The Hollywood Walk of Fame, located along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard
and an additional three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California, bears
the names of more than 2,700 actors, directors, producers, musical artists,
theatrical groups, and fictional characters. Each celebrity is given their own five-pointed
brass and terrazzo star embedded into the sidewalk serving as a permanent monument
celebrating their contributions to pop culture and the entertainment industry.
The Walk was established 62 years ago in 1960 and is maintained by the Hollywood
Chamber of Commerce. In the years since its inception, it's obviously become a
major tourist attraction. In fact, as of 2010, an estimated 10 million people a year visit the Walk.
Now, most of the names featured on the Walk are probably what you would expect.
You've got major modern movie stars like Tom Cruise and Nicolas Cage and classic actors
and actresses from Hollywood's Golden Age like Clark Gable and Audrey Hepburn. Then
you have iconic musicians and bands such as Stevie Wonder, The Beatles, and Fleetwood Mac.
Some of the names featured on the Walk, however, stand out from the rest. Join Facts Verse as we
take a look at a few Unusual Hollywood Walk of Fame Stars that are Raising Eyebrows.
Stars With One-Word Stage Names
Sixteen stars are simply identified with their single-word stage names.
Celebs in this category include Roseanne, Slash, Pink, and Liberace.
Stars Tied To Their Characters
Clayton Moore is best known for his role as the Lone Ranger. While he played several
other roles throughout his career, his name is inextricably linked to his iconic masked
Western character. Moore is one of just two actors to have their character names listed
alongside their own names. The other celebrity included in this small club is Tommy Riggs,
whose star references his best-known role, Betty Lou.
The Largest Group Of People Represented By A Star
The Munchkins from the groundbreaking 1939 film The Wizard of Oz have their own star.
122 adults and 12 children made up this group of short-statured yet highly memorable characters.
Identical Names Representing Different People
There are two stars for actors named Harrison Ford. The one you're most
familiar with is the one who played Indiana Jones and Han Solo. His star is in front of
the Dolby Theatre at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard. Another Harrison Ford,
who was fairly well-known actor during the silent film era, has a star at 6665 Hollywood Boulevard.
There are also two Michael Jackson Stars – the first being for the King
of Pop. His star can be found at 6927 Hollywood Boulevard. The other Michael Jackson star is for
a British-American radio personality who hosted a popular program on LA's
KABC radio station. This Michael Jackson star can be found at 1597 Vine Street.
After the 'Thriller' singer's tragic passing in 2009, his fans began mistakenly leaving flowers,
candles, and other items in tribute to him at the Vine Street star. When Michael Jackson, the radio
personality, learned of this, he made a post on his website saying that he was willingly loaning
his star out to the fallen musician and that if it would bring him back, he'd let him have it.
This Michael Jackson sadly passed away a few months ago, on January 15,
2022. He was 87 when he lost his long battle with Parkinson's disease.
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And don't go anywhere just yet. Keep watching to learn about the stars on
the Walk whose names were misspelled. We'll touch on that in a minute, so stay tuned.
Make-up, Special Effects, and Costume Artists With Stars
The Westmore family, a prominent Hollywood family of make-up artists led by their patriarch
George Westmore, received the first star honoring contributions in the realm of theatrical make-up.
Several other make-up artists have likewise
received stars on the Hollywood Walk, including John Chambers, Rick Baker, and Max Factor.
Similarly, several stars recognize individuals who made significant contributions in the field
of special effects. These include the stars for Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, and Ray Harryhausen.
Only two costume designers have been honored with stars on the Walk. The first being
eight-time Academy Award-winning wardrobe legend Edith Head and the other being the
first African American to win an Academy Award for costume design, Ruth E. Carter.
Novelists With Stars
Syndey Sheldon is the first of two famous novelists with stars on the Hollywood
Walk. He earned his star for penning numerous screenplays, such as his one for the 1947 film The
Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer, before shifting gears and focusing primarily on his novels.
The other novelist with a star is Ray Bradbury, whose novels and short stories have been
adapted into dozens of films and television programs over a period of more than 60 years.
Inventors With Stars
There are two stars on The Walk dedicated to inventors. Thomas Edison was given a
star honoring him for being the inventor of the first true film projector and for holding
a number of patents related to other motion-picture related technologies.
George Eastman has a star for being the inventor of the film roll.
Lee de Forrest is honored with a star for inventing the triode vacuum tube,
which paved the way for the development of the radio and TV. He also created Phonofilm,
which made the first 'talkies' possible.
Star honoree Marian C. Cooper was the co-inventor of the Cinerama Process.
Herbert Kalmus, the inventor of technicolor, also has a star.
Mark Serrurier developed the technology that made film editing possible, while Hedy Lamarr,
the co-inventor of the frequency-hopping radio guidance system, which eventually
gave birth to WIFI and cellphone systems, was also a successful Golden Age actress.
Last but not least, we have Ray Dolby, whose star honors the fact that he was the co-developer of
the first video tape recorder and the inventor of the famous Dolby noise-reduction system.
Politicians With Stars
Several star recipients eventually moved on
from their entertainment careers to ones in the political arena. Two US Presidents,
Ronald Reagan, and Donald Trump, have stars on the Hollywood Walk.
Reagan is also notable for being one of two Governors of the state
of California with a star – the other being the "Governator", Arnold Schwarzenegger.
One United States Senator – George Murphy – and
two members of the House of Reps – Sonny Bono and Helen Gahagan – also have stars.
The only European head of state to have a star is Ignacy Paderewski,
who served As Poland's prime minister between the two World Wars.
Albert Dekker, best known for his roles in Dr. Cyclops, The Killers,
and Kiss Me Deadly, served a term in the California State Assembly during the 1940s.
Disneyland Got A Star in 2005
Since a city ordinance prohibits the placement of corporate names on sidewalks,
Disneyland's star, which was placed in 2005, was installed adjacent to the sidewalk.
Stars for commercial organizations like Disney are only considered for organizations
with a Hollywood entertainment industry connection of at least half a century.
The star commemorated Disneyland's 50th anniversary. It can be found near
Disney's Soda Fountain on Hollywood Boulevard.
Fictional Characters
In 1978, Mickey Mouse became the first animated character to receive a star on The Walk. Nearly
twenty other animated celebs have been added to the Walk over the next several decades.
Other fictional characters with stars include Godzilla, Lassie, Rin Tin Tin, and Pee-Wee Herman.
Jim Henson is one of just four puppeteers to have a star on the Walk,
but three of his creations have also been honored with stars. The
Muppets have a star along with Kermit the Frog and Big Bird.
Stars With Typos
In 2010, Seinfeld actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus was given a star, but her name was mistakenly
spelled 'Julia Luis Dreyfus', omitting the O in Louis and not hyphenating her surname. She was
reportedly pretty amused by the mix-up, and the error has since been corrected.
A similar error was made when Dick Van Dyke was given his star in 1993.
Van Dyke was spelled as all one word, but once again the mistake has been rectified.
Television and film actor Don Haggerty's star originally listed his first name as 'Dan'.
Years later, TV actor Dan Haggerty, best known for his role in Grizzly Adams, also received a
star on the Walk resulting in some confusion that led to the spread of a popular urban legend that
Dan Haggerty was the only star recipient to have their star removed from the Walk.
For almost three decades, the star was dedicated to Helsinki-native Swedish
film pioneer Mauritz Stiller, who was the one that brought Greta Garbo to the US,
read 'Maurice Diller'. This error was likely the result of poorly heard verbal dictation.
To this day, four names remain misspelled on their respective stars. Opera singer
and actress Lotte Lehrman's name is spelled 'Lottie' with an I.
The co-inventor of Cinerama and creator of King Kong,
Morian C. Cooper's name is misspelled as 'Meriam'.
Cinematographer Auguste Lumiere's star neglects to include the E at the end
of his first name. Similarly, radio comedienne Mary Livingstone is listed as Mary Livingston.
Veteran film and stage actor Monty Wooley, best known for his role in 1942s The Man
Who Came to Dinner and for uttering the line 'Time flies when you're having fun',
is officially included in the motion picture category but his star bears the
television emblem. While it's true that he did appear on TV late in his career,
his television contributions are eclipsed by his time on the big screen and theatrical stage.
Likewise, film star Carmen Miranda's star also bears the television emblem.
Despite being best known for his work on the radio and television as a talk show host,
Larry King's star displays a film camera emblem.
We're just about out of time for this video, but we'd love to hear from you.
Have you ever gotten the chance to visit the Hollywood Walk of Fame? If so, were you surprised
by any of the names you spotted on the boulevard? Let us know in the comments section down below.
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some of your favorite Hollywood films, television shows, and stars.