More than just a word associated with cinema, Hollywood has become one of the most recognized signs in the world. Located in the hills of Los Angeles, California, the giant set of white letters has come to symbolize the entertainment industry on a global scale. The sign receives around 50 million visitors a year, even though access to the top is not one of the easiest, according to the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. However, unlike monuments rooted in ancient civilizations or directly linked to national identity, the Hollywood sign is a symbol in constant transformation — physically and mentally. Over time, it has become a cultural icon shaped by decades of interventions, artistic reinterpretations, and political statements. (Margaret Herrick Library/CASACOR)
The sign was born in 1923, but its initial function had nothing to do with cinema. At that time, the sign was created as part of an advertising campaign to promote a new real estate development on the slopes of Mount Lee: “Hollywoodland,” a planned neighborhood aimed at the white elite. With letters approximately 15 meters high and lit by more than 4,000 lights, the idea was for it to be visible from miles away and to remain there for only 18 months. However, with the city's growth and the advancement of the film industry in Los Angeles, the sign ended up remaining and becoming a local landmark. (Los Angeles Public Library/CASACOR)
Before becoming the "City of Stars", Los Angeles was an area inhabited by
indigenous peoples. Like other areas of the American West, it was composed of farms, prospectors, outsiders, and still undeveloped land. The
sunny,
dry, and
mild climate attracted both the early settlers and, later,
the film producers.
It was in the 1910s that the first studios migrated to the region, fleeing competition on the East Coast and attracted by the Californian landscapes. From the 1920s and 1930s, Los Angeles had already established itself as the center of film production in the U.S. The word “Hollywood,” which once named just a neighborhood, came to represent an entire industry — and the sign, although initially detached from cinema, quickly absorbed this new meaning. However, over time, the structure began to deteriorate. The Great Depression in the 1930s hit the real estate market, and during World War II, the city's efforts turned to the war industry. The sign, without maintenance, suffered from neglect. In 1949, the city hall of Los Angeles intervened, removing the last four letters (“LAND”) and renovating what remained. Thus, the word “HOLLYWOOD” became the official symbol of the city. Still, in the following decades, the sign continued to face the wear and tear of time and episodes of vandalism. Only in the 1970s, with the status of a historic landmark granted by the Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission, did a more solid preservation movement begin. A new version was inaugurated, now in resistant steel, with a safer structure protected by cameras and security systems. Um dos episódios mais emblemáticos aconteceu em 1976, quando o artista Danny Finegood alterou as letras para “Hollyweed” como forma de celebrar a descriminalização da maconha na Califórnia (Los Angeles Public Library/CASACOR)
More than a tourist spot, the sign has become a canvas for artistic and political interventions. One of the most emblematic episodes occurred in 1976 when artist Danny Finegood altered the letters to “Hollyweed” to celebrate the decriminalization of marijuana in California — a work done, in fact, for a university assignment. He would make other interventions over the years, such as “Ollywood” (in critique of the Iran-Contra scandal) and “Oil War” (during the Gulf War). More recently, works like Indian Land, by indigenous artist Nicholas Galanin, challenged the colonial legacy embedded in Hollywood's history. The monumental installation made a direct call for the return of land management to indigenous communities, re-appropriating the visual language of the sign to denounce the exclusion of indigenous narratives. Indian Land, do artista indígena Nicholas Galanin (Divulgação/CASACOR)
These interventions show how the Hollywood sign has been constantly re-signified. Although still associated with the “American dream”, the sign, which began as a advertising piece, came to incorporate disputes over memory, identity, and social justice — taking on new meanings over the decades. Today, it represents more than the film industry: it is also a space for critique, expression, and cultural reinvention. 
