Mayor of Hollywood Dies

The honorary mayor of Hollywood, Johnny Grant has died at the age of 84 of natural causes. Grant was found dead on a bed in the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel, where he lived, in a 14^th floor suite.

In his lifetime he inducted more than 500 celebrities into the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He hosted red carpet Oscar arrivals and Walk of Fame festivities. He was in bit parts of movies and produced Hollywood’s annual Christmas Parade. He was an USO ambassador that brought entertainers to war zones to perform in front of the U.S. military during the Korean and Vietnam wars and battles in the Middle East.

Wizard of Oz Munchkins Get a Star on Walk of Fame

This past Tuesday, nearly 70 years after “The Wizard of Oz” first premiered at the Grauman’s Chinese Theater, seven of the film’s Munchkins arrived there to receive a collective star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The Munchkins arrived in a horse-drawn carriage with a marching band following behind. There was a yellow carpet that was similar to the film’s yellow brick road that led them to the stage. One of them tap-danced and another sang. Joey Luft, the son of Judy Garland who played Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz,” stated that he was as proud that day as his mother would have been.