Early History
 The area along the coast of California by Los Angeles was originally settled by the American Indian tribes of the Tongva and the Chumash. The first Europeans arrived in 1542, where the Portuguese explorer, João Cabrilho, claimed the area for the Spanish Empire, however, did not set up a settlement. In 1769, Gaspar de Portola and a Franciscan missionary Juan Crespí camped in the area of what is now known as Los Angeles, that Crespí called at the time: El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Ángeles de Porciúncula (The Village of Our Lady, the Queen of the Angels of Porciúncula). In 1771, the Mission San Gabriel Arcangel was built in an area inhabited by the Gabrielino Indians.
The City of Los Angeles was officially founded in 1781 by Felipe de Neve, a Spanish Governor, when a group of 44 settlers of Filipino, African and Spanish Ancestry and American Indians established a pueblo named El Pueblo de la Reyna de Los Angeles (The Pueblo of the Angels), which the city over time was known as “The City of Angels”.
The city became part of Mexico in 1821 after Mexico received jurisdiction of the area from Spain, which allowed for more trade with the United States. By the 1840s, Los Angeles was the largest town in Southern California. By 1848, at the end of the Mexican-American War, California and Los Angeles were purchased by the United States as part of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and two years later in 1850, California was incorporated into the United States as a state.
Railroads, Gold Rush and Population Growth
After California was incorporated into the United States, the area began to see rapid growth due to the railroad, and the discovery of gold and oil.
 The Southern Pacific Railroad completed its Los Angeles route in the 1880s followed by Santa Fe Railroad six years later. In addition, the discovery of gold in 1840s and oil in the 1850s, led to the massive increase in population looking to cash in on these new finds. In addition, the growth of citrus farming that benefited from the new railroads transportation system led to a large influx of new residents.
It was also around this time that settlers came into the area from a variety of different backgrounds such as English, French, Basques, Spanish, Mexican, German and Chinese. The population of Los Angeles rose from 11,000 people in 1880 to 60,000 in 1890. There was a downturn in this boom in 1889 and many people left the Los Angeles area, however, the boom to the area created many local irrigation districts and civic improvements that benefited the area.
Los Angeles County
In February 1850, several months before California was admitted to the United States, Los Angeles was established as one of California’s original 27 counties and was the official “seat” of county government. It was also at this time the City of Los Angeles was officially incorporated as well.
To accommodate the large population growth taking place in Los Angeles County, the construction of the Hoover Dam took place in 1935 that channeled water from the Colorado River to the county and provided electricity from hydroelectric power. Industry in aircraft testing and construction after World War II brought an economic boom to the area and by the 1950s, Los Angeles was a sprawling metropolis.
Television and Motion Picture Production
The first motion-picture studio in what is known as Hollywood today was the Nestor Film Company and was founded in 1911 by Al Christie for David Horsely. The ideal conditions, of good weather and relatively new and undeveloped area were perfect for the industry and by 1930 the motion picture industry was in full swing.
Television entered the entertainment industry in the 1950s and at first competed with the movie going audience. By the 1970s movie and television found their own niche and both have grown into very vibrant industries today.
The U.S. leads the worldwide motion picture and television production industries, generating approximately 1.3 million jobs, $60.4 billion in economic output and $10 billion in income and sales taxes.
California accounts for 50% of the U.S. motion pictur e and television industry employment and economic output, of which approximately 90% takes place within Los Angeles County.
The motion picture and television production industry is the 18th largest industry in California by share of gross state product. Moreover, average salaries within the motion picture and television production industries are 70% higher than salaries in other businesses statewide.
The ability by California, and in particular, Los Angeles County, to retain its existing level of motion picture and television production is important because of the immense resources that the state has already invested in studios, sets and facilities specific to these industries, and also because of the concentration of trained talent in these industries who are resident in Los Angeles County. Increased production would mean that the existing facilities and talent would be more efficiently used and/or maximized. Moreover, because the Los Angeles economy is centered around the motion picture and television production industries, the capacity to retain and/or grow these industries would directly impact any number of related industries that service them.
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