Millions needed to save Hollywood sign

© istockphoto.com/ nejat talas

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IT'S a Hollywood cliffhanger, in more ways than one.

The Trust for Public Land said on Thursday it's about $US3 million ($A3.2 million) away from the $US12.5 million ($A13.6 million) it needs to buy and preserve hilltop property beside the world-famous Hollywood sign. Its purchase option expires April 14.

The group says nearly all the major TV and movie studios are among the contributors to the roughly $US9.5 million ($A10.3 million) it has raised through donations and government grants.

Steven Spielberg, Lucasfilm Foundation and Tom Hanks all contributed.

The group hopes to buy the land from its Chicago-area owners and give it to the city so it can be incorporated into the adjacent, 1700-hectare Griffith Park.