West Hollywood (abbreviated WeHo) is a city in Los Angeles bordered on the north by the Santa Monica Mountains, on the north and east by the Los Angeles district of Hollywood, on the west by the city of Beverly Hills and on south by the Fairfax District of Los Angeles.
For many years, the area that is now West Hollywood was an unincorporated area in the midst of the City of Los Angeles that was under the jurisdiction of "the county." It was illegal to gamble in the city but legal in the county, and in the 1920's, numerous nightclubs and casinos went in along the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood for this reason.
Movie people were attracted to this less restricted "county" area and a number of architecturally fine apartment houses and apartment hotels were built. Movie fans throughout the world knew that Ciro's, the Mocambo, the Trocadero, the Garden of Allah, the Chateau Marmont, and movie stars could be seen on the Sunset Strip.
Eventually, the area and its extravagant night spots lost favor with movie people. But the Strip and its restaurants, bars and clubs, continued to be an attraction for locals and out-of-town tourists. In the late 1960's, the Strip was transformed again during the hippie movement. Young people from all over the country flocked to West Hollywood clubs such as the Whisky A Go-Go and the Troubadour.
In November 1984, voters passed a proposal on the ballot to incorporate and the area became the City of West Hollywood.
West Hollywood is also home to Sunset Plaza, a European style shopping area on Sunset. Though only 1/2 a mile long it boasts tenants that would otherwise be on Rodeo. The Robertson/W. 3rd street area is home to the many chic stores and cafe's.