Three years after the opening of the first local Planet Hollywood in 1991 (in Orange County), and following the opening of dozens of new Planet Hollywoods around the globe, Sly Stallone, Bruce Willis, Demi Moore and Arnold Schwarzenegger finally got around to coming home to Hollywood. But when they did it, they did it right.

Planet Hollywood opened in Beverly Hills on Sunday, Sept. 17, 1995, with the most spectacular grand opening gala in the history of restaurants. They roped off nearby Rodeo Drive for a giant celebrity block party, and rolled out the red carpet for a dazzling parade of stars.

Danny DeVito and Chuck Berry performed live in concert - as did Bruce.  And Sly was only slightly exaggerating when he told reporters 'there are more stars here than at the Oscars." Guests included Bruce, Demi, and Arnold (of course), plusPatrick Swayze, Whoopi Goldberg, Tim Allen, Brooke Shields, Danny Glover, Cindy Crawford, Rod Stewart, Steven Seagal, Dean Cain, Oprah Winfrey, Kelsey Grammer, Paul Reiser, George Clooney, Claude Van Damme, Pierce Brosnan, Wesley Snipes, Roseanne, Chris O'Donnell, Danny DeVito, Tony Danza, Paula Abdul, Charlie Sheen, Geena Davis, Warren Beatty, John Laroquette, Faye Dunaway, David Hasselhoff, Jennifer Aniston, Luke Perry, Penny Marshall, Pauly Shore, Robert Downey Jr., Alice Cooper, Little Richard, Aaron Spelling, Tori Spelling, John Stamos, Jim Belushi, and many more.

And the stars occasionally pop up here even when there isn't some special event underway. I ran into Della Reese ("Touched By An Angel") having lunch here not long ago (she was nice enough to sign an autograph for the young women at the table next to me). Another fan reported seeing Antonio Banderas, Melanie Griffith and Meat Loaf there for a wrap party for "Crazy in Arizona." Jack Nicholson was here recently for a private party. And actor Nick Nolte shocked quite a few locals by showing up for breakfast on Easter weekend wearing his pajamas and a robe.

In June of 1998, Leonardo DiCaprio took several ailing young girls from the Make-a-Wish Foundation to Planet Hollywood Beverly Hills for a special lunch.

This is the 28th restaurant in the Planet Hollywood chain. It's located at the southwest corner of Wilshire Blvd. and Camden Drive, two blocks west of Rodeo Drive. Because of complaints from its stuffy Beverly Hills neighbors, this branch had to settle for a more subdued look - a traditional sign, and lots of dark green awnings. No giant, rotating globes here. You may actually have to look for this theme restaurant.

But they made up for it inside, where their collection of movie & TV memorabilia is unsurpassed. A virtual mini-museum, it showcases a spectacular collection that the Smithsonian would be proud of including:

• The classic blue & white gingham dress worn by Dorothy (Judy Garland), as she danced down the Yellow Brick Road in "The Wizard of Oz."

• The famous green gown which Scarlet O'Hara made out of her drapes, worn by Vivian Leigh in "Gone With The Wind."

• The camera Jimmy Stewart used to spy on his murderous neighbor in Alfred Hitchcock's "Rear Window." (including a long telephoto lens).

• The model train used in the unforgettable train wreck/escape scene in Harrison Ford's "The Fugitive."

• Tom Hanks' famous "box of chocolates" from "Forrest Gump," as well as the military uniform Tom wore in that hit movie,

• The Butterfield stagecoach which John Wayne held up in the classic "Stagecoach," (you'll find it hanging from ceiling).

• The bloody ax wielded by an insane Jack Nicholson in "The Shining."

• The bright yellow hat thatJim Carrey wore in "The Mask" (worn here by a green-faced Mask dummy).

• Charlie Chaplin's jacket from "The Great Dictator."

• "Flying." overhead is a mannequin of Christopher Reeve, wearing the original red & blue costume from "Superman."

• The dress Robin Williams wore in the country club scene from "Mrs. Doubtfire" (on a wax dummy of Robin).

• The dress that Demi Moore wore in "The Scarlet Letter," complete with the large letter "A."

• The rolling sled that Keanu Reeves rode under the runaway bus in "Speed."

• "Thing," the disembodied hand, from "The Addams Family" (holding a golf ball).
  

• Gizmo the Gremlin, next to his evil cousin, both from "Gremlins."

• The saddle worn by the horse which Arnold Schwarzenegger rode into a glass elevator in the 1995 action thriller, "True Lies."

• The toy mechanical monkey from James Dean's classic, "Rebel Without A Cause."

• Darth Vader's costume from "Star Wars" ; also, a larger-than-life-size Wookie standing inside a glass case.

• The head nurse uniform Louise Fletcher wore in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest."

• Sly's championship belt from "Rocky V."

• A black dress worn by Rita Hayworth in "Gilda."
  
  

And from the world of television, Planet Hollywood offers:

• Barbara Eden's pink harem girl costume from
  "I Dream of Jeannie."

• Don Adams' infamous shoe-phone from "Get Smart."

• William Shatner's gold uniform shirt that he wore as Captain Kirk on the original "Star Trek," as well as the uniform worn by the Klingon, Worf (Michael Dorn).

• The coffee mug Johnny Carson always drank from on "The Tonight Show," along with those eraser-at-both-ends pencils he used to drum with on his desk.

• A familiar painting from the set of the sitcom "Friends" (it originally hung behind their couch), and

• A mini-tape recorder from "Mission Impossible" (the type that always self-destructed right after Peter Graves listened to the opening message).

And that's not to mention the submarine over the bar, the giant mural of stars' portraits, (including Sly, Arnold, Bruce & Demi), or the melted-Terminator statue of Arnold...

The menu is similar to the standard Planet Hollywood menu, but this is Beverly Hills, so it includes a section labeled "For the Industry," offering low-fat, low calories dishes such as seared tuna and vegetable pizza.

Drinks have clever names such as "Planet of the Apes" (rum, banana and blackberry liqueur), "Tootsie" (Creme de Cacao and orange juice), "The Exorcist" (vodka, rum, Triple Sec, Midori, Sprite), and "The Terminator" (vodka, rum, gin, Grand Marnier, Tia Maria, Kahlua, cranberry juice and beer).

Entrees range from : $10 to $18; appetizers are in the $3 to $10 range.

Visit the gift shop and you can pick up keepsakes such as Planet Hollywood boxer shorts ($14), Planet Hollywood sunglasses ($36.), or a Planet Hollywood leather jacket ($325).

[See the separate page about the other Planet Hollywood at South Coast Plaza.]

Getting there: The restaurant is located on the bottom two floors of an office building on Wilshire Blvd, just a block west of Rodeo Drive. / From Rodeo, go south to Wilshire, turn right (west), and go one block to Camden. The restaurant will be on your left (south) side, at the southwest corner of Wilshire & Camden. (Warning: Camden Drive is a one-way (north-only) street, so you cannot turn left on Camden.)