Boulevard of broken dreams

By CARY DARLING

Rarely has a world-renowned destination been as dauntingly dreary and deservedly disparaged as Hollywood Boulevard. Everyone goes there expecting lights, cameras, action, and stars sipping fruity drinks as they ink multimillion-dollar deals. Instead, what visitors are often greeted with are police lights, other tourists' cameras, X-rated action and homeless people rummaging through rubbish bins.

But Hollywood is hustling to re-invent itself. Of course, for those of us who grew up in Los Angeles, this is a chamber of commerce siren song on repeat.

Since the late 1960s - when the exodus of cinemas, entertainment companies and residents began in earnest to LA's Westside, the San Fernando Valley and Orange County - the city of Los Angeles has been making noises about rehabbing the once distinctive, emotional heart of the entertainment industry.

With the Hollywood & Highland entertainment complex - which includes the Kodak Theatre - the talk is becoming action. The corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue has the new H&H complex (which also includes the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel), an expanded Grauman's Chinese Theatre, and a subway stop on LA's new Red Line on one side and the Disney-restored Spanish Colonial movie palace El Capitan on the other.

With the crush of tourists, street performers and bright lights, the corner has that ultra-urban brio one expects in New York or Tokyo.

On top of that, the urban redevelopment is creeping east and west, amid the T-shirt shops and theatres-turned-churches, to hook up with earlier stabs at renovation - the elegant Pantages Theatre (home of Broadway shows) and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - to form the outline of an urban fun zone.

The 18-block stretch from La Brea Avenue to Gower St along Hollywood Boulevard and its side streets is starting to percolate with activity, whether it's film freaks enjoying a vintage flick at the Egyptian Theatre/American Cinematheque; diners grabbing a bite in the dark interiors of such retro-cool restaurants as the Pig 'n' Whistle and the venerable Musso & Frank; scenesters downing drinks in bars with names such as the Burgundy Room, Beauty Bar and Star Shoes; and music fans catching a folkie at Hotel cafe or an alt-rock heavy at the Knitting Factory.

The revival of Hollywood Boulevard doesn't seem quite so much like Hollywood fantasy. Deciding which area of Southern California in which to stay has always been a problem as the tourist sites are so far-flung.

But Hollywood, now that it's becoming more inviting, could be an ideal base, as it's equidistant between the trendy Westside haunts of Santa Monica/Beverly Hills/West Hollywood and the studio complexes in North Hollywood/Burbank to the east.

Of course, all of this comes with a great, big asterisk. The makeover, the result of a US$800 million investment plan, still has a long way to go and a slumping economy could force it to come to a halt just like rush-hour traffic on the Hollywood Freeway.

There are still dead spots along Hollywood between Highland and Vine where some might not feel safe in the wee hours. The other nagging question is this: Will Hollywood be unique when it's over?

With its previous blend of squatters, street kids, fast-food franchises, religious zealots, would-be porn stars, struggling heavy metal musicians and perplexed tourists, Hollywood did have its own personality, redolent of palm-tree-lined decay.

This is the Hollywood that gave the world the hard-bitten rock of Guns 'n' Roses and Jane's Addiction. Now, it could become just another corporate outpost in the Banana Republic.

For right now, Hollywood - caught in the maelstrom of change - is an intriguing place to visit. And it is possible to see a star.


LA