city, Los Angeles county, California, U.S. Culver City is adjacent to Beverly Hills (to the north) and Inglewood (to the south), near downtown Los Angeles. The area, originally inhabited by the Tongva (Gabrielino) Indians, was explored in the late 18th century by the Spanish, who divided it into several land grants. Formed from part of Rancho La Ballona and Rincón de Los Bueyes, the city was laid out in 1914 by Harry H. Culver and promoted as a site for motion-picture (motion picture) production. Culver first persuaded Thomas Ince (Ince, Thomas H) to move his studios to Culver City. Other studios followed, including Goldwyn Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.) (MGM), and Hal Roach (Roach, Hal) Studio. By the 1990s Sony Pictures Studios was operating on the former MGM lot. Films were produced at the RKO (RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.) studio, as were, later, after Desilu Productions took over, television shows. The city's cultural life was supplemented by the Rollerdrome skate park (now Tellefson Park) and horse and automobile racetracks (all closed). In addition to the entertainment industry, the petroleum and technology industries are economic mainstays of the city. Culver City is also the site of a community college founded in 1969. Inc. 1917. Pop. (1990) 38,793; (2000) 38,816.