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Two social media influencers who managed to get “Hollyboob” to read on the Hollywood billboard before being arrested on suspicion of trespassing said they did so to challenge censorship on Instagram. One of them, they said, lost millions of followers – and part of his livelihood – when his accounts were closed for nudity.
The fact that their shot also raised awareness about breast cancer and made faces around the world smile, they said, were bonuses.
“It’s awesome,” said Julia Rose, 27, of Los Angeles, whose company Shagmag bills itself as a modern rival to Playboy. “It all combined together has been really, really great.”
Rose had already gained notoriety, with a friend, for flashing her breasts during the World Series in 2019. For this stunt, she received a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball.
Rose said in an interview with The Times that she first conceptualized Monday’s stunt last year after being warned of nudity on her personal and corporate Instagram accounts, which had around 6 million subscribers. combined.
Rose said she knew she was ‘pushing the boundaries of censorship’ on these accounts by featuring barely covering fellow influencers, but she also believed Instagram and its parent company, Facebook, were unfairly censoring the accounts. , targeting influencers more than established brands such as Playboy.
Rose knew she couldn’t access and edit the Hollywood sign on her own, so she looked for “someone wild enough to help her,” she said, and landed on the friend and fellow influencer Jack Tenney, 26, whose “adventure-oriented” joogsquad YouTube channel also boasts millions of subscribers.
“Everyone loves a good prank,” Tenney said. “It’s always good to make people laugh and make people smile.”
The pair said they attempted to reach the panel several times late last year, but failed, in part because the two large “B” tarps they created – to cover the “W’s” and “D” of the iconic sign – were too heavy.
From the end of December, Rose’s personal Instagram account and then her professional account were deactivated. A Facebook spokesperson said Tuesday the company does not allow nudity on Instagram and had deleted Rose’s accounts “for repeatedly breaking these rules.”
After the accounts were deleted, Rose and Tenney decided to try once again to access the panel – and this time with a better plan.
Instead of two tarpaulins, they would bring only one, for the “W.” They reached the second “B” by pulling a much smaller piece of material in the middle of the existing “D”.
They then got a double stroller to roll the tarp over an established trail that takes hikers over the sign, “pretending to be husband and wife,” Tenney said with a laugh. “We kind of went there, knowing we might get caught.”
Two of Tenney’s friends from Florida came, along with two of Rose’s friends. At the top of the mountain, they went around a fence and walked down the hill. At the panel, five of them focused on running the tarp over the “W”, using ropes to help lift it, and one of them pulled the material through. the “D”.
Rose and Tenney estimated they were at the sign for 15-20 minutes, and no more than half an hour. They then descended the hill to Mulholland Highway, where they expected to be – and were – arrested for trespassing. They were released on Monday evening.
Los Angeles Police Department officials said the group had not been charged with vandalism because the sign was not damaged, but they were breaking the law by breaking into – and over dangerous ground .
Mark Panatier, chairman of the Hollywood Sign Trust, which operates the Griffith Park site, said Monday it was “unfortunate that such an important icon for the city of LA is not being appreciated.”
“She’s an icon who is there to visually reinforce the importance of Hollywood, not just to the city of LA but to the world,” said Panatier. “He must be respected; he does not need to be belittled.
Rose and Tenney took a different point of view. They said they didn’t hurt anyone and received positive feedback from people around the world who thought their efforts were hilarious or who praised the focus on breast cancer.
They said they would each have a court hearing on June 3. Tenney said he hoped the judge had made the prank so much on the internet: like harmless fun that did some good along the way.
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