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Photography

November 2008

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Friday, November 7, 2008 – Intensely Hollywood

There is no explaining Hollywood – it is what it is. The seedy old Ritz Theater on Hollywood Boulevard, long abandoned, is now an evangelical church for the local Central American community, but on a Friday afternoon, behind a pickup truck with flames painted on the fenders and Texas plates, someone is doing a good Hendrix imitation – loud as hell, but impressive. One day he may be famous.  But it's all over in a few minutes. They shut him down and tell him to move along. That happens a lot out here. Everyone wants to be a star.
Guitarist at the old Ritz Theater on Hollywood Boulevard
Guitarist at the old Ritz Theater on Hollywood Boulevard

Frank Sinatra was a star.  And he's still dead.  Around the corner on Las Palmas, those who would keep him alive, and the Italian restaurant there, are working on making him live again.

Frank Sinatra graphic, Las Palmas, Hollywood
Miceli's - Las Palmas, Hollywood

Nearby, this looks like a Frank Sinatra kind of place –

Vogue Theater, Hollywood Boulevard

But the essence of Hollywood is Angelyne – since the earlier eighties her billboards have popped up all over town, disappeared, then popped up again.  She's not an actress or model, or anything much at all – no one knows what she does. She's her own invention, Hollywood at its most intense, and not connected to anything in particular – and a complete mystery. She may be doing a decades-long cultural parody, some sort of deeply ironic performance art. Or she may be just what she seems, a pneumatic blond bimbo of limited self-awareness with considerable promotional skills. No one knows.
Angelyne billboard, Hollywood Boulevard

Of course Angelyne drives a pink Corvette – everyone out here has caught a glimpse of it here and there. But she never seems to stop – that's part of the mystery.  But here is her Corvette, parked in a lot on Las Palmas, behind the hot club at the moment, Central Hollywood.  She was not around, nor was her dog, the pink Maltese named Buddha – just the car, and a whiff of Hollywood.
Angelyne's pink Corvette parked in a lot on Las Palmas, behind Central Hollywood
Angelyne's pink Corvette parked in a lot on Las Palmas, behind Central Hollywood
Angelyne's pink Corvette parked in a lot on Las Palmas, behind Central Hollywood
Angelyne's pink Corvette parked in a lot on Las Palmas, behind Central Hollywood
Angelyne's pink Corvette parked in a lot on Las Palmas, behind Central Hollywood
Angelyne's pink Corvette parked in a lot on Las Palmas, behind Central Hollywood

Yep –

Central Hollywood, Las Palmas
Central Hollywood, Las Palmas

If you wish to use any of these photos for commercial purposes I assume you'll discuss that with me. And should you choose to download any of these images and use them invoking the "fair use" provisions of the Copyright Act of 1976, please provide credit, and, on the web, a link back this site.

Technical Note:

These photographs were taken with a Nikon D200 – the lenses used were AF-S Nikkor 18-70 mm 1:35-4.5G ED, or AF Nikkor 70-300 mm telephoto.  The high-resolution photography here was modified for web posting using Adobe Photoshop 7.0 software.

Home (latest issue) | Recent Photography | Image Archives | Guest Photography | The International Desk | About This Site | Search This Site | Just Above Sunset Commentary

[November 2008] [Variations on Rose] [Hollywood Ritual] [Election Day Images] [The Day After] [Then and Now] [Intensely Hollywood] [1953 Formal] [Dogs of War] [Bright Spots] [Hendricks and Spock] [Entertainment Capital] [Alien Walls] [Lower Hollywood] [Hollywood Hair] [Hollywood Peeping] [The State Flower] [The Watchers] [Bright Boulevard] [Christmas Coming] [Star Eyes] [Lime Wedge] [Two Gulls] [Beach Art] [Meditation] [Substitute Monuments] [America Now] [Weekly Bestiary] [Stage Lighting] [Jersey Joe] [That LA Mood] [Local Intersections] [Dark Christmas] [Above It All] [Dream Center] [Small Shadows]