Audiences Unlimited
(www.tvtickets.com). To buy
cast-off TV and movie
star fashions, stop off
at It’s a Wrap! (www.
itsawraphollywood.com; 3315
W Magnolia Blvd; h10am-8pm
Mon-Fri, 11am-6pm Sat & Sun).The Drive » It’s a quick 3-mile
trip south on Hwy 101 from
Universal Studios to Hollywood.
Take the Highland Ave exit and
drive south on Highland Ave,which intersects Hollywood
Blvd.8 Hollywood
Like an aging starlet
making a comeback,
this once-gritty Los
Angeles neighborhood
is undergoing a rebirth
of cool with hip hotels,
restored movie palaces
and glitzy velvet-roped
bars and nightclubs.Even though you aren’t
likely to see any real
celebrities, the pink-
starred Hollywood Walk
of Fame still attracts
millions of wide-eyed
visitors every year.
Snap a souvenir photo
outside Grauman’s
Chinese Theatre – go
ahead, we know you
can’t resist. Step inside
the slightly musty
Hollywood Museum
(%323-464-7776; http://www.
thehollywoodmuseum.com;
1660 N Highland Ave; adult/
child $15/5; h10am-5pm
Wed-Sun), crammed with
costumes, memorabilia
and props from Charlie
Chaplin to Glee. Cruise
west along the Sunset
Strip, packed with
celeb-slumming bars and
dog-eared rock venues
where the Rolling Stones
and the Doors once tore
up the stages. For late-
night star-peeping, sneak
into the lobby lounge at
the Chateau Marmont,
cosseting A-listers like
Bono, Brad Pitt and
Angelina Jolie.54 p309
Start: 8 Hollywood
Next to downtown’s Staples Center, a saucer-
shaped sports and entertainment arena, LA Live
is a shiny corporate entertainment hub. Glimpse
larger-than-life statues of Magic Johnson and
Wayne Gretzky, and party at the Conga Room co-
owned by Will I Am. But only after you pay homage
to the Grammy Museum (%213-765-6800; http://www.
grammymuseum.org; 800 W Olympic Blvd; adult/child $13/11;
h11:30am-7:30pm Sun-Fri, 10am-7:30pm Sat). Music
lovers will get lost in interactive exhibits, where sound
chambers let you try mixing and remixing, singing
and rapping. Glimpse GnR’s bass drum, Yo-Y Ma’s
cello and MJ’s glove enshrined like holy relics. It’s 7
miles southeast of Hollywood via Hwy 101 and the
I-110 south (exit at 8th St).LA LIVE
DETOUR:
SOUTHERN.CALIFORNIA29
(^) SOCAL POP CULTURE