In the 1980s Los Angeles was the U.S.'s most multi-cultural city following an influx of immigrants mainly from Mexico, Central America, and Asia. The decade saw new ethnic neighborhoods, a growth in crime and Guardian Angels patrolling the streets. Unlike other Olympic cities, Los Angeles used existing facilities and venues for the Games and only built two new venues, funded largely by private corporations. The Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles Airport was built especially for the Olympic Games to cope with the increase in visitor numbers. Competition in 1984 was rather lackluster as the USSR and more than a dozen eastern bloc countries, as well as Cuba, Iran, and Libya boycotted the games and held their own Friendship Games in Moscow and other cities.
Los Angeles Now
More than ever, Los Angeles is known as the city of beautiful people, the home of Hollywood plastic surgery, designer shopping, and the California beach lifestyle. A little more than ten million people call greater Los Angeles home, 50% of those coming from a Latin background. The city itself is huge and spread out and its traffic jams are infamous. Street names and restaurants here are household names and tourists are drawn to Hollywood Boulevard, the original Disneyland, star-spotting, Rodeo Drive, Grauman's Chinese Theater and the mansions of Beverly Hills -- just as they have been for decades. From Sunset Strip to the La Brea Tar Pits, the magnificent art collections of the Getty to the annual Rose Parade, Los Angeles is one of the U.S.'s most beloved destinations. Unfortunately it isn't all glamour and lights and palm-tree lined boulevards, with parts of the city known for high crime, gang activity and poverty. Despite this, the allure of this city is undeniable with its warm climate, in-crowd and Hollywood mystique.
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