Playboy mogul saves Hollywood sign

The Hollywood sign, one of the world’s most iconic landmarks, has been saved from demolition by soft porn mogul Hugh Hefner.

The Playboy founder stumped up nearly one million dollars (750,000 euros) to prevent the Los Angeles tourist attraction being razed by property developers.

They had wanted to build luxury houses on the land around the site. Hefner’s donation meant campaigners had reached the 12.5-million-dollar price tag sought by the group of Chicago-based investors who own the land.

Ironically, the sign was erected in 1923 to promote a real estate development, with its letters originally spelling “Hollywoodland.”

As the Los Angeles entertainment industry entered its golden era in the 1930s, the sign came to symbolise the glitz and glamour of the City of Angels.

But it soon fell into a state of disrepair, and the ‘land’ portion was removed at the end of the forties.

Hefner came to the signs rescue in 1978 when he organised a charity fundraiser to pay for restoration work.

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