A hotel just outside Chicago got sold today which normally wouldn't be newsworthy to us but it was called The Purple Hotel, our favorite color!
While it was once classy in the 1960s it became a den of debauchery, the site of a mob hit, and home to both sex and rodent parties. (Although not at the same time...we don't think so at least.) In other words, it was like totally hip.
The hotel was initially the Lincolnwood Hyatt House, then turned into a Radisson then a Ramada before it became so awful that no franchise wanted to be a part of it. The Sun-Times writes of the final hotel name, The Purple Hotel:
By that name, it was relying on such events as the Midwest Fetish Fair & Marketplace for business, and the police regularly were called to the hotel to quiet disturbances.
The hotel used to segregate the sex parties from other guests, but a former general manager once told the Sun-Times that complaints arose from people who "got on the wrong elevator."
Now, the hotel will be demolished and replaced with some retail/residential mixed-use building. Boring! We sorta think Ian Schrager needs to drop this Edition Hotel business and launch a chain of Purple Hotels. Bring back hedonistic hotels Ian!
· Attorneys now threatening TripAdvisor reviewers who write bad things. Oy. [LA Times] · NBA baller Richard Jefferson formally charged with choking man at boutique hotel Graves 601. [Minneapolis Star-Tribune] · RIP: Gridskipper is moving to Curbed. [Gridskipper] · The Sheraton Gateway LAX hotel is starting JetSet Sundays poolside with airline-inspired drinks. [Jaunted]
Among HotelChatter's functions is to peer forward into the new, and track the latest news in hospitality.
But do you ever think to yourself, why ARE there hotels? How did hotels come to be, and why are they the way they are? Why are hotels homes-away-from-homes? Why are celebrities attracted to hotels? Why do hotels strive to be so darn glamorous and sexy?
HotelChatter was privileged to conduct a virtual interview with Andrew K. Sandoval-Strausz, author of the recently released and critically acclaimed book Hotel: An American History, which charts the unique rise of the hotel specific to the United States, and how its distinct growth runs parallel to our country's economic development.
Besides making a perfect gift for Hotel Chatter-ees, the book is a fascinating, fantastic romp through the past few centuries, from the rough accommodations at public houses ("George Washington Slept Here!") to the hotel's firm influence on architecture, society, politics, and travel.
Along the way, there are juicy anecdotes involving prostitution, adultery, corruption, segregation, elite society, bankruptcy, bad service, and wild parties - in short, the whole hotel hog.
With the premiere of Emilio Estevez's new film, "Bobby,"The Ambassador Hotel - its history and destruction - is back in the public eye.
Opened in 1921, the historic hotel became the it-place for the Hollywood elite. Celebs and political figures from The Rat Pack to Bing, Barbra, Nixon, Reagan, Howard Hughes, and Satchmo stayed there and played there. Not to mention it's also where The Graduate's Benjamin Braddock conducted his infamous affair with Mrs. Robinson. The Cocoanut Grove, the swinging club which was featured in "The Aviator" hosted about a million shows and dance contests, was Tinseltown's power bar, and was where the famous Oscar statuette was first unveiled. (The first ever Oscar ceremony was held at Hollywood Roosevelt, of course.)
Now, the tragic history of the hotel. Robert Kennedy was shot and killed in the hotel pantry by Sirhan Sirhan on June 5, 1968, following RFK's victory speech there for the California Primary. Sirhan Sirhan, who is still alive, later went on to petition the razing of the hotel - direct from his cell block. The Kennedy family also sought to have the hotel torn down, which recently has been done to make way for a much-neeeded Los Angeles school.
But back to "Bobby." In an interview with Movies Online, Estevez said that he managed to secure five days to shoot exterior shots for the film, set in the Ambassador.
"The circumstances were extreme, they were tearing it down, and they were tearing it down around us, and there were some shots if you were to widen out, the school bus scene in particular, you would actually see the bulldozers working, and the agreement was that they would not stop demolition while we were there."
Today, the hotel skeleton's last stand is lovingly documented by The Ambassador's Last Stand blog.
Like many grand and stylish buildings, the Ambassador can't be rescued from the wrecking ball. But you know how Los Angeles feels about old things. This is the top town for plastic surgery and "reconstructions" after all.
Coincidentally, "Bobby" stars Demi Moore and Lindsay Lohan who are certainly no strangers to enhancements themselves. The movie is now playing in New York and LA and opens nationwide on Wednesday.
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by juliana
