Donald Trump has the most hated star on the Walk of Fame, Hollywood Boulevard's Batman says


There are more than 2,500 stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, but only one regularly compels people to stomp on it, deface it with spray paint, and pretend it's a toilet.
The star belongs to Donald Trump, and street entertainer Austin Franklin, who patrols the area dressed as Batman, says he's astounded by the things that happen on the tiny piece of sidewalk. "I've never seen this kind of hate put on a star before, not even Bill Cosby," he told The Wrap. "At least 50" tourists clomp over the star at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. every day, he said, while others "pretend to take a dump on it as they pose for pictures."
Mimicking defecation is one of the tamer things to happen at the star, which Trump received in 2007 and is on prime real estate outside the Hollywood and Highland complex. Last week — months after a vandal used yellow spray paint to cross out Trump's name on the star — someone used black spray paint to scrawl a swastika on it, and although it was quickly cleaned up, a snapshot of the damage was posted on Reddit. Franklin/Batman has witnessed a lot go down on this stretch of the Walk of Fame, and said there's just one place in the world where a piece of terrazzo could elicit such rage: "Only in Hollywood."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
‘Peak consumption has become the Holy Grail of the energy debate’
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Nadine Menendez gets 4.5 years in bribery case
Speed Read Menendez's husband was previously sentenced to 11 years in prison
-
Koreans detained in US Hyundai raid return home
Speed Read Over 300 Koreans were detained at the plant last week
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants