By Christine Liu

Staff Writer

We are located right in the heart of the Entertainment Capital of the World, just one mile from Hollywood, less than ten miles from many of the major entertainment studios, and with movie premieres right in our backyard.

The entertainment industry is one of the largest sectors in the U.S. economy, and is growing internationally as well.  Americans altogether spend at least 120 billion hours and $200 billion on entertainment every year.  Annual household spending on entertainment is about $2,200.

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Hollywood, California, & The Film Industry

The name Hollywood was coined in 1886 by H. J. Whitley, who derived the name from the beautiful California holly, which traditionally covered the hillsides with bright red berries each winter.  While filmmaking in the greater Los Angeles area preceded the establishment of filmmaking in Hollywood, the first Hollywood motion picture was made only two years after in 1911.  The nameless movie was directed by David and William Horsley and Al Christie and was filmed on Hollywood Boulevard at the corner of Whitley Avenue.  The first feature film made exclusively in a Hollywood studio was The Squaw Man, directed by Cecil B. DeMille and Oscar Apfel.  By 1915, the majority of American films were being produced in the greater Los Angeles are and four major companies, Paramount, Warner Bros., RKO, and Columbia, had studios in Hollywood, along with other minor companies.

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