The Chevrolet Suburban has been given a strange award

This ordinary family SUV has received a peculiar accolade that marks it as one of the most famous cars in the world, and you most likely have never even noticed it.

The Chevrolet Suburban has been awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

This SUV is one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, apparently.

It isn’t often you would mention a car in the same breath as De Niro, Nicholson or Streep but that is all about to change.

The Suburban is the first car to be awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The Chevrolet Suburban is the first car to get a dedicated star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, which hands out the stars, claims this is in recognition of the vehicle’s countless appearances on screen over the past six decades. The ceremony also celebrated the Chevrolet Tahoe SUV’s film pedigree.

The Suburban has appeared in more than 1750 films and TV shows.

Hollywood Chamber of Commerce chief Rana Ghadban said: “Appearing in classic feature films and on must-see television shows, the Suburban is a well-established industry mainstay.

“The Chevrolet Tahoe is also making an impact in movies and on television. It’s impressive to have both vehicles now join an illustrious group of actors and characters that are forever known as Hollywood legends.”

The Suburban might not be well known to Australian buyers but the hulking SUV has been in movies since 1952 and is claimed to have been used in more than 1750 TV shows and films.

A line-up Chevrolet SUVs from the film Sicario.

Viewers are probably most likely to recognise a Suburban or Tahoe on screen when they see a line-up of black SUVs with sirens blaring, ploughing down the street and most likely ending in a large explosion.

The Suburban has trumped several other cars that have had prominent roles in films.

The Volkswagen Beetle was one of the central characters in the Herbie films about a cheeky race car with a soul. The Aston Martin DB5 has been a mainstay of James Bond films.

And the DeLorean from the Back to the Future series might bethe most centrally important cars in a film to date.