Giant "W"

Portuguese Point, California

Anyone who has seen the 1963 movie It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World remembers the mysterious giant "W" that marked the location of buried treasure, and the object of a manic cross-country treasure hunt. As it turned out, the "W" was four palm trees in a city park, planted at angles. The scene was actually filmed in the garden of a private estate at Portuguese Point on the Palos Verdes Peninsula near Los Angeles, California. When I visited the estate and took this photo in 1984, the middle two palms had died and the other two weren't looking too healthy; I doubt that any of the palms now remain to "mark the spot."

Directions: The site of the "W" is on a private estate, and is not accessible to the public.

Last visited: July 1984.
Update May 2011: Thanks to Price M. for sending me a recent photograph he took from a distance, which shows that all that remains of the "W" is the stump of one palm.

Standard disclaimer: Sites are described for entertainment purposes only, as they were at the time of my last visit. I can not vouch for the current condition of the site or its accessibility.