When Americans think about the homes of the rich and famous, they automatically start to think about Beverly Hills, California. The trend in movie stars living in Beverly Hills may not be as current as it was in the early days of the film industry, but the area is still known today as one of the more wealthy areas of California and the entire United States. From the fame brought to the area by the film and television stars that built fantastic homes there to the fame brought by the popular television series ‘Beverly Hills 90210′, this Southern California city is one of the most famous cities in the entire country.

Here are ten facts you may not know about Beverly Hills, California:

1. Though thought of as an entirely unique area of the country, the area was named Beverly Hills after the developers’ memories of the rolling hills of Beverly, Massachusetts.

2. The early 1900s were an interesting time in many cities in the west, especially when it came to transportation. Cars and animals didn’t alway mix and mingle well and in 1930, horses were banned by the city of Beverly Hills.

3. The city of Hollywood had been incorporated in 1903 and then seven years later had been annexed into the city of Los Angeles. Over the years, there has occasionally been a great deal of talk about annexing Beverly Hills into the city of Los Angeles as well. The first proposal for Beverly Hills to be annexed by Los Angeles was submitted in 1923 and lost by a vote of 507 to 337.

4. In addition to the famous zip code 90210, Beverly Hills is also served by three other zip codes, 90211, 90212, and 90213.

5. When Greystone Mansion was originally built in 1928, it was the most expensive home ever built in the state of California, costing three million dollars at the time. It is currently a park, though it continues to this day to be used for location filming when a movie or television show requires footage of a wealthy looking courtyard and other architecture.

6. With the reputation the city has achieved, few would believe that at one time one of the most popular local activities was to go to the Beverly Hills Speedway to watch early auto races. The famous Beverly Wilshire Hotel was constructed in 1928 on part of the site of what used to be the Beverly Hills Speedway.

7. The famous Beverly Hills High School is constructed on land that was also once a part of the Beverly Hills Speedway.

8. If you were to quiz people from outside of the area as to what the official mascot of Beverly Hills High School was you might get answers like “The Fighting Movie Producers”, “The Stars”, and “The Dollar Bills”. The mascot for Beverly Hills High School is actually “The Normans”.

9. When people view what life on campus at Beverly Hills High School must be like, they envision a school that is a little more upper crust in nature and anything but blue collar. There is actually a working oil well on the campus of Beverly Hills High School.

10. Notable people who attended Beverly Hills High School include Jack Abramoff, Corbin Bernsen, Albert Brooks, Nicolas Cage, Shaun Cassidy, Richard Chamberlain, Jamie Lee Curtis, Richard Dreyfuss, Nora Ephron, Carrie Fisher, Rhonda Fleming, Gina Gershon, Bonnie Franklin, Crispin Glover, Angelina Jolie, Florence Henderson, David Kushner, Lenny Kravitz, Monica Lewinsky, Lyle and Eric Menendez, Laraine Newman, Andre Previn, Rob Reiner, Lil’ Romeo, Antonio Sabato Jr., David Schwimmer, Alicia Silverstone, Tori spelling, Betty White, and Rain Pryor.

The city of Beverly Hills will always be thought of in terms of the rich and famous people that have lived there over the many years since the entertainment industry became established in Southern California. While it is no longer the number one place on the list of dream places to live by those involved in film and television, the area is to this day one of the more well off areas of California. To list all of the famous people who have called Beverly Hills home over the years would take too long and would undoubtedly be incomplete as someone would most assuredly would be forgotten. Anyone visiting the famous movie and television sites in Southern California would be making a big mistake if they didn’t include a trip to Beverly Hills, California.