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Los Angeles, sometimes called "the City of Angels", was founded by a Spanish captain in 1781, achieving municipality five months before California became a state in 1850. The seat of Los Angeles County, it is the largest city in the state and the second largest in the country with a population of approximately 3.8 million and covering nearly 500 square miles. Most know Los Angeles for its ties to the entertainment industry, its warm Mediterranean climate with mild winters and warm to hot summers and its heavy reliance on automobiles and freeway systems for transportation. However in addition to boasting one of the largest freeway systems in the world with 27 connecting freeways covering over 100 miles, an extensive system of bus, subway and light rail lines provide local transportation. The area is also served by Amtrak passenger rail service and five major commercial airports.
Along with the glamour of the television, motion picture and recorded music industry, the Los Angeles economy is fueled by many other important industries including, aerospace, petroleum, international trade, technology, manufacturing, fashion and tourism. Major Fortune 500 companies based in Los Angeles include: aerospace contractor Northrop Grumman, Occidental Petroleum Corporation and homebuilder, KB Home. Connecting products and services with the rest of the globe, the contiguous Los Angeles and Long Beach ports are among the world's most important seaports vital to trade within the Pacific Rim. In addition to industry, Los Angeles is the home of several major sports franchises. Major league baseball's Dodgers, National Hockey's, Kings, two National Basketball Association teams, the Clippers and Lakers make their home in Los Angeles along with major soccer, Lacrosse and an Arena Football League teams. It's temperate climate and multiple sports facilities makes Los Angeles the prefect venue for a variety of outdoor sports from surfing to beach volleyball, rollerblading and skateboarding. The City has twice hosted the Summer Olympics in 1932 and 1983 and Super Bowls I and VI. The Los Angeles Marathon has been held every March since 1986. Educational institutions also comprise a portion of the Los Angeles economy. In addition to a host of private universities and trade schools, the area is home to several public colleges and universities, including the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA), California State University, Northridge (CSUN), California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), Pepperdine, and University of California, Irvine (UCI). There are also nine community college campuses in the vast Los Angeles Community College District.
As of the 2000 census, there were 3,694,820 people, 1,275,412 households, and 798,407 families residing in the city with a population density of 7,876.8 people per square mile. Characteristic of Los Angeles are the many neighborhoods comprised of several towns annexed over the years by the growing city. Spanning a topography of hills, valleys and mountains, the city is divided into the following areas and communities: Downtown, Financial, East, South, and Westside Los Angeles, Harbor, Hollywood, Wilshire, the San Fernando and Crescenta valleys. There are the eclectic areas of Venice Beach, Los Feliz, Silver Lake, Hollywood, Hancock Park, Koreatown and upscale communities like Bel-Air, the Hollywood Hills, Pacific Palisades and Brentwood. The Los Angeles Unified School District, the second-largest school district in the United States with over 700,000 students serves most of Los Angeles and the surrounding communities. Los Angeles has many award winning magnet schools, yet many upper class parents opt to place their children in one of the areas top rated private schools. Over the years middle class suburban families have looked for schools outside the district due to some district schools being poorly maintained and overcrowded. The LAUSD has since worked on an aggressive school construction program to alleviate these issues. The list of notable Los Angeles residents reads like a Who's Who from Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. Likewise, the list of famous Los Angeles landmarks which include: Mann's Chinese Theater, Hollywood sign, Hollywood Boulevard, Sunset Strip, Los Angeles City Hall, Hollywood Bowl, La Brea Tar Pits, Griffith Park, Hollywood Bowl, Chinatown, Disney Concert Hall, Kodak Theater, Griffith Observatory, Getty Center, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Staples Center and Olvera Street, the Farmer's Market, Universal Studios and Watts Towers.
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