Millennium Biltmore Hotel

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The Millennium Biltmore Hotel (former name: Los Angeles Biltmore Hotel ) is a luxury hotel in Los Angeles , California , USA . The hotel is part of the Biltmore Hotel Group and is located on Pershing Square in Downtown Los Angeles at 506 South Grand Avenue. When it opened in 1923, it was the largest hotel west of Chicago , Illinois in the United States. Since 1969 it has been one of the historical cultural monuments of the city of Los Angeles. It has been operated by Millennium & Copthorne since 2009.

Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles - Galleria

prehistory

The hotel was designed by the architectural firm Schultze & Weaver in the Spanish-Italian Renaissance style, mixed with Mediterranean and Beaux Arts architecture influences, which are a reference to the Castilian heritage of the city of Los Angeles. The design of the "Biltmore Angel" is one of the city's landmarks. A thick steel and concrete frame surrounds the structure, which extends over several floors. The interiors of the hotel are decorated with frescoes and wall paintings , carvings, marble fountains and columns, a solid wood beam ceiling, walls paneled with oak and travertine , lead crystal chandeliers and many other treasures. Special attention should also be paid to the frescoes in the main Galleria and the Crystal Ballroom by the Italian artist Giovanni Smeraldi, who is also known for his work in the Vatican and the White House .

Events

The Los Angeles Biltmore is the early home of the Academy Awards. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was founded there at a lunchtime banquet in the Crystal Ballroom in May 1927. Louis B. Mayer and his guests met at the Biltmore to discuss their plans to start the new organization and how to present it. Rumor has it that MGM Art Director Cedric Gibbons sketched an Oscar statue on a linen napkin from Biltmore . Eight Oscar ceremonies then took place at the Los Angeles Biltmore:

  • First on November 10, 1931
  • The 1935 , 1936 , 1937 , 1938 and 1939 Academy Awards were also held at the Biltmore .
  • In 1941 and 1942 , the last Oscar awards were held in the hotel. In 1977, Bob Hope held a banquet to mark the founding of the academy in the room where it was founded 50 years ago.

In the immediate vicinity of the hotel was the Biltmore Theater, where famous people such as Katharine Hepburn , Henry Fonda and Mae West performed until it closed in 1967 . In 1929 the Graf Zeppelin airship rose above the hotel, sponsored by the newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst . During the Second World War , the Biltmore served the military as a rest and recreation facility. On the second floor, cots were also set up for the military personnel who could vacation with the family there.

In 1952, yoga master and author Paramahansa Yogananda gave a speech at the hotel in honor of the Indian ambassador Binay Ranjan Sen , during which he suffered a fatal heart attack. In 1960, John F. Kennedy gave his acceptance speech to fellow party members at the Los Angeles Biltmore Hotel. His campaign headquarters were also located there. The Beatles also visited the hotel during their US tour and rented the presidential suite. The Biltmore served as the headquarters for members of the International Olympic Committee during the 1984 Summer Olympics . In 1988 the Duke and Duchess of York attended a Gala by Armand Hammer at the Biltmore. Grammy Award winners also met at the Biltmore more often after the events.

Film and television recordings and music videos

The hotel has also served as a backdrop for many films and TV shows, including the films A Star Rises , Vertigo - From the Realm of the Dead , Frankie and his cronies , The Mad Professor , Chinatown , Splash - A Virgin on the Hook , Beverly Hills Cop - I'll definitely solve the case , True Lies - True Lies , Ghostbusters - The Ghostbusters , Dave , Independence Day , Heartbreakers - Warning: Sharp curves! , Blow , The Fabulous Baker Boys , Bugsy , In the Line of Fire - The Second Chance , Daredevil , Spider-Man or Fight Club .

Columbo , Starsky & Hutch , Charlie's Angels , Kojak - Mission in Manhattan , Beverly Hills, 90210 , Emergency Room - The Emergency Room , Ally McBeal or 24 are just a few of the television productions for which the Biltmore also recorded.

Music videos include productions by: Janet Jackson : Son of a Gun (I Betcha Think This Song Is About You) , Britney Spears : Overprotected or Simple Plan : Shut Up! (Simple Plan song) .

Web links

Commons : Millennium Biltmore Hotel  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Historic Biltmore Hotel Up for Sale at articles.latimes.com (English). Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  2. a b c 10 Secrets of Los Angeles's Historic Millennium Biltmore Hotel at untappedcities.com (English). Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  3. ^ Graf Zeppelin (LZ-127) at wingnet.org. (English). Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  4. Airships: The Hindenburg and other Zeppelins at airships.net (English). Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  5. a b Biltmore Filming History at millenniumhotels.com (English). Retrieved February 3, 2014.

Coordinates: 34 ° 2 ′ 59 ″  N , 118 ° 15 ′ 15 ″  W.