The Hollywood Wax Museum

The Hollywood Wax Museum is right down the street from the glamor of the Hollywood Roosevelt. Laying in between the star-studded Hollywood Walk of Fame, this tourist destination has been attracting visitors since its opening in 1965. 

But behind the chillingly accurate wax figurines, depicting anyone from Michael Jackson to Dale Earnhart is something far more devious. Spirits haunt the old Wax Museum. They have been captured on video and reported by numerous visitors!  

Quick Facts:

• Recreating celebrities, politicians, and other icons has been practiced since the early 1800s. 
• Marie Tussaud was among the first to make it a profession in the early 19th century
• The Hollywood Wax Museum has been open since 1965 and has four locations around the United States

Visiting The Hollywood Wax Museum

A visit to the Hollywood Wax Museum is a necessary part of any visit to the Hollywood area. Tickets range from $29.99 to $34.99 for adults and $19.99 for children between the ages of 4 and 11. Children under three gain entry for free, and it is fun for the whole family! Take pictures with life-like wax versions of your favorite celebrities; Samuel L. Jackson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lucille Ball, Michael Jackson, and many more are all recreated for the whole family.

The History of Wax Museums 

Madame Tussauds, the first major Wax museum in the world, opened in London in 1835. Stunningly realistic wax figurines of famous monarchs greeted visitors to the little shop on Baker Street. It has since become an odd yet popular tradition to visit a wax museum. 

There are now Madame Tussauds all over the Western world, with major Los Angeles locations right down the street from the Hollywood Wax Museum— New York, Orlando, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Nashville, and London. 

The story behind these curiosities is rather macabre and well worth visiting. Marie Tussaud was born in Strasbourg, France on Dec 1st, 1761. She learned her unique skill from a man named Phillipe Curtius while in Paris. Curtius was a local doctor and owner of two wax museums. Tussaud’s mother was employed as a housekeeper, and the skill was passed down to the youngest Tussaud. 

As is the case with any other artist, Tussaud started small, crafting hearts and other anatomical objects. She created her first full likeness in 1777 of the philosopher Voltaire. Other statues curated during this time were of Benjamin Franklin and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. 

Tussaud and The French Revolution

By the time the French Revolution rolled around, Tussaud had been employed by public enemy #1, King Louis XVI. Her head was shaved and prepared for the guillotine, but a friend of her mentor Curtius saved her before the big chop. 

However, she was instructed to create death masks and figurines of the now-headless monarchy. The revolutionaries got their spoils, and Tussaud was eventually set free. 

In 1802 Tussaud brought her sculpting skills to London and embarked on a three-decades-long tour of England. She opened the now-infamous Wax Museum on Baker Street in 1835 and died in 1850. Her last statue was a life-like statue of herself!