Los Angeles Museums: Hollywood area

Hollywood Bowl Museum - features history, photos, posters, videos, and rock memorabilia from events at the Hollywood Bowl.

Hollywood Heritage Museum - (across from Hollywood Bowl) is dedicated to the early days of filmmaking in Hollywood. The Museum features archival photographs from the silent movie days of motion picture production, movie props, historic documents and other movie related memorabilia. Also featured are historic photos and postcards of the streets, buildings and residences of Hollywood during its heyday.

Hollywood Museum - The museum contains four floors full of artifacts, movie props, costumes, memorabilia, dioramas, pictures, posters, old film equipment and other exhibits related to Hollywood movies and motion pictures.

On the first floor there are "makeup rooms" dedicated to famous actresses like Lucille Ball, Marilyn Monroe and Loretta Young. These rooms contain costumes, pictures, multimedia displays and other exhibits. There are cases filled with artifacts such as scripts, letters and contracts plus magazines and newspapers featuring the actresses.

The second and third floors are full of displays, including props from famous Hollywood movie scenes, costumes, posters, antique film equipment and other displays. Exhibits range from tiny jewelry worn in films, to large objects like Marilyn Monroe's 1961 Cadillac Fleetwood.

The Hollywood Museum holds enough exhibits to keep you occupied for hours. But it's not open every day, and it closes at 5PM, so plan accordingly. The museum is located on Highland Avenue at the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard.

Hollyhock House / Barnsdall Art Park is a collection of buildings and art objects located within a park on Hollywood Boulevard, about two and a half miles east of Hollywood and Highland. On the premises:

• Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery
• Junior Arts Center Gallery
• Hollyhock House
• Barnsdall Gallery Theatre
• Art displays throughout the park

LA Fire Dept Historical Society Museum - Preserving and sharing the rich history of the LAFD by remembering, memorializing and honoring fallen firefighters and educating the public on fire and safety tips.

Museums on Hollywood Blvd - Some of the attractions on Hollywood Blvd are museums.

• Madame Tussauds Hollywood - To call Madame Tussauds a wax museum is like trying to describe Disneyland as simply a theme park. Guests at Madame Tussauds can interact with lifelike celebrity figures without ropes or barriers between them. You can walk up to George Lopez and say "Wapa!!" See other stars like Johnny Depp, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Lopez.
• The following three attractions are just east of the intersection at Hollywood Blvd and Highland Avenue. The advantage of this trio is that you can buy a discounted admission pass for all three of them, and they are open until midnight.
  • Hollywood Wax Museum - The original wax museum on Hollywood Boulevard is still there! Features hundreds of wax figures depicting famous people and celebrities.
  • Ripley's Believe It or Not and the Guinness Book of Records Museum - These two attractions are next to each other. The Guinness Museum features exhibits related to the famous World Book of Records. Ripley's Museum showcases odd trivia from Ripley's Believe It or Not book.
• (More Hollywood Boulevard Links)

Museum of Death - If you're looking for something a bit more macabre than the standard tourist attractions, at the Museum of Death you will find a large collection of exhibits and displays that explore many facets of death. The museum is located a little east of Vine Street. It will take about 10-15 minutes to walk from Hollywood and Highland to the museum, or you can take a train or bus part of the way.