h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I am one of the few people you will ever meet who is a native Angeleno (translate: born and raised in Los Angeles).

One of the things that never ceased to amaze me about Los Angeles is the transplant phenomina. Native Angeleno's are quite normal and go about their lives like anyone else in the country (USA) does, but Los Angeles is a funky and wierd place no doubt. I would describe everyone I grew up with as being basically normal. So, where does the "wierd" come from?

I am pretty sure the answer is the transplants. People move to Los Angeles from all over the world. And, each of them has an idea about
"what" Los Angeles is like. They then set about creating that reality for themselves. Then, they grow out of it or get disallussioned, decide that LA is wierd and move on to another place. Most transplants only last on average about 5 yrs in the city.

So, in a large sense, Los Angeles really is the city of dreams.

One example of this is in the article itself in which Hollywood is described as glitzy and glamorous. Its product of film may be so, but the actual physical Hollywood is best described with two other g-words, Grimy and Gritty. Hollywood and Vine (and just about anywhere there are stars in the sidewalk) is a disgusting intersection, and there aren't any film studios anywhere near.

The Warner Bros studios are still in Hollywood proper, I believe, and I think there are a couple other old ones in the area, too, like Paramount and MGM. But nobody builds new studios there anymore, preferring Burbank or its environs. Besides, isn't Hollywood and Vine in North Hollywood? That's a seperate district. What a scum-hole... nothing but homeless drunks and crack-whores, and the people who love them... basically, an entire cast of Jerry Springer regulars.

Hollywood and Vine is most assuredly not in North Hollywood. While I detest the valley, there are plenty of upscale sections that are not infested with crack whores. As a matter of fact even the poor areas of the valley don't have much in the way of crack whores. There are more poor working families than anything else there. Characterizing them as crack whores and criminals does them a disservice.