Lights! Camera! Activists!

The Not-So-Silent Stars Who Championed Beverly Hills’ Independence

By Helene Harris

Have you ever been stopped, from any number of directions, at the intersection of Olympic, Beverwil, and Beverly Drive and wondered, “What’s that statue in the middle of the street?” Or maybe you’ve driven past it a thousand times and never even noticed it?

It’s the “Celluloid” Monument, designed by Robert Merrell Gage and erected in 1959. The 22’ bronze and marble statue, a spire surrounded by a roll of movie film, includes portraits of eight movie stars being commemorated here, not for their celebrity status, but for their foresight in saving the City of Beverly Hills. About ten years after Beverly Hills had incorporated as a city and was expanding, it looked like there might not be enough water to sustain the new development. Should Beverly Hills become part of Los Angeles? Los Angeles had a much better supply of water.

Stars depicted wearing iconic costumes of their most famous roles along the sides of the monument | Photo courtesy of City of Beverly Hills

A small but powerful band of movie stars were adamantly anti- annexation. Who were they? Mary Pickford, her husband Douglas Fairbanks, Harold Lloyd, Rudolph Valentino, Conrad Nagle, Will Rogers, Fred Niblo, and Tom Mix. They hosted picnics, signed autographs, and went door to door in their efforts to convince voters to vote against annexation. Can you imagine Rudolph Valentino, the greatest lover of the silent screen, talking to you at your front door? How about Mary Pickford, America’s sweetheart? Or Douglas Fairbanks, the original Zorro and Robin Hood? In 1922, the votes were cast, and to their credit, the movie stars had gotten the community support they needed. Beverly Hills would remain an independent city.

Celluloid dedication in 1960

The Monument was dedicated in 1960. The inscription on the bottom of the statue says, “In tribute to those celebrities of the motion picture industry who worked so valiantly for the preservation of Beverly Hills as a separate municipality.”