A Hollywood Journey

3. The Johnny Grant Building

Hollywood, CA

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The Johnny Grant Building houses the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and the Community Redevelopment Agency's Hollywood office. The Roosevelt Hotel, which owns the building, dedicated this space to Grant for ceremonial purposes in 1995 stating, "Dedication in honor of Hollywood's Ceremonial Mayor Johnny Grant. This enterprising Emmy-winning showman, producer and host embodies the spirit, excitement and heart of the most famous community in the world. He truly is 'Mr. Hollywood.'" Grant sustained this position from 1980 until his death on Jan. 9, 2008 and there have been no replacements named since. This honorary position entailed carrying out responsibilities dealing with the Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremonies but never entitled the honoree to a salary or official power. The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and the Kiwanis Club of Hollywood appointed and elected all ceremonial mayors. Before Grant, there were 11 appointed mayors. The first in line was John B. Kingsley, the former president of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. Kingsley was instrumental in developing the Santa Claus Lane Parade and the star-studded Walk of Fame. He also served on the LA County Grand Jury and the LA Police Commission. The only females honored with this mayoral title were Barbara Britton in 1952 and Betty White in 1954, and both actresses' have stars on the HWOF. Other famous notables include Charlton Heston, Steve Allen, Lawrence Welk, and Monty Hall. Now known as The Hollywood Christmas Parade, this annual holiday extravaganza began in 1928, kicking off the start to the holiday shopping season taking place annually on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. The route follows Hollywood and Sunset boulevards along 3.5 miles and features various celebrities. Originally created to boost shopping, the first featured parade only included Santa Claus with actress Jeanette Loff, whose career began with an unaccredited role in the silent film version of Uncle Tom's Cabin. With the help of local businesses and the community, the parade continued to grow in scale as the years continued. 1931 marked the first year Santa Claus rode a truck-pulled float instead of the reindeer-pulled carriage of previous years. During World War II, the parade was suspended from 1942 to 1944 and resurfaced with record attendance in 1945. Gene Autry rode his horse throughout the 1946 parade as children yelled "Here comes Santa Claus, here comes Santa Claus" which prompted him to write the song "Here Comes Santa Claus" with Oakley Haldeman. During the 1950s, 60s and 70s, the parade continued to grow in size adding floats, animals, bands and celebrities. By 1978, it was renamed the Hollywood Christmas Parade to attract more celebrities and a local broadcast on KTLA-TV with the help of Johnny Grant. The parade fluctuated in popularity in the 2000s and was cancelled in 2007 due to the lack of celebrity participation and a loss of $100,000 for the 2006 production. However, the City of Los Angeles created a new parade named the Hollywood Santa Parade, and participation was by invitation only. The Hollywood Christmas Parade's name has been reestablished and is now produced by Associated Television International and is in syndication throughout the United States.