These colossal desert barcodes have been fine-tuning spy satellites for decades.

Everything you always wanted to know about borates is here.

This grand mansion has starred in everything from Bones to Buffy.

A sign at the end of the Santa Monica Pier marks the traditional end of the legendary American highway.

60 feet of towering steel balances gracefully.

Grab a latte at the birthplace of modern American skateboarding.

Santa Monica's oldest restaurant, decorated with set pieces from the Mutiny on the Bounty.

Legendary prop shop filled with one man's collection of scientific curiosities.

This well-traveled chess park offers scenic views of the pacific and a colorful, eclectic clientele.

A second generation sun-powered marvel lights up the night.

In one Santa Monica parking lot a mushroom cloud made of chains heralds a message of peace.

Will Geer's outdoor theater started as a mountain retreat for actors, musicians, and other artists who were blacklisted during the Red Scare.

The blinking light atop the iconic landmark has been sending secret messages for decades.

Hollywood's oldest hotel is the site of the first Academy Awards, the birthplace of Marilyn Monroe's career, and the home of Montgomery Clift's ghost.

One of the richest places in the United States has a cursed street.

Storybook cottage in Beverly Hills was once the site of 1920s silent film studio, affectionately known as "The Witch's House."

The dramatic upward-curving roof is one of the most iconic examples of Googie architecture that still stands today.

You don't want to get caught in this trap--or do you?

An unreal vintage shop that wears its dadaist influence on its zombie fish.

This general store near Boston was once owned by Henry Ford, who had it relocated to a different town using a team of oxen.

Once designed as the entrance to Buckingham Palace, this structure was later relocated and stands as a victory arch.

Uninhabited islet in the Caribbean is the sanctuary of giant lizards.

The rusted remains of a victim of Hurricane Ike.

This island hill is strewn with boulders carved by shipwreck victims from the age of sail.