Hugh Hefner saves the Hollywood Sign

The movement to protect the Hollywood Sign from the visual clutter of nearby land development came to a successful conclusion recently when Hugh Hefner donated the final $900,000. This contribution completes the $12.5 million dollars that the Trust for Public Land needed to purchase Cahuenga Peak. This land, 138 acres located to the left of the H in the sign, will now be added to Griffith Park. This is the second time that Hugh Hefner has saved the Hollywood Sign. His previous contribution was in 1978, when he raised money needed to restore the iconic sign through an adopt-a-letter auction at the Playboy Mansion (it was $28,000 to “buy” a letter).

The land under threat of development was originally purchased by Howard Hughes in 1940 and was to have been the site of a mansion for his then girlfriend Ginger Rogers. (This house was never built.) In 2002 Howard Hughes’ estate, perhaps not being aware of exactly what they had, sold the land to a group of Chicago investors, Fox River Financial Resources, for a mere 1.7 million dollars. Fox River was ready to build four mansions on the site and get a huge return on their investment.

The possibility that the view of the Hollywood sign could be destroyed by these private residences galvanized the community and led to a fund-raising campaign.  At one point earlier in the year, the sign was draped with a “Save the Peak” message to raise awareness of the situation. Millions of dollars of contributions came in from Hollywood citizens and organizations. However, enough money still had not been raised on the April 14, 2010 deadline. Luckily, Fox River gave the movement 16 more days to raise the money and in late April Hugh Hefner stepped in to save the day.

For visitors and tourists, this means that the hike along the mountain ridge to Cahuenga Peak (and Burbank Peak) will remain open. This is an extremely scenic route that leads to the appropriately named “Magic Tree.” This tree has survived lack of water and forest fires; it commands a impressive view of both the Valley and the Los Angeles Basin. (The tree can just barely be seen in the photo below on the second peak from the left). The Cahuenga Peak hike can be reached from the Hollywood Reservoir, through the maze of the hillside streets in Beachwood Canyon, or through the extensive network of trails in Griffith Park.

[Photos courtesy of Derek Purdy and dsearls]