STROLL OF HONOUR
Singer Pink is the latest name to appear on the glitziest pavement in the world, adding to a rich history of star turns which dates back six decades
IT’S THE ultimate celebrity status symbol.
For almost 60 years, the Hollywood Walk of Fame has seen the biggest names in showbiz honoured underfoot, up the length of the famous LA boulevard.
Pop singer Pink is the newest addition to the list of more than two thousand famous names on the roll of honour.
Here are some facts behind the glitziest pavement in the world.
● Hollywood Chamber of Commerce president EM Stuart is credited with coming up with the idea of a walk of fame in 1953. The plan was agreed in 1955 and the original idea was to have caricatures of the celebrity engraved into the paving stone.
● The star logo was chosen as it was a simpler design and then an 18 month assessment took place, featuring all the big studios and moguls – Walt Disney, Cecil B Demille, Samuel Goldwyn, Hal Roach and Walter Lantz.
● When the final design was chosen, eight celebs’ names were chosen to show how it would look – Olive Borden, Ronald Colman, Louise Fazenda, Preston Foster, Burt Lancaster, Edward Sedgwick, Ernest Torrence, and Joanne Woodward.
● The Walk opened in March 28,1960, with director Stanley Kramer (Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Inherit the Wind, and It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World) given the first star.
● Within a year, the first 1558 stars had been laid, completing the construction project, which had cost $1.25m in total. The initial costs were paid by the property owners next to each paving.
● After the initial project had been completed, LA city council authorised the Chamber of Commerce to run the rule over new additions, with a selection process and costing finalised. The first addition didn’t take place until 1968. It was for producer Richard D. Zanuck.
● Charlie Chaplin finally got his in 1971.
● It’s often compared to the adjacent Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard, with its Forecourt of the Stars, where a select group of famous names are invited to leave their foot and hand print in the wet cement outside the iconic premiere venue. Some concrete ceremonies are promoted by studios for publicity reasons but invitation and inclusion in the forecourt is determined by a panel of assessors.
● Many celebrities have multiple stars for different talents. Gene Autrey has five (the most), while Bob Hope, Roy Rogers, Mickey Rooney, and Tony Martin have four. Bing Crosby, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra all have three.
● Fictional recipients include Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, Snow White, Big Bird, The Simpsons, Kermit the Frog, Donald Duck, Godzilla, Winnie the Pooh, Tinker Bell. Minnie Mouse didn’t get her own star until 2018.
● The five categories are film, TV, music, radio and live performance.
● The stars themselves are made of terrazzo and brass.
● Scots to feature on the Walk of Fame include Deborah Kerr, silent movie actor Andy Clyde, singer David Powell, musician William Primrose, and Shrek.