Hollywood Pre-Millenium

For those of you who were not in Hollywood in 1998, I pity you. This was about the last year a lot of fun was to be had. And in the darkness of the Hollywood we knew from the yesteryear.
The Brown Derby was still around, as was The Ambassador Hotel. When you walked on Hollywood boulevard, there were gift shops of movie posters, scripts and books. There was a theater similar to the New Beverly that would play two movies for $5.00. That was where I saw "The People Vs. Larry Flynt" on film, which was surreal because in the film Woody and Courtney Love walked right by the theater we were watching it. My first experience with a surreal life.
There was so much darkness back then. It almost seems Stone Aged. There was a free clinic within my apartment on Van Ness. Little did I know just up the hill was Beechwood Canyons, where a lot of the nicer houses were. You had to cross Franklin Boulevard. And from my dank apartment, you could see the Hollywood sign (mocking me).

The place was beautiful in its dreary way. At the time, smog was still AWFUL. I woke up in a grey brown haze. And my lungs filled with crap. Smoked cigarettes back then too.
The other thing was that the internet wasn't what it was today. So to entertain ourselves, we played Sony Playstation or went to a diner/coffeeshop to write. I truly miss those days (sans smog).

Today, Hollywood is glass and marble. Clean everywhere but down below on the streets. The rebuild of Hollywood is staggering. Out with the old, in with the new. And everyone who owned property back then seems happy to see to the highest bidder. It is a shame, but wholly necessary as it's become sickening to live here. It's too much. And it will likely get worse.

I'm not sure what their new plans are. Seems we are the cockroaches that the city of Los Angeles wants to shine a light on (never mind they've already have a plan for the homeless). To me, I rarely lay on the couch thinking about the stories of struggle anymore. Though, I loved the bohemian life it was. A bed in the middle of the living room that was connected to the kitchen with brown shag carpet isn't appealing as it use to be. But the new people coming into town most likely will relish that they made it there and have a place to stay and make their run at being a star. Even at it's wettest nastiest basement mold dwelling. That's exciting.
That's what I miss about Hollywood.