on the screen, but to see many of them are smaller than me (and I’m no giant with a 7.5 shoe)  doesn’t take away from their ability, but makes them and what they’ve done seem more attainable. If you’re a lover of film it’s kind of a right of passage to check it out.