A star was born in 1935, when Griffith Observatory became the first public observatory west of the Mississippi. Now, “Griffith Observatory is the most visited public observatory on the planet,” says Ed Krupp, longtime director of the observatory. In the 90 years since its founding, more than 7 million people have peered through the historic Zeiss telescope that adorns the peak of Mount Hollywood in Griffith Park. “More than any other telescope on Earth,” Krupp adds.