Griffith Observatory

Griffith Observatory is a popular tourist attraction in Los Angeles, and a favorite dating spot for couples.

Whether tourists from out of town or Los Angeles, people often come here to enjoy the beautiful scenery. If you come at night,

You can also get a bird's-eye view of the Los Angeles nightscape.

Although it wasn't the New Year holiday when Henry and his companion arrived, most schools were still on break. Therefore, the observatory was quite crowded with young men and women.

Standing on the observation deck, in the afternoon when the sun was at its strongest, Barbara wasn't wearing her wool hat, but letting her beautiful blonde hair flutter in the wind.

Barbara's beautiful hair made her golden hair shimmer and sparkle when it was blown by the wind. It not only stunned many men present, but also aroused the envy of the women. Even Henry, who could stand next to Barbara, inexplicably became the target of resentment for many.

However, this girl, visiting Hollywood for the first time, tucked one hand to her eyebrow line and gazed at the Hollywood Sign in the distance. She remarked with slight dissatisfaction, "It's so small."

"It's far away. The straight-line distance between the two places is about 2.6 kilometers, and you can still see things there, so you can imagine how big the sign is."

"Can we go over and take a closer look?" Barbara asked.

Henry pointed around and said, "The observatory and the Hollywood Sign are both in this Griffith Park, and there's a hiking trail next to it. If you're brave enough, you can take the hiking trail directly from the observatory to the sign."

"This route is about ten kilometers long. It passes through a Bat Cave and offers abundant natural scenery along the way. Interested in taking on the challenge?"

"Are you serious?" Barbara gave Henry a disdainful look, who was standing there talking without any sense of responsibility.

"Haha, just kidding, I was just saying. We're not wearing hiking gear today, so this kind of activity isn't suitable for us."

"Then—can we go over and take a look?" Barbara asked again.

Henry answered honestly, "Driving could shorten the distance somewhat, but the Hollywood Sign itself is isolated; there's no direct road to it. In other words, you still have to walk a bit."

"What If...? we're lucky and the manager hasn't sealed off the barbed wire gate, we can drive in. But there's no paved road inside, so it's not a very comfortable ride. Are you still going?"

"Let's go, the text here is too small, it's not satisfying to read," Barbara said enthusiastically.

As an amateur guide, Henry certainly wouldn't object to the travelers' wishes and spoil their fun. Since they wanted to go, then let them go. Anyway, once they got to the destination and saw that they would just wander around aimlessly, nine out of ten would give up.

So the two drove towards the Hollywood Sign, which was only 2.6 kilometers away as the crow flies, but required a long detour by car.

On the drive, Henry, trying to make conversation, simply said, "The Hollywood Sign is located on the Mount Lee slope of Mount Lee in the Santa Monica Mountains, and at the summit is a radio transmitter."

"This was once the site of a Los Angeles television station until it ceased broadcasting television signals in 1951. But even today, non-commercial FM radio stations still operate here."

"Apart from these two locations, Mount Lee is not owned by the national or state government; most of the mountain is privately owned. Can you guess who? A very famous and wealthy man."

"There are many billionaires in United States, and quite a few famous ones too. It's too hard to guess!" Barbara said coquettishly.

"There aren't many people who have connections with Hollywood, are there?"

Upon hearing this, Barbara exclaimed in surprise, "Could it be Howard Stark?"

Henry, without any reservations, gossiped about other people's affairs. "That's right! It's that one, now inherited by Tony Stark. I heard that a manor was originally planned to be built here to house his mistress."

"That beauty's name was Ginger Rogers, another actress from Hollywood's Golden Age. However, the mansion never got built, and unsurprisingly, the golden couple broke up."

"This is really—" Barbara, mindful of her words, paused for a moment before asking, "So we're heading to the radio station now?" The man had only passed away a couple of years ago.

"That's right. Going down the mountain is the shortest distance. Going up from the bottom is not only difficult, but also much farther."

"You said it's a closed area, is it managed by someone?" Barbara asked.

Henry replied, "That place was originally a real estate developer's 'HOLLYWOOD DLAND.' Later, it gradually became an important cultural symbol of Hollywood, and its status rose accordingly."

"In 1978, Playboyl founder Hugh Hefner initiated a fundraising campaign, and nine donors each contributed 27,700 dollars to build a brand new and more durable steel sign, which is still in use today."

"This place is now managed and maintained by the non-profit organization, the Hollywood Sign Trust, because someone committed suicide here."

Therefore, the area marked is not open to the public.

Barbara asked in surprise, "Has someone committed suicide here? Is he dead?"

Henry replied, "On September 16, 1932, 24-year-old actress Peggy Entwist climbed to the top of the alphabet and jumped to her death."

Someone really died!

"Of course. Maybe if we go back, we can still look for any Silk left from sixty years ago."

"But don't you think it's a real mood killer to talk about this kind of thing while we're on vacation?" Barbara complained.

"How boring is a trip without ghost stories! But you do look like a typical techie, you wouldn't hear ghost stories and would scream like a little girl."

"Oh, what are you expecting to happen? Maybe I can play along." Barbara turned to the side, her large, light blue eyes blinking innocently.

Henry didn't respond, but instead changed the subject, parking the car in a parking lot at the top of the hill, saying, "We've arrived, can we get out and take a look?"

"Is this the mountain radio station?" Barbara asked, looking around as she unbuckled her seatbelt.

"That's right. I just checked, the path to the sign is fenced off with barbed wire, and the gate isn't open. So we'll have to walk, find a way to sneak in, or just take a look from up there."

Henry turned off the engine and got out of the car. Before he could even open the passenger door, Barbara got out herself. Her attitude was quite casual, as if she didn't consider herself an outsider at all.

The two walked together to the edge of the parking lot and looked down from the south-facing hillside, where they could see the top of the Hollywood Sign.

"A feature that few people notice," Henry said, pointing to the Hollywood Sign below. "Actually, those nine letters are at the same height, but they're not in a straight line."

"What If...? someone were in a helicopter and looked at the Hollywood Sign from the same height, it would appear flat. But the illusion of height when viewed from the foot of the mountain is due to the shape of the hillside."