The WB Water Tower

The bus stop was at
the back of the
Jimmy Kimmel
Studio

Yet again, today started with a crazy bus ride.

I got the number 2 from outside the hotel along Sunset Boulevard and then walked to the next stop for the next change. Along comes the bus, just a moment or two later, but as I walked up to the doors, the lady bus driver locked the doors, picked up her bag, and went and sat at the back of the bus... and there she stayed for around 15 minutes.

I wouldn't have minded quite so much, but LA bus stops rarely have seats next to them, or shade. So you tend to be left standing at the side of the road in baking heat until the next bus decides to turn up - or let you on...

The TV Studio side of Warner Bros Studios

When I finally got on the bus, I asked the driver which bus stop I needed to get off at for the "Warner Bros Studio Tour". She looked at me like I was insane. "Urr, when it says 'Warner Bros...?!".

This may sound obvious, but Warner Bros Studios is not a small place, and I knew the bus went all the way around it. So when the bus said "Get off here for 'Warner Bros Studios'", I asked her again if this was the right stop for the Studio Tour. "Uh huh", She said.

Buggs Bunny and Daffy Duck welcoming you to the Tour

But no. I had got off about 5 stops early by the TV Studios for the live shows (like Ellen. And with another bus not due to appear for at least 30 minutes, I decided to just walk it instead.

About 15 sweaty minutes later and I finally made it to the Warner Bros Studio Tour. I then got mistaken for being part of the LA City College Tour group and given the 'Blue Group Tour' (which I wouldn't have minded but I didn't really want to go around with the rowdy 18 year olds).

Queue Starts Here

Pre-Tour Intro & Film

I'd booked onto the 11am Tour (the first one that was available). First you get given a letter (A, B, C, etc.) and all wait in a line for them to take you through into a cinema room. 

Once in the cinema, a rather energetic gent came to give us a short talk about Warner Bros, and then put on a film showing the best bits of some of the WB creations. I won't lie, I got a bit emosh over Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. Don't judge.

Central Perk!

Once that was finished, a door opened out came a few incredibly exuberant American tour guides. They were each also holding a letter (corresponding to ones that we were given earlier) and then everyone filed out one group at a time into the tour bus parking area where we all got introduced to our over-excited guide, called Jenny. We all then introduced ourselves to the other 10-ish people in our group. I think the others were just 5 x couples but I can't remember.

The Fire-Escape for the famous
Spider-man upside-down kiss

Jenny then shouted out tv shows to see which ones we liked as they tailor the tour to you. I think everyone was into "The Big Bang Theory" and "Friends", and there were a few I'd not heard of. I was the only one that watched "Pretty Little Liars".

We then started off the tour. It's a bit like a mini-city. They have
streets worth of house and shop fronts, with roads and pavements etc. The only things missing were door handles and lights - apparently they add them pre-filming as it helps to age the set to the right era. All the walls were made out of moulded plastic and most buildings are just one-storey - no 'upstairs' in there. Apparently if they have a scene where they need someone hanging out of a top floor window, they just set up some scaffolding inside and get the actor to climb up and stand on it.

Me & the WB Water-Tower

We went past the fire escape steps that hosted the famous upside-down Spider-man kiss for the first Spider-man movie (the one with Kirsten Dunst in it). The fake rain they use in movies has a little bit of flour or white paint in it to make it easier to be seen on camera, and they make extra big droplets too. When they turned Tobey Maguire (Spider-man) upside-down for this kiss, he kept choking because the water was going up his nose so they plugged his nostrils with cotton wool! That's why she only pulls his mask up past his mouth - else you'd be able to see his stuffed nose. They also had to use warm water, because Kirsten was wearing basically nothing and kept getting too cold.

Number 4, Privet Drive
Little Whinging, Surrey

We also saw the WB famous water tower. Jenny joked about how a rabbit lived in there but only came out on special occasions... Apparently they've got it where it is because it's visible from Universal Studios, so it's a nice little reminder of the competition for them. Haha!

The Harry Potter Museum: Nimbus 2000 

Next was the Batman and Harry Potter Museum - which is on-site. We had 15 mins to wander around and see the memorabilia so, naturally, I skipped Batman and went straight up the stairs to the Harry Potter section.

Dobby the House Elf

They had the Privet Drive sign, loads of the costumes (mostly from the later films), the Marauders Map, statues of Dobby, Goblins and a petrified Hermione (from Book 2), all of the sweets, wizard games and much more. I loved it.

The Sorting Hat

They also had the Sorting Hat and stool which you could have a go sitting on and being sorted - and it actually moved and talked like the real one in the films too (it probs was the real one!) I got sorted into Hufflepuff (still not sure how I feel about it but Becky recently showed me "19 Reasons Everyone Should Want To Be A Hufflepuff" which makes me feel better about my house). I wanted a picture of my sorting experience, but sadly there wasn't anyone around to do this for me.

The Letters! #NoPostOnSundays

Jenny told us that we had to look out for the golden snitch. Apparently it was hidden somewhere but I ran out of time so I didn't find it :(

Another street... This one has been used in lots of things,
including 'The Notebook'

We also went past all the work shops - they make loads of props and things on-site. All the moulded plastic walls etc. are made there. Jenny said it's much cheaper and easier for them to just build something to use for filming on site than to hire out somewhere and travel. There is a huge warehouse full of props which people can hire on the WB Studio website. They also have a fully working gas/petrol station on-site, and they use every bit of the whole site for filming - even the car park.

7

Lorries from other studios collecting props
(The two in the middle were from Disney!)

Next was a big studio where Jenny showed us how their tv-sitcoms work. We weren't allowed to take any photos in there - I'm assuming because of 'trade secrets' or something. They have these tiny sets with open fronts and a seating area for audiences who can watch while the episodes are filmed live. This does mean that audiences are often watching the same scenes over and over again, and that a 20 minute episode can take around 4-8 hours to film.

Bat-Mobile

They also play the adverts as they would be shown at the right places and check for any advertising conflicts - for example, if there was a scene where a character just got food poisoning from eating a pizza, it wouldn't look so good if they then put on an advert for Pizza Express...

The Batman Light

The studio audience have microphones over their heads too, which picks up their laughs. If you have an annoying or great laugh, they can turn your microphone down, or up respectively. The whole idea of having a live studio audience came from Lucille Ball (from "I Love Lucy") who was used to having a live audience and found it off-putting to act with no laughter as she couldn't judge what was working or not.

After this, we went to a big warehouse known as "The Bat Cave" where they had all the Bat-Mobiles. I'm not that into Batman so wasn't too bothered but it was interesting to see how some things worked. Apparently most of the cars were real and driveable.

We spotted Raj Koothrappali from the Big Bang Theory!
He's in the car!

Last was the Warner Bros Tour Museum, known as Stage 48 (which is part of the tour and I don't think you can visit separately). There we said goodbye to Jenny. Inside they have all sorts of memorabilia from various WB films and tv shows, and then there's an interactive bit where you can get your photo taken on the sofa in Central Perk, riding a Quidditch broom, or floating in the space suit from Gravity.

Actor's Trailers

I got through that section pretty quickly as most of the interactive bits are probably better to do if you're with people, and moved on to the WB gift shop. I was fascinated by the Harry Potter wands and one of the girls in the shop told me all about the reasons behind the designs of each different wand.

Every 'Friends' script

And that was it! All in all, it took about 1.5 hours. Definitely worth doing. I think it costs $62, but it was included in the LA Go Card!

Harry Potter Wands

"Ride on the Quidditch Broom"
- You can then take home a video of you riding it

The Harry Potter Wands of
Dumbledore's Army members

"Take my picture, Hollywood! I wanna be a star!"

(Quote from Lady Gaga)

Today was Hollywoodland day!

I was up at 4am (jetlag) so was down for breakfast the second it opened at 7am.

I'm pretty sure I was the first one down so made the most of the freedom and helped myself to the (artificial) array of eggs, bacon, bread, a yoghurt, some fruit, oh, and then a cook-your-own waffle. American food is known for its processed, over-sugared nature and the rumours aren't wrong. I have no idea what they do to their bacon, but whatever it is, it's not quite right. Also, why is the bread sweet!?

American Breakfast

View from the hotel onto
Sunset Boulevard.
I know. What a dump.

By 9am, I'd made it to somewhere near Hollywood. I jumped on the bus from right outside the hotel, needing to go West for a couple of miles, and then North. After the previous day's debacle with the buses, I checked with the driver before deciding to hop on...

[Rather English Moi] "Do you go towards Hollywood Boulevard?"
[Black LA-Native Driver] "To wheeeeere?"
[Me] "Hollywood Boulevard?"
[Native] ... "What'd ya say maaam?"
[Me] ... Oh I give up... [American mimic] "Haaallywud Bulvaaard"
[Native] "Ohhhhh, nuh-uh. But I'm close"
[Me] *Rolling Eyes*

I hopped off "close" and spotted the first few celebrity stars in the Walk of Fame - which apparently isn't just a straight line along the 'sidewalk' on both sides of Hollywood Boulevard, but instead darts off along several linking roads. Maybe we have too many celebrities.

Aspiring Celeb slash American superhero icon...

There are hundreds of 'aspiring celebrities' just hanging out in the street around Hollywood. Some of them are dressed as characters or other crazy things and try to lure you in to have a photograph with them - however when you do, they then won't let you leave until you pay them money for their 'service'. There are also loads of young people who kindly hand you a seemingly free CD of their (apparently) fantastic hip new vibes, compliment you, and then make you pay for the CD. I got stopped by one of these creative minds, who forced a disc into my hand, and then preceded to snatch it back again when I told him I had no cash... strange place.

Our tour guide.
He was quite pleasant to listen to
so probs not an LA native...

Tom Hanks
on the Wall

I got myself something called the "LA Go Card" for my time in LA - which I highly recommend. I bought the 3 day pass for $190 and on day one of using it alone, I saved a huge amount of money.

The Dolby Theatre

After a wander up and down the boulevard, the first thing I did was the Dolby Theatre tour at 10:30am. I didn't really know what the Dolby Theatre was, other than that logo you sometimes see in film credits, so wasn't really sure what to expect... Turns out it's 'The Home of the Oscars'. The tour guide was full of fun facts which he must spout around 10 times a day. I feel a bit sorry for him - especially as I'm not sure I actually remember any of the fun facts...

Here I am in the Dolby Theatre.
No one else is here so
that means I've won right?
"I'd like to thank..."

There's not a huge amount to see in all honesty - it's basically just a large theatre, with pictures of previous Oscars Awards on display. It was interesting to hear about the logistics of the Oscars though - for example, there is a connecting corridor to the hotel next door where the celebs get whisked off to do a post-award interview before their allowed to go back to their seat. Also, there are so many people nominated and related to the films nominated, that there are no extra seats for celebs - so basically, heaven forbid there will ever be a year where Meryl Streep isn't nominated, but if she wasn't, she couldn't go (unless she managed to blag one as Tom Cruise's Plus one).

Me with my Oscar.
You saw it coming.

Dolby Theatre Tour Tickets are sold for $20, and the tour is only 30 mins long, so it's definitely not something I would suggest is worth doing without the Go Card.

Shopping in Hollywood
(through those two bridges is supposed to be the best view
of the Hollywood sign because it's 'frame' makes it look so big)

The Hollywood Museum
(The Old Max Factor Building)

The Hollywood Museum

Marilyn Statue

Next, the plan was to go to Madame Tussauds, but I found the Hollywood Museum first. It's in the old Max Factor building and there are a huge amount of make-up related exibits - I think the whole of the ground floor was in tribute to Mr Max Factor. He had a make-up room for each type of leading hollywood actress; e.g. The Pink Room for Brunettes, the Green Room for Blondes, each labelled "For Brunettes Only". I'm not really that interested in fashion and make up, so I didn't find it that interesting.

They had a whole floor dedicated to "Monsters, Mummies & Mayhem" in the basement, which I wasn't planning on going down into, but then I was told Harry Potter was down there.
So off I went. Plenty of creepy 80's horror film memorabilia, but there in the middle of it, Harry Potter. And also the Walking Dead, Phantom of the Opera, Shawshank Redemption and Sweeney Todd - also all excellent.

Max Factor Make Up Room
"For Blondes Only"

#PotterObsessed

Another whole floor was dedicated to Marilyn Monroe. Her clothes, films, dolls, photographs, map showing every house she'd ever lived in, every quote on plaques on the walls and more! Surely no one normal is that obsessed with her...?!

Up to the top (and final) floor, and this one was dedicated to all things LGBT(Q?). I found it a little strange that they felt the need to separate any film/tv show with anything related to homosexuality isolated up there. Surely the aim of the LGBTQ community is for integration and non-discrimination, but I felt like by having their own special floor, it just added to the perceived separation...

Marilyn Barbies. Anyone?

Tickets for this are $15 and while it had a couple of interesting things in it, I'm not sure this is worth it without the Go Card either. There are much better places in LA to spend your money.

Madame Tussauds

Next was Madame Tussauds. I got this confused with the Hollywood Wax Museum - which is basically the same thing, but not as good (or so I've heard), which is why I couldn't find it earlier. The Hollywood Museum seemed to be at the completely opposite end to Madame Tussauds so off I headed.

The Chinese Theatre.
It's probs great,
but who gets to know
other than Zac Efron?
I'm not bitter.

"John Travolta was here"

I walked past the Chinese Theatre (something else on my list) and discovered that they'd just blocked the whole of the courtyard area around the theatre (all of the bits with the concrete hand prints) thanks to Zac Efron's new film premiere. I was not happy - although I did get a shot of John Travolta's stone (not as good as Harry, Ron & Hermione's though. Grr).

I waited in line for around 15 mins to get into Madame Tussauds. It was pretty good, but I found the layout a bit strange. It was on several levels, and so from the entrance, you had to get on the lift which gave you no option but floor 5. Then on Floor 4, you get directed round to a staircase, and on floor 3, to a lift which takes you to floor 1, and then up some stairs to the exit (or something like that).

#MarilynEverywhere

Some statues were better/more life-like than others. I'm not sure how I felt about it though. It was quite clever, but also a bit creepy. There were several times that I thought someone was stood behind me, only to turn round and realise it was a wax statue... Weird. It was also pretty tricky to take selfies with the statues as it's hard to fit you both in, and most of them aren't looking at the camera (surprised?) so they look a bit odd.

I quite liked the section about how they're all made. It takes around 800 hours (approx 66 x 12 hour days) to complete a figure. Mental! Still, a bit weird. Who even came up with that as a viable idea?

Me and my BFFs, Brangelina

Madame Tussauds Hollywood is $30 usually. That is probably something I would recommend, if that's your thing. But it's much more cost effective with the Go Card.

So by 2pm, I'd done $60 worth of stuff, and still had until 5:30pm to do more!