North Hollywood, California
Right next to the Tujunga Wash in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley lies the North Hollywood district. Its boundaries are marked by the Ventura Freeway and Moorpark Street on the South, Coldwater Canyon Avenue and Burbank Boulevard on the Southwest, Tonopah Street on the Northwest, Webb Avenue, Laurel Canyon Boulevard, and Lankershim Boulevard on the Northeast, and Clybourn Avenue on the East.
Right in the middle of the district, from North to South, runs California Highway 70, commonly known as the Hollywood Freeway. The district was established in 1887 by the Lankershim Ranch Land & Water Co. Upon its establishment, the district was named Toluca. In 1896 the name was changed to Lankershim before finally being changed to North Hollywood in 1927.
Universal Studios
Arguably the largest and most famous movie-making studios in the world, the Comcast-owned Universal Studios are located right on the border of North Hollywood and Hollywood. Having been founded in 1912, Universal Studios is the oldest movie studio in the US and among the six most important movie studios in the world. It is the fourth oldest movie studio in the world today still in operation after Gaumont pictures (France), Pathe (France), and Nordisk (Denmark) respectively, and followed closely by Paramount Pictures (US).
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
The Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery is an important landmark in North Hollywood. Many famous people have been interred at the cemetery and these include a large number of entertainment industry celebrities and personalities. The park is a favorite visitor location for aviation enthusiasts as it has a specially dedicated section for famous aviators such as Amelia Earhart. This special aviators section is known as the Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation and there you will find a host of aviation pioneers honored and remembered.
Academy of Television Arts and Sciences
Founded a month after the birth of American network television in 1946, the academy’s agenda is to advance telecommunications arts and sciences and to foster the telecommunications industry’s creative leadership. The academy hosts the annual Emmy awards which honor influential and creative individuals and organizations within the television industry.
NoHo Arts District
Home to art galleries, contemporary theatres, shops, and cafes, the NoHo arts district is an art community within the North Hollywood district. The arts district’s boundaries are Camarillo Street (South), Tujunga Avenue (West), Cahuenga Boulevard (East), and Hatteras Street (North). The district was established in 1992 and the name was coined after the famous New York art district of SoHo using the names North Hollywood.
Los Angeles Metro Station
The heavy-rail subway station of North Hollywood is part of the L.A County Metro Rail system. The station is located at the Chandler Boulevard-Lankershim Boulevard intersection and is a major commuter hub. Apart from the trains, the station is also served by the orange line bus rapid transit (BRT) service and the red line.
North Hollywood Airports
North Hollywood is served by various airports within the district and in the wider Los Angeles area and the major ones include Bob Hope or Burbank Airport (BUR), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), and Long Beach airport which is about 35 miles away from North Hollywood.
North Hollywood Recreational Center
The North Hollywood recreational center lies between valley village and North Hollywood. The recreational center offers a wide variety of recreational and sports facilities which include an auditorium, indoor and outdoor lighted baseball diamond courts, lighted handball, tennis, and basketball courts, a play area for kids, a seasonal unheated outdoor pool, picnic tables, and an indoor gym with a 250-person capacity.
Valley Plaza Recreation Center
Located in the North Hollywood district, this recreation center provides an auditorium, a lighted baseball diamond, and various lighted basketball courts outdoors, kids playing area, barbecue pits, picnic tables, a lighted football pitch, an indoor and outdoor gym, an unlighted volleyball court and lighted tennis courts.
Education in North Hollywood
There are three main public high schools that serve North Hollywood and these are Ulysses S. Grant High, North Hollywood High, and And East Valley High. The public middle schools include Walter Reed, Sun Valley, James Madison, and And Romer Middle Schools. The public elementary schools include Arminta Street Elementary, Coldwater Canyon, Camellia Avenue, Fair Avenue, Maurice Sendak, Victory Boulevard, Strathern Street, Lankershim, Saticoy, Julie Korenstein, and Oxnard elementary schools.
Hospitals in North Hollywood
The North Hollywood medical center was made famous by the filming of the comedy drama “scrubs” first eight seasons before the facility’s demolition in 2011. The hospital closed down in 1998 before undergoing extensive reconstruction to make it fit for filming the television series. It had previously been used as the filming location for “having babies”, a 1978 television movie.
The currently operating hospitals in the district include Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center on Buena Vista Street, The Good Samaritan Hospital on Wilshire Boulevard, and the Providence Tarzana Medical Center on Clark Street. Some more medical facilities include the Chandler Convalescent Hospital on Laurel Canyon Boulevard, Kaiser Permanente Medical Center on Willard Street, Providence Holy Cross Medical Center on Rinaldi Street, Pilossyan Medical Center on Victory Boulevard, The Herbal Healing Center on Laurel Canyon Boulevard, The New Horizon Advancement Center on Lankershim Boulevard, and Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center on Buena Vista Street among others.
Recent Memorable Event in North Hollywood
North Hollywood was in 1997 made globally famous for the wrong reason. It was the scene of one of the bloodiest and longest crime event in the US where two bank robbers who had just robbed a branch of the Bank of America engaged police in a 45-minute shootout. The pair of robbers carried heavy firepower and were dressed in full body armor. Both were killed during the shootout and 11 police officers sustained injuries and so did seven civilians.
North Hollywood, California Summary
Aside from that unfortunate experience of the shootout, the district has always been famous especially for the universal studios as mentioned above. Contrary to expectation, the district does not share a border with Hollywood. The NoHo art community is a great attraction for locals and visitors alike.