Will Rogers Memorial Park

Will Rogers Memorial Park

Will Rogers Memorial Park
Type Municipal
Location 9650 Sunset Boulevard, Beverly Hills, California
Coordinates 34°04′49″N 118°24′45″W / 34.0804°N 118.4125°W / 34.0804; -118.4125Coordinates: 34°04′49″N 118°24′45″W / 34.0804°N 118.4125°W / 34.0804; -118.4125
Created 1915

The Will Rogers Memorial Park is a public park in Beverly Hills, California.

Location

Shaped like a triangle, the park is surrounded by West Sunset Boulevard, North Canon Drive and North Beverly Drive.[1][2] It is across the street (South Side of Sunset) from the Beverly Hills Hotel.[1][2][3]

History

The park was constructed in 1912 and dedicated in 1915, becoming the first public park in Beverly Hills.[4][5] It was called the Sunset Park until 1952, when it was renamed the Will Rogers Memorial Park in honor of Will Rogers, who served as the first Honorary Mayor of Beverly Hills from 1926 to 1928 and frequented the park often with his family.[4][5] On May 18, 1957, a plaque was added to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Beverly Hills Garden Club.

As explained on the plaque, it was rededicated in 1997, and renovated in 2005.

On April 7, 1998, singer George Michael was arrested for committing a "lewd act" by Marcelo Rodriguez, a plainclothes officer of the Beverly Hills Police Department, in the restrooms of the park.[2][3][6] The singer parodied the arrest in his video of Outside, which led the police officer to sue him for US$10 million for "humiliation, mental anguish, emotional and physical distress" because of the video.[6]

In September 2014, the fountain was renamed the Margaret J. Anderson Fountain, in honour of the first owner of the Beverly Hills Hotel.[7]

In October 2014, 160 Beverly Hills Centennial Roses, a type of floribunda rose registered for the city's centennial, were planted in the park.[8] The dedication took place on October 5.[8] The rose garden is the result of a donation from Dr Keith Zary, a rose breeder.[8]

Overview

The park includes a pond with fish and turtles, and a fountain in the middle. It also includes lawns, rose gardens, tall palm trees, a dragon tree, winding asphalt paths, and male and female restrooms. It also features two bronze plaques about the history of the park, and smaller plaque about the Beverly Hills Garden Club.

Will Rogers Memorial Park
Sign of Use and Conduct of the Will Rogers Memorial Park
Sign of Use and Conduct of the Will Rogers Memorial Park 
View of the Margaret J. Anderson Fountain in the Will Rogers Memorial Park
View of the Margaret J. Anderson Fountain in the Will Rogers Memorial Park 
View of the Margaret J. Anderson Fountain in the Will Rogers Memorial Park
View of the Margaret J. Anderson Fountain in the Will Rogers Memorial Park 
Bronze plaque about the Will Rogers Memorial Park
Bronze plaque about the Will Rogers Memorial Park in Beverly Hills, California 
Another bronze plaque about the Will Rogers Memorial Park
Another bronze plaque about the Will Rogers Memorial Park 
Plaque of the Beverly Hills Garden Club in the Will Rogers Memorial Park
Plaque of the Beverly Hills Garden Club in the Will Rogers Memorial Park 
Dragon Tree in the Will Rogers Memorial Park
Dragon Tree (Dracaena draco) in the Will Rogers Memorial Park 
Turtles in the Will Rogers Memorial Park
Turtles in the Will Rogers Memorial Park 
Big fish in the Will Rogers Memorial Park
Big fish in the Will Rogers Memorial Park 

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Will Rogers Memorial Park.
  1. 1 2 Google Map
  2. 1 2 3 Sue McAllister, Pop Singer George Michael Arrested in Restroom of Beverly Hills Park, The Los Angeles Times, April 09, 1998
  3. 1 2 John M. Glionna, Beverly Hills Steps Up Patrols to Stop Cruising, The Los Angeles Times, May 29, 1998
  4. 1 2 City of Beverly Hills: Will Rogers Memorial Park
  5. 1 2 Marc Wanamaker, Beverly Hills, 1930-2005, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2006, p. 11
  6. 1 2 Entertainment: George Michael faces $10m lawsuit, BBC News, September 14, 1999
  7. FOUNTAIN—At the request of Cultural Heritage Commission Chair Maralee Beck, the Beverly Hills City Council has agreed to dedicate the existing fountain in Will Rogers Memorial Park, The Beverly Hills Courier
  8. 1 2 3 Victoria Talbot, 'Beverly Hills Centennial Rose Dedication This Sunday At Will Rogers Memorial Park', The Beverly Hills Courier, October 03, 2014, Vol. XXXXVIIII, No. 39, p. 4
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 3/13/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.