What symbol is used for the category "live theatre" on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?

The Hollywood Walk of Fame comprises more than 2,600 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California. The stars are permanent public monuments to achievement in the entertainment industry, bearing the names of a mix of musicians, actors, directors, producers, musical and theatrical groups, fictional characters, and others. The Walk of Fame is administered by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and maintained by the self-financing Hollywood Historic Trust.

The name of the honoree is inlaid in brass block letters in the upper portion of each star. Below the inscription, in the lower half of the star field, a round inlaid brass emblem indicates the category of the honoree's contributions. The emblems symbolize five categories within the entertainment industry:

Classic film camera representing motion pictures

Television receiver representing broadcast television

Phonograph record representing audio recording or music

Radio microphone representing broadcast radio

Comedy/tragedy masks representing theatre/live performance (added in 1984)

More Info: en.wikipedia.org

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11 Comments

Sergey Boev

These masks can be seen in almost every theater in the world. They represent two muses of ancient Greek mythology - Thalia, the muse of comedy, and Melpomene, the muse of tragedy.

scottlarock

aren't they called comedy and tragedy?...

Susannah Landis

Sergey Boev, Thank you for the information. I knew Thalia but not Melpomene.

lollygagger

I wouldn't call them twin masks. They're kind of the opposite of each other. Well, I guess they could be fraternal twins

ninakamwene

No idea

docluci

Two masks are a common inclusion at theaters and other symbols are used to indicate other forms of the performance world..

Edie Koller

The hollywood walk of fame is over rated..some of the sidewalks are cracked and dirty too. Its a darn shame The Hollywood Walk of fame did not start til 1960 either ..a little known fact. I use to love to go there and watch all the tourists too. As I am only 10 miles from there but after almost 59 years of living in California I found it boring.