Ward Morehouse III has had a love affair with London Hotels, as evidenced by his entertaining and informative new book, “London’s Grand Hotels: Extraordinary People, Extraordinary Service in the World’s Cultural Capital” (BearManor Media). Although I’m not sure about calling London the “Cultural Capital”—I might give the title to New York—Morehouse’s book is unusual in the sense that it isn’t an ordinary travel guide. His take is to get behind the scenes and talk about the hotels in terms of history, tradition, the executives who run them and the flow of celebrities who have stayed in their and his particular favorites. Previously Morehouse’s hotel concentration was New York with his books “TheWaldorf-Astoria: America’s Gilded Dream,” and “Inside the Plaza.”
The London biggies are all included, such as the Savoy, Claridge’s, The Connaught, Brown’s, The Dorchester, The Ritz, The Hilton Park Lane etc. He includes the famous May Fair in Stratton Street, where I have enjoyed staying during my last few visits to London. I have also at various times bedded down at the Savoy, The Connaught, The Ritz, The Dorchester and the Hilton Park Lane, so I have a familiarity with the institutions covered.

The reason I’ve been enjoying The May Fair Hotel is its friendly service, its great Green Park location, the modern facilities in its re-decorated and re-furnished rooms under its recent modernization, and such amenities as a 24-hour computer room at no charge. The hotel also serves generous buffet breakfasts attended by a congenial, friendly staff. Morehouse writes much about various aspects, such as the theater in the hotel that is used for movie screenings and other events.

Recently, I found in seeing Clint Eastwood’s film “Hereafter” that the May Fair lobby was used for an important sequence. For a few moments, it was like personally being back there. The May Fair looked great and up-to-date on screen.

Apart from the years in which he visited London staying at select hotels, in researching his book Morehouse spent two weeks of one-night bookings at an assortment of what he regards as London’s finest. That’s a hectic feat.

His general approach is to encompass a hotel’s history as one of the important reasons one might chose it. Take The Ritz. That has long been regarded as a great hotel, as is the case with The Ritz iin Paris. Tea at the Ritz in London has become something of an institution in itself. When my wife and I returned to the Ritz a second time after a few years our same room was awaiting us. Such is the attention one gets.

The Savoy, which has been undergoing renovation, was a favorite of Charlie Chaplin. It has great rooms overlooking the Thames. My wife and I had such a vista on one occasion.

The Dorchester on Park Lane became especially popular when Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton stayed there in the midst of their internationally publicized liaison. Photographers camped outside. I stayed there during one trip to do movie interviews, and later my wife and I also enjoyed the hotel’s comfort. It also has the advantageous Park Lane location.

Morehouse writes reverentially about the Connaught, where my wife and I stayed on one occasion, when there was a danger from Irish rebels. We had brought a cake from New York on the request of a friend, who wanted one from his favorite bakery, and the box had to be opened and examined—gracefully, of course—when we arrived. What I remember most about the Connaught is the incredible service. It seemed that one just had to think about calling for a service employee and he or she was already outside the door.

I stayed at the Hilton Park Lane when it was first built. In the beginning it was scandalous because it was a towering hotel unusual for London. One could see Buckingham Palace from a high floor room, and there was concern about invasion of royalty privacy. I recall one magazine editor who snobbishly looked down his nose at the new giant, but when we made an appointment for drinks, where did he want to go? He was curious about the hotel’s bar with a view. The Hilton rapidly earned its respect as a prime location.

Morehouse discusses such other hotels as Dukes, The Stafford, The Goring, Grosvenor House, the Berkeley ( I interviewed director John Huston there), The Millennium Hotel Mayfair, as well as some of the newcomers reflecting development in various London areas, such as the Four Seasons Canery Wharf.

He approaches the hotel scene as a romantic, enamored of a hotel’s past, the anecdotes associated with it and the famous. Accordingly, the book is filled entertainingly with name-dropping and an array of stories. There is also information about cost, but not in the thorough sense of an ordinary guide. The book is peppered with celebrity photos by Rose Billings.

Morehouse himself has an interesting background, which probably helps explain his fascination with past as well as present. His father, Ward Morehouse, was a famous New York drama critic, and as the writer’s son, he had the early opportunity of spending time with his father at the hotels he frequented in New York and abroad. The fascination continues as Morehouse III pursues his own writing career.

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It is a place where F. Scott Fitzgerald is forever not growing up, memorably thrashing around in the Pulitzer Fountain.” (p. 14)

The Plaza Hotel is undoubtedly one of the quintessential symbols of New York City and it is a place that holds its place in history, but do you know its history? When you take the time to read Inside the Plaza, you will be regaled by an insider, Ward Morehouse III, who actually grew up there. Now isn’t that what we all wanted to do? “…Nor did I perceive myself as some whimsical character out of Kay Thompson’s famous Eloise stories. I was a kid. I thought everybody lived in eighteen-story public palaces with great room service…My mother and father lived at the hotel before I was born, then my father resided there for eleven years with my stepmother, Rebecca Franklin Morehouse. I was forever visiting them.” (p. 15) As you know we have reviewed every Eloise book we know to be in print…thank you Simon and Schuster! You know she is Peachy and she is six…

So, you’ll find out what it would have been like, but not only that. If you are stepping inside The Plaza today for the first time, this book is even more essential because it paints a picture of its dynamic past that we preferred to the current incarnation, though it is hard to have a bad day at The Plaza in any era. It is the only New York City hotel to be both a New York City Landmark and a National Historical Landmark, and you know we love Landmarks and the people of them. Some of the best times we have ever had in New York have been at The Plaza, from the galas to the liquidation sale in 2005 which we went to many times to reviewing the Rose Bar. First off, you should know this is an updated version of this book. We did not review the original. All of our commentary is based on the updated version.

1883 is the year when it all started…and it started as eight stories. Interesting to note that it started with 1,650 chandeliers! It was meant to recreate a French Chateau-everything except The Oak Room, that is, which was meant to be English. Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about The Plaza you’ll discover through these 232 pages, and don’t miss the award page on 233. We absolutely adore the photography and early Plaza advertising included punctuating all of the verbiage, and these illustrations give one such a sense of wonder of what it was like. We would love to step back in time to see what it might have been like, and turning the pages is the best way until time travel is invented. We would die to go to The Grill Room with F. Scott Fitzgerald….sadly it closed soon after the stock market crash of 1929.

So who really lives at The Plaza? By the 1950′s we understand through this book the number of residents went down from 90 percent in 1907 when the hotel opened to 20 percent. Now with all of the condos we hear it is meant to be somewhere in the neighborhood of 50/50, though we could be incorrect-we did not get this figure from this book.

The Plaza has played a major role in American history. In regards to Prohibition, it says on page 70:
“Like everywhere else The Plaza by law was forbidden to sell liquor during Prohibition. ‘But it had a cache of champagne and liquor stored in the basement for discreet clientele who lived in the hotel,’ confesses Wilhelm. ‘Some was carried through a tunnel which ran underneath Fifth Avenue from The Plaza to The Savoy-Plaza. They ferried a lot of stuff back and forth and somewhere down in the third subbasement there’s still the outline of where the tunnel was bricked up on The Plaza side. Over the years parts of the tunnel were demolished. But during Prohibition they actually used that tunnel to cart liquor back and forth and in fact, used it to store liquor.’”

If only the walls could talk. Suite 803 was used by The Great Gatsby movie, starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow.

Want to know what kind of bed William Gillette wanted to sleep in? We certainly did because his castle in Connecticut is something to see. And seriously, we know you’re dying to hear what happened to the fourth half of Cary Grant’s english muffin. Really, you must read this!

“Ernest Hemingway, another intimate of Fitzgerald’s circle, once advised F. Scott, regarding his friend’s future funeral plans, ‘If you really feel blue enough, get yourself insured and I’ll see you can get killed and I’ll write a fine obituary. We can take your liver out and give it to the Princeton Museum, your heart to The Plaza Hotel.’” (p.115)

Our panelists say:

Built in 1907, the Plaza was closed on April 30th 2005 and reopened March 1st 2010. This was done to turn it into condo’s. It is not only a designated NY landmark building but is also a National Landmark. The list of guests who have stayed there reads like a who’s who from Cary Grant, Joe Dimagio, Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minnelli, Madonna, Eddie Murphy, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. The list goes on and on.

This book will appeal to older New Yorkers who can remember it in its hay day. The photography shows a wide variety of photos of people and architecture.

Also some tidbits of gossip—Marie Callas the opera star, lived there free coutesy of Onassis while he was courting Jackie Kennedy.

Younger people who grew up with and enjoy Eloise at the plaza and her portrait hanging there will be astonished to learn about its theft.

Donald Trump also bought the Plaza and made Ivanka the president. The book did leave out that it had a night club on the lower level called upstairs, downstairs for stand-up comedy and the first big star was Joan Rivers.

This book is an excellent read for hotel history buffs and true New Yorkers!

***

The Plaza Hotel. Those three words at once conjure up images of New York glamour at its best. But how much do we really know about this landmark? Well, happily, in Ward Morehouse III’s captivating book, Inside the Plaza, readers are treated to an insider’s view of one of the most famous hotels in the world. Mr. Morehouse spent a good deal of his childhood living at the hotel, and has maintained his love of his childhood home throughout his adult life. In this book, he details the history of the Plaza, from its earliest planning stages, through its renovations, and finally, to the present day. Stories about the wild antics of celebrity residents and guests are seamlessly woven in with stories about the actual history of the building, as well as Mr. Morehouse’s personal experiences there, which makes for an extremely entertaining and fascinating read. I, myself, have been privileged to visit the Plaza on a number of occasions since it re-opened its doors in 2008, and appreciate the care with which Mr. Morehouse approached his subject, and the spot-on way in which he captured the charm and elegance of this storied building. The book gives its an intimate look at the Plaza’s legendary past, and gives us confidence in its exciting future. There is a certain magic about the Plaza, and Mr. Morehouse is able to harness it beautifully in the pages of this book. Also featured are a number of wonderful pictures, from the earliest days of the Plaza through the present. Inside the Plaza is a must-read for any New Yorker, or anyone interested in the glitz and glamour associated with this fabled building!

Whom You Know Highly Recommends

Inside the Plaza: An Intimate Portrait of the Ultimate Hotel! It is an absolute must for anyone interested in the history of America.

***

Since it first opened its doors in October 1907, the Plaza has been the hub of glamour and culture in New York. It is where F. Scott Fitzgerald stayed during the Jazz Age, where Frank Lloyd Wright lived while building the Guggenheim Museum, where the Beatles bivouacked when they invaded America, and where Macaulay Culkin checked in after spending all that time home alone. It’s where Liza Minnelli grew up and where Eloise acted up.

Ward Morehouse III, who himself did some growing up at the Plaza, has collected all its gems and looked into all the nooks, crannies, and dark corners for this revised and updated edition of Inside the Plaza: An Intimate Portrait of the Ultimate Hotel (Applause Books, $27.99). In this edition, Morehouse recounts the hotel’s recent $450 million transformation, with its 181 luxury condominium residences, 282 guest rooms and suites, and landmark public spaces, such as the Oak Room and Oak Bar.

Alfonse Salomone, manager of the Plaza in the 1960s, rightly observed that, “People have, when they leave a hotel, a receipted bill and a memory.” It was the memory part, Salomone urged his employees, that really made the difference.

In Inside the Plaza, Morehouse has captured his memories of the only true storybook castle in America where all are welcome to stay overnight.

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The Plaza: Where one can gaze at the stars over Central Park, or those in the lobby

Whether for vacation, delectation or arm chair fantasizing, “Inside the Plaza”: An Intimate  Portrait of the Ultimate Hotel is an irresistible bon-bon, a must-read.

Note for the uninitiated: The Plaza Hotel, described as “the largest French chateau in the world,” occupies the southwest corner of 59th Street and Fifth Ave., directly across the street from Central Park. A playground for the privileged, it’s the fairytale-like castle where Eloise lives, the rich romp, the royals relax, and the arrivistes/wannabes disport themselves.

It’s where Truman Capote held the fabled “Black and White Ball” for Katharine Graham, where Neil Simon set “Plaza Suite,” and who can forget Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford in the final scene of “The Way We Were”?

This chronicle of a unique Gotham institution is by the estimable Ward Morehouse III. It’s rich in history – to be relished even by those who think they aren’t interested—and awash in familiar names and unfamiliar anecdotes: J. Edgar Hoover, as few have seen him; JFK and Jackie; JFK and Judith Exner; Onassis and Jackie; Onassis and Maria Callas (as only Jackie Susann knew and told, albeit thinly veiled, in her posthumous novel, “Dolores” and now is revealed openly in this tome) and the lavish lifestyles – even by Plaza standards – of visiting Middle Eastern potentates.

In this engagingly written and carefully researched delicacy, Ward has created a mélange of morsels to be savored. It’s an ideal vacation or travel book because no matter where it’s opened, there will be a fascinating vignette that can be understood without having to refer back to anything else. Lost your place? No matter. Open anywhere and enjoy.

While this is first and foremost a fun read, there’s also much that illuminates. The hotel is part of the history of New York — really, in many senses, of the world—and the anecdotes provide a glimpse into the private lives of the literary (F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Dorothy Parker, playwright Ferenc “The Play’s the Thing” and “Liliom” Molnar, Neil Simon, Gilbert Seldes, among others), the legendary (including Gertrude Lawrence, Mary Martin, Ethel Merman, Cary Grant, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward and The Beatles), Powerful pols ( Jimmy Walker and John Lindsay among them) and the notorious (Sam Giancana). Almost a footnote: “Fosse and Niles” in 1950. The “Fosse” is dancer and later to be acclaimed choreographer and director Bob Fosse. “Niles”? Mary Ann Niles, the first Mrs. Fosse! (It was my pleasure to work with “Spooki” Niles in “The Pajama Game” years later, and Bob Fosse attended a performance.)

There are pages of fascinating photos including particularly lovely shots of JFK and Jackie, Marilyn Monroe and Angie Dickinson. Also, of a very young Mia Farrow with her mother, Maureen O’ Sullivan.

One can make a game of trying to identify those in various shots who are not named. In a photograph of the author’s parents, distinguished drama critic Ward Morehouse, Jr., and actress Joan Marlowe, there in profile   is someone apparently animatedly speaking to them, and I wager that someone is movie star Jane Wyman (the first Mrs. Ronald Reagan). The upturned nose is the clue.

There’s no one better qualified to write a biography of a hotel than Ward Morehouse III. He grew up in posh hostelries all over the globe, as his myriad books on the subject attest. He lived at the Plaza first with his parents, then with his father and stepmother.

As a child he got to know the nooks and crannies and revisits them as he guides the reader on a virtual tour. This volume is an updating of his 2001 effort, so there are all manner of new facets to be observed. He got the know the staff of old, and remained in the loop as the newcomers arrived. He apprises us of their functions and how the hotel actually works. The kitchens are particularly interesting, given the five restaurants on the premises.

The author takes us through the changes in ownership and what each wrought. But throughout, it’s the clientele that captivates.

- See more at: http://blacktiemagazine.com/recommended_reading/Inside_thw_Plaza.htm

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The book’s subtitle explains it all – “New York’s Landmark Theatre From Broadway’s Beginnings To Live Television, Jack Paar, and Elvis.”

The history of this fabled New York City building turns out to be quite astonishing. >From its beginning in 1903 as a legitimate theatre to it’s recent restoration to its original glory – The Hudson represents nothing less than a time capsule of the 20th century. It’s first theatrical offering was Cousin Kate starring Ethel Barrymore and the procession of ensuing stars include Douglas Fairbanks, Eva Le Gallienne, Dorothy Gish, Edward G. Robinson, Helen Hayes, Alfred Lunt, Judith Anderson, Louis Armstrong, Barbara Stanwyck, Shirley Booth, Imogene Coca, Lena Horne, Celeste Holm, Boris Karloff, Geraldine Page, Maurice Evans, Ann Baxter, Maureen Stapleton, Jane Fonda, and Laurence Olivier.

In the 50′s and 60′s, when the theatre was used to televise shows hosted by Steve Allen, Kate Smith and Jack Paar, we get a roster of pop music stars including Ella Fitzgerald, Mel Torme, Hazel Scott, Teddy Wilson, Oscar Peterson, and Dizzy Gillespie. Not surprisingly, the reader begins to wonder who didn’t perform at The Hudson.

Tiffany is another name prominently featured in the theatre’s history – thanks to the beautiful glass mosaics which, at one point, were painted and plastered over. Author Moorehouse credits Kwek Leng Beng, owner of the theatre’s parent company Millennium Hotels & Resorts, for restoring The Hudson to its former grandeur.

And what about Elvis, whose name appears in the book’s subtitle? It turns out that Mr. Presley balked at Steve Allen’s suggestion that he sing ‘You Ain’t Nothin’ But A Hound Dog’ to a real live hound dog. He finally relented and gained national attention.

To quote UPI’s cultural critic-at-large, Frederick Winship, ‘No one is more qualified to write a history of Broadway’s landmark Hudson Theatre than Ward Morehouse III, a member of a family identified with the New York theater for generations and a theater columnist and historian in his own right.’

If you love the theatre, actors, TV stars and great architecture, you’ll love this social and historic presentation, written in the lively Morehouse style.

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