Downtown Los Santos
Los Santos, San Andreas is a fictional city located in Red County, and it is the first city you meet in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Los Santos is based on Los Angeles, California (in fact, at some points within the game a voice actor will say "Los Angeles" instead of "Los Santos").
Los Santos that is very wealthy and full of gangsters and movie stars. The population is over 3 million people and is the home to a movie studio as well as the Interglobal television studio. There is a train that connects this town to San Fierro and Las Venturas. The most infamous street is Grove Street which is south of downtown Los Santos, just minutes west of East Las Santos where there is a strong Hispanic population. This street is the home of the Grove Street Families, a once powerful gang gone soft due to the Ballas gang getting wealthy off the drug trade.
The police here are corrupt and the politicians are hardly seen on the streets. They have a motorcross track, several basketball courts, and an observatory to gaze the stars in. Occasionally, independent drug dealers are seen carrying huge wads of cash from recent drug purchases. Graffiti is commonplace and people frequent the horse track betting parlor. The wealthy suburbs in the north are the homes of wealthy businessmen and Madd Dogg, the killer rap artist. There is also the occasional shack within in the wealthy district, but they are the leftovers from a period prior to the gentrification of northern Los Santos.
Landmarks
It is filled with references to famous L.A. landmarks, including the Walk of Fame, the Watts Towers, the Capitol Tower, the U.S. Bank Tower and the Santa Monica Pier among many others. It borders Red County to the north and Flint County to the west.
Storyline
It is the hometown of GTA San Andreas protagonist Carl Johnson, who returns from living in Liberty City for five years, after his brother informs him of their mother's death. The game starts then, and the story revolves around a lengthy Gang War between CJ's gang (The Grove Street Families)) and the Ballas. Hispanic gang rivals the Varrios Los Aztecas and the Los Santos Vagos are also present. Los Santos is the capital of San Andreas and is located in the southern part of the state. It's a bustling city filled with many kinds of people and diverse districts. Ganton in the east and Los Flores in the northeast are the slums of the city, whilst Mulholland is the wealthy part of Los Santos. Rodeo caters to the rich, while the poorer areas such as Jefferson and Little Mexico contain cheap stores.
The city is torn apart over the issue of gang warfare. The Grove Street Families and Front Yard Ballas constantly spar over total dominance in Eastern Los Santos. In 1992, police officers Frank Tenpenny and Eddie Pulaski of C.R.A.S.H. (Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums) were charged with murder and sexual assault. Earlier, Pulaski was murdered by Carl Johnson in the Arco Del Oeste (West Arch in Spanish) after he and Tenpenny decided there was no more use for CJ. At a court hearing, Tenpenny was released when his lawyer dropped all charges. The entire city, outraged that Tenpenny walked free after horrendously heinous charges, erupted in riots. During this chatoic time, Carl Johnson killed cocaine drug lord and ex-gang member Big Smoke. Carl then chased after Officer Tenpenny, who died when his stolen Fire Truck drove off the side of an overpass. When news of Tenpenny's death reached the people of Los Santos, the city riots came to a stop.
Los Santos' nickname is "The City of Saints" - a play on "City of Angels" for Los Angeles.
Districts
Apart from famous Los Angeles landmarks being emulated, a number of districts and neighborhoods are as well.
- Ganton - Compton
- Idlewood - Inglewood
- Willowfield - Willowbrook
- Jefferson - Watts
- East Los Santos - East Los Angeles
- East Beach - Long Beach
- Market - San Fernando Valley
- Santa Maria - Santa Monica
- Verona Beach - Venice Beach
- Verdant Bluff - Palos Verdes
- Rodeo - Beverly Hills
- Vinewood - Hollywood
- Richman - Bel-Air
- Glen Park - Echo Park/MacArthur Park
- Mulholland - Mulholland Drive