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during the war but post-war preparations continued. The new site was code named "Mt. Anthony" in KFI-AM house organs of the day. After hostilities ended it turned out that Mt. Anthony was really Mt. Wilson – which is now the site of most Los
Angeles FM and television stations due to its superior height.
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parking lot off
Vermont Canyon Road or from Vermont Canyon Road just past the Greek Theater, the Bronson Canyon / Brush Canyon Trail (3200 Canyon Drive, Los Angeles, CA), and a number of trailheads that begin near the Griffith Park Visitors Center off Crystal Springs Drive in the Los Feliz section of
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In 2002, the Hughes estate sold 138 acres (56 ha) of their Mount Lee holdings to a group of
Chicago investors. This opened up the possibility of development of four residential buildings adjacent to the sign. Many Angelenos, especially those in the movie industry, felt this would be sacrilege. A
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Four years later Lee began experimenting with television using call letters W6XAO. Studios were on the seventh floor of a building at
Seventh and Bixel near his Cadillac dealership. A few years later, the transmitter was moved atop what is now called Mount Lee. An early reference to this name is in
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After utilization during the war by the U.S. Army, the property remained an idle asset for decades, and eventually became part of the Hughes estate. Meanwhile, the three Los
Angeles television pioneers were scouting out a more suitable location. Television experimentation was slowed considerably
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the immediate seller was not the original development company, but
Sennett personally, "who wasn't doing too well in the post-silent Hollywood era and really needed the money." Lee was the first of what would become three active pre–World War II Los Angeles television pioneers. The others were
357:
a June 1939 article in a magazine published by the
California Chamber of Commerce: "Lee has bought a 20-acre site on a mountain top at the eastern boundary of Griffith Park, widening the transmission field of the Don Lee equipment to take in new thousands of homes in the Hollywood hills and the
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Lee's television head was Harry Lubcke. Paramount had Klaus
Landsburg and Anthony had the venerable KFI radio dual chief engineer team of Headly Blatterman and George Mason. All three recognized that television signals from Mount Lee and similar points were inadequate to reach the greater Los
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atop Mount Lee today is owned and operated by the City of Los
Angeles. It is a newer structure which replaced the original W6XAO tower some years ago. Smaller tenants on the site have included some federal government and
385:). Lee's W6XAO eventually became KTSL – standing for Thomas S. Lee, who had succeeded to his father's position when Don Lee died in 1934. KTSL was purchased by CBS in 1950 and became KNXT, today's KCBS-TV.
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Los
Angeles (free trail maps are available at the Visitors Center). A once-popular trailhead originating at the top of Beachwood Drive was closed by court order in April 2017.
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488:; as such it's easy to get lost and be redirected. Maps of the trails and the land around the hills should be studied before attempting to hike the area for the first time.
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Trails leading to the Hollywood Sign can be accessed from several official Griffith Park entrances. These include the Mt. Hollywood Trail, which can be accessed from the
327:'s unfulfilled plans to build an elaborate home on the property. To advertise the new Beachwood Canyon real estate development, the developers, including Sennett and
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Postcard view of the W6XAO transmitter, the Los Angeles area's first television station, c. 1940. The station eventually moved to Mount Wilson as today's KCBS-TV
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on the western slope of Mount Lee is accessible. Visitors are expected to comply with safety requirements, and must be prepared and equipped adequately.
337:, ordered a huge wooden sign built atop what is now known as Mount Lee. The mountain is named after early Los Angeles car dealer and radio station owner
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Mount Lee continues to be the site of various non-commercial radio activities, but television transmissions ceased from that location in October 1951.
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in New York. Mount Lee is thus the highest television location in the world. The transmitter is being rebuilt for installation on the mountain."
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Wildlife around Mount Lee and the Griffith Park includes coyotes, rattlesnakes, mountain lions, a variety of birds and other species.
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is located is closed to the public since the area is home to the main communication tower for the City of Los Angeles. Hiking up to
460:. A service road leads from the observatory to numerous hiking routs on and around Mount Lee; however, the immediate area where the
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Mount Lee is a popular hiking area within the Griffith Park. Orientation maps are located at the entrance to the parking lot near
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Paramount Studios' W6XYZ (later called KTLA) and Lee's mentor Earle C Anthony's W6XEA (later called KSEE,
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successful effort was mounted in 2010 to raise funds to purchase the land and add it to the adjacent
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Angeles basin. They needed a point overlooking the entire area. Part of Mount Lee was then sold to
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found in Griffith Park -- a place where humans, dogs and rattlesnakes share the trails.
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and Burbank peaks, the current flattened top being a result of silent movie pioneer
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685:"Griffith Park groups lose legal battle over pathway to see Hollywood sign"
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291: in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
393:, who intended to erect an estate for his then-current love interest,
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361:. The site is one and a half times higher than the top floor of the
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The original unnamed peak was one of the "three sisters" along with
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773:"LA's Mountain Lion Is A Solitary Cat With A Knack For Travel"
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Permanent signs on the Griffith Park Observatory deck warn of
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604:"What Flattened the Top of Mt. Lee (of Hollywood Sign Fame)?"
855:"LA park rangers warn visitors: Stop feeding the coyotes!"
651:"The Easy Hollywood Sign Hike (Directions & Parking)"
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Coyotes abound in Griffith Park, especially after dark.
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Mount Lee's hiking trails and fire roads are part of
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The Mount Lee Drive approach to the Mount Lee summit.
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823:"Rattlesnake Warning: They're Shy, but Dangerous"
585:National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
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961:Mountains of Los Angeles County, California
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307:Learn how and when to remove this message
897:United States Department of the Interior
40:Southeastern face of Mount Lee with the
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412:and Mount Lee at 2 p.m. on May 9, 2022
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16:Mountain in California, United States
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800:Nijhuis, Michelle (April 20, 2015).
629:"It's 1931, and W6XAO Is on the Air"
589:United States Department of Commerce
289:adding citations to reliable sources
888:Geographic Names Information System
802:"The Mountain Lions of Los Angeles"
526:Santa Monica Mountains topics index
253:is located on its southern slope.
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752:Keefe, Alexa (November 14, 2013)
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966:Mountains of Southern California
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893:United States Geological Survey
276:needs additional citations for
755:A Cougar Ready for His Closeup
627:Grace, Roger M. (2002-09-12).
602:Masters, Nathan (2014-07-21).
105:34.134597025°N 118.321740739°W
1:
853:Carey, Matthew (2017-06-18).
929:"Hollywood Sign - Mount Lee"
839:Southern Pacific rattlesnake
821:Hicks, Reva (May 23, 2012).
633:Metropolitan News-Enterprise
110:34.134597025; -118.321740739
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573:"Leep Mt. Lee L 1 PHS Ctr"
60:1,708 ft (521 m)
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710:"Griffith Park Trail Map"
513:in the surrounding area.
404:View from the balcony at
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581:National Geodetic Survey
19:Not to be confused with
911:"Mount Lee, California"
827:NBC Southern California
381:, and now operating as
247:Los Angeles, California
971:Santa Monica Mountains
956:Hollywood, Los Angeles
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239:Santa Monica Mountains
197:Santa Monica Mountains
546:National Park Service
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363:Empire State Building
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473:Griffith Observatory
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406:Griffith Observatory
285:improve this article
760:National Geographic
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359:San Fernando Valley
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170:Los Angeles County
63: NAVD 88
50:Highest point
689:Los Angeles Times
674:hollywoodsign.org
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243:Griffith Park
241:, located in
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223:Easiest route
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283:Please help
278:verification
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191:Parent range
883:"Mount Lee"
502:, an adult
466:Wisdom tree
249:, USA. The
108: /
96:118°19′18″W
83:Coordinates
71:Parent peak
950:Categories
938:2009-08-12
920:2009-08-12
902:2009-08-12
864:2020-10-15
859:Daily News
832:2019-03-20
737:Ghost Cats
722:2020-01-12
695:2020-01-12
661:2018-12-10
613:2014-07-22
556:References
431:The large
333:publisher
174:California
93:34°08′05″N
370:Wikimapia
235:Mount Lee
163:Mount Lee
138:Geography
127:Etymology
56:Elevation
29:Mount Lee
785:20 April
608:kcet.org
548:rangers.
520:See also
492:Wildlife
321:Cahuenga
216:Climbing
204:Topo map
21:Lee Peak
440:users.
408:on the
383:KCAL-TV
339:Don Lee
257:History
211:Burbank
132:Don Lee
44:, 2006.
444:Hiking
379:KHJ-TV
375:KFI-TV
121:Naming
713:(PDF)
532:Notes
433:tower
837:the
787:2015
500:P-22
228:Hike
209:USGS
178:U.S.
778:NPR
287:by
245:in
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