Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - Where the Oscars Began

A stop on Hollywood Boulevard Walk, a free self-guided tour.

Across from the Chinese Theatre rises the Hollywood Roosevelt, a Spanish-style hotel that opened on May 15, 1927. Its backers read like a studio-era guest list: Louis B. Mayer, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and Sid Grauman were among the group that put up the money for the $2.5 million building.

Two years later, on May 16, 1929, the hotel's Blossom Ballroom hosted the very first Academy Awards. It was a private dinner for about 270 Academy members, hosted by Academy president Douglas Fairbanks. There was no suspense at all, because the winners had been announced three months earlier, and nobody called the golden statuette Oscar yet.

Like any proper Hollywood landmark, the Roosevelt has ghost stories, with Marilyn Monroe and Montgomery Clift among the stars said to linger in its halls. Enjoy them as legends. The hotel is still open, and if you step into the lobby you can see the painted ceilings and tilework of the 1920s.

Getting here: From the forecourt, walk west to Orange Drive and cross Hollywood Boulevard at the signal to the hotel on the southwest corner.

Did you know?: The bottom of the hotel's Tropicana Pool was painted by artist David Hockney in 1987, so swimmers float over a work of art.

Photo op: From the north side of the boulevard, frame the hotel's tower and its big rooftop sign against the sky.

More on Wikipedia: Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel · 1st Academy Awards · Douglas Fairbanks · Louis B. Mayer

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - Where the Oscars Began

Stops on this tour