Silver Lake's ‘I LIKE YOU VERY MUCH' billboard has cost its patron $90,000 so far. He's not stopping anytime soon
'I LIKE YOU VERY MUCH,' it proclaims in blocky, all-caps white text on a solid red background. It stands in a grassy lot facing Sunset Boulevard, near Westerly Terrace.
The billboard isn't hawking anything. No name is attached to it. And, um, it doesn't even know me.
I've seen it for years while heading to Dodger Stadium and wondered who, exactly, liked me very much. I am, after all, an acquired taste. My colleague Rebecca Castillo, a video creator for 404 by L.A. Times, solved the mystery this month. Rebecca kindly answered a few of my burning questions. Our interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Rebecca Castillo: The billboard is owned by an advertising company called Lamar, and is rented out by Jordan Bromley, an entertainment lawyer who specializes in music. According to Bromley, it had a very 'simple and whimsical beginning.'
In 2011, his friend was driving past the billboard, wondered how much it cost, and called Lamar, which gave a quote of a few hundred bucks a month. Bromley has a house in Silver Lake, an artsy neighborhood he describes as 'a hub of activity for musicians.' The billboard, he figured, would be 'a fun extension of that.'
Bromley said the phrase 'I like you very much' was just something that he would say a lot, and he liked the idea of having 'fun, positive messaging' in the neighborhood.
Bromley told me the billboard has been up since 2011, usually for 10 months a year. It usually has the white text and red background, but Bromley has put up a green background around Christmastime. Sometimes his friends rent out the billboard. His one rule is that it can't be used for direct advertising — just for art or messaging.
The first thing he said to me when I called to ask if I could interview him was: 'I've been waiting for this day.' So, it definitely didn't come as a surprise.
If anything, he was surprised it hadn't happened sooner. He assumed people must have been wondering about it.
Bromley now pays around $500 a month. He did some (very) quick math and estimates he has spent around $90,000.
It was before I lived in Silver Lake. I was dating someone who would send me pictures of it. Now, I live in Silver Lake and pass it every day. And it's pretty funny that my relationship to that billboard outlasted my relationship with that person.
If it doesn't, then it's a great liar.
Bill says, 'Los Angeles.'Mike says, 'Palm Springs/Desert area, and the South Lake Tahoe area.'
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On May 22, 1992, television host and comedian Johnny Carson ended his 30-year reign on NBC's 'The Tonight Show.'
The Times' Rick DuBrow recapped the emotional farewell, which ended with Carson telling viewers: 'I bid you a very heartfelt good night.'
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