Chelsea Hotel | The New York Observer

Manager Wanted; Historic Hotel; Masochist Preferred

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:19:45 -0500

“I just had enough,” said a beleaguered Andrew Tilley, who resigned last week as general manager of the Chelsea Hotel after barely seven months on the job. “I find the whole thing absolutely disgusting.”

Mr. Tilley, 47, is the second consecutive manager to hurriedly check out of the Chelsea after only a brief stint behind its famous front desk. His immediate predecessor, the Richard Born and Ira Drukier–led outfit...

Cheers, Tears and Ongoing Tensions at the Chelsea Hotel

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 15:28:55 -0400

Residents of the illustrious-yet-embattled Chelsea Hotel will get some face time with new manager Andrew Tilley over drinks at El Quijote tonight -- including some of the tenants that Mr. Tilley and the hotel's owners have been trying to evict in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, tonight, in the hotel's grand ballroom, calling hours are scheduled for Chelsea inhabitant Angela O'Conner, 46, who was found dead late last week in a room on the ninth floor, after...

Stonewall Rebellion Veteran Honored at the Chelsea

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 13:20:01 -0400

Gay-rights activist Storme DeLarverie -- who famously punched a cop during the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion -- will be honored tonight during an exhibit of artworks at the famously arty Chelsea Hotel, where Ms. DeLarverie also resides.

"The Stonewall Veterans Association is bringing the blue Cadillac for Storme," said event organizer and abstract painter Susan Olmetti, referring to the convertible Ms. DeLarverie often commandeers for the city's annual Gay Pride Parade.

The event, which begins at...

Famous Chelsea Hotel Hires Noted Toilet Guru

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:49:05 -0400

It's potty time at the embattled Chelsea Hotel, where Arnold Tamasar has been hired as the new director of operations, replacing the much maligned former manager, Glennon Travis.

Chelsea Hotel gossip site Living With Legends notes that Mr. Tamasar is the former assistant director of housekeeping and style at the W New York Times Square Hotel, where he earned accolades from toilet tissue giant Kimberly-Clark for maintaining restrooms with the highest standards of...

Big Apple Beer-Gogglers Eye Dubai

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 14:05:59 -0400

Developers like Donald Trump and chocolatiers like Alison Nelson aren't the only ones eyeballing real estate in Dubai.

New York magazine reports that at least two Manhattan nightlife impressarios, Pink Elephant owner Josh Kaiser and Star Lounge proprietor Charles Ferri, are both planning to open new posh boites in the emirate.

In fact, I spoke with Mr. Ferri back in May about his Middle Eastern aspirations:

"Dubai is super important right now," he said. "We're looking to...

A Chelsea Morning In Atlantic City

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:48:58 -0400

Today marked the ceremonial ribbon-cutting of the hugely hyped Chelsea hotel in Atlantic City.

Hotelier Curtis Bashaw recently sat down with The Observer to discuss the $110 million project, which aims to lure more young, hip New Yorkers to South Jersey's gritty gaming town and otherwise restore some of the ancient seaside destination's long-lost glamour.

"We do a lot of real estate projects -- we've done ground-up buildings in the city and all sorts of other...

A Gamble on Atlantic City

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:46:11 -0400

Location: How did you first get into the hotel business?

Mr. Bashaw: When I got out of college, I bought a building in Cape May, N.J., and renovated it into a hotel in 1989, called the Virginia. … And then we bought another one called Commerce Hall, which we opened in 2002; 110 rooms, built in 1879, really amazing building.

Sounds...

Hard Rock Guy Takes Over at The Chelsea

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 09:32:26 -0400

The esteemed and embattled Chelsea Hotel has yet another new manager.

Hotel blog Living With Legends has the scoop that former Hard Rock Hotel boss Andrew Tilley is taking over today, becoming the hallowed Bohemian enclave's third manager in just over a year.

Mr. Tilley replaces former corporate manager BD NY Hotels, the Richard Born and Ira Drukier-led outfit fired this past April after just 10 tumultous months in charge.

The previous manager, legendary hotelier Stanley Bard,...

The Chelsea, Now Hiring

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 17:08:25 -0400

Nightclub impresario Charles Ferri already runs one bar in the basement of the legendary Chelsea Hotel: His swanky Star Lounge, which opened in 2007, is where modern-day would-be Dennis Hoppers like Josh Hartnett and Zach Braff come to add their contributions to the long list of artistic achievements at the Chelsea, often involving rousing karaoke numbers.

Now, Mr. Ferri is planning another one at ground level: The Chelsea Hotel Legends Cafe...

Elder Strikes Back at the Chelsea Hotel

Wed, 14 May 2008 10:00:25 -0400

This reporter was witness to some tense moments at the Chelsea Hotel over the weekend, including a verbal confrontation (pictured above) at the front desk between hotel vice president David Elder and hotel tenant Arthur Nash.

No punches were thrown, but the incident clearly spooked Mr. Elder. In recent days, a new security detail has been patrolling the hotel’s lobby and hallways. The hulking guys in suits have been particularly attentive to Mr. Nash.

The...

Life and Death At the Chelsea

Tue, 06 May 2008 19:02:24 -0400

Jann Paxton is something of an enigma around Manhattan’s most mythical inn, the Chelsea Hotel on West 23rd Street.

“I’ve been told that people call me ‘the ghost of the Chelsea,’” he said, “because I’m never seen. I’m kind of a hermit. … I almost never leave my bedroom—let alone the apartment.”

And yet, he may soon have to: On May 12, the 46-year-old Norfolk, Va., native is expected...

Chelsea Hotel Celebrates History; Future Uncertain

Mon, 05 May 2008 11:36:35 -0400

It's been years since the famous Chelsea Hotel opened up its Grand Ballroom. On Friday, the doors will finally be unlocked for an exhibit of more than 100 photographs taken at or inspired by the 125-year-old artistic enclave.

The show, curated by Chelsea resident and photographer Linda Troeller with the help of hotel co-owner (and rumored interim manager) David Elder, opens May 9 and runs through Sunday, May 11, from noon to 6 p.m.

The...

Ousted Chelsea Hotel Managers File for Arbitration

Thu, 01 May 2008 13:09:32 -0400

BD NY Hotels, the Richard Born and Ira Drukier-led outfit hired last year to replace eccentric longtime Chelsea Hotel manager Stanley Bard, has filed for arbitration after being fired by the hotel's governing board for "willful misconduct."

The controversial management team, which installed a rookie, 26-year-old Glennon Travis in the place of the veteran manager, Mr. Bard, has claimed in court papers that it has "fully performed its obligations" under a three-year contract, signed last...

More Shakeups at Chelsea Hotel

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:58:47 -0400

Rumors have been circulating for days about the looming departure of Glennon Travis, controversial manager of the embattled Chelsea Hotel.

Now, the Chelsea Hotel gossip site, Living With Legends, is suggesting that Mr. Travis' corporate higher-ups at BD Hotels have been sacked, as well.

The Observer just sent an email to hotel president Marlene Krauss' publicist at Rubenstein Communications to get some type of confirmation -- only to find out that Rubenstein doesn't work...

Stanley Bard Speaks! New Management 'Has No Idea What The Chelsea Hotel Is About'

Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:03:49 -0400

Legendary hotelier Stanley Bard doesn't hang out in the lobby of his beloved Chelsea Hotel as often as he used to.

But, two weeks ago, the hotel's infamously ousted manager made a rare appearance, joining the director Milos Forman (himself a former hotel resident) for an on-camera interview smack-dab in the middle of the lobby.

"The new management comes running out of the back and is like, 'You can’t shoot that here!'" said the...

Deposed Chelsea Hotel Manager Emerges From Exile (Via Video)

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 13:22:39 -0400

Legendary hotelier Stanley Bard will deliver a videotaped "message of hope" tonight at the Museum of the City of New York.

Hear what the charismatic former manager of the embattled Chelsea Hotel has been up to since his controversial ouster last summer, what he thinks about the new management and ongoing eviction proceedings, as well as his vision for the future of the iconic 125-year-old lodge, of which he remains the majority owner.

Mr. Bard's...

Watch Your Necks!

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 16:31:28 -0400

I'VE COME TO SUCK YOUR WALLET! "The vampires of the second gilded age are upon us, sucking the life out of the city and discarding the poor and artistic to make way for their steel and glass crypts, I mean condos."

A commenter regarding Chris Shott's update on the Chelsea Hotel. ...

Nation's 'Weirdest Tackle Shop' Resurfaces Near Macy's

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 13:52:15 -0500

The first retail casualty of the embattled Chelsea Hotel's 2007 managerial coup d'etat has reopened on West 36th Street, near Macy's, according to British newspaper The Independent [via Living With Legends]:

For 44 years, Capitol Fishing Tackle lived next to the notorious Chelsea Hotel....

'Field and Stream' called Capitol "the weirdest tackle shop in America", with some justification. Only some of its clients, you see, were fishers. So the staff might sell a length of...

Another New Hip Hotel, Another Tenant Rebellion

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 10:34:21 -0500

New York reported this week that the old Hotel Breslin on Broadway would soon become an East Coast version of "Seattle's hipster hostelry," Ace Hotel:

It will be redesigned by the architects that de-Starcked the Royalton, Roman and Williams, and turned into something that should make one of the last somewhat-desolate parts of Manhattan groovy. Ace is bringing in Rudy’s Barber Shop (like the one in the downtown L.A. Standard) and an outlet of the...

Chelsea Hotel Manager Quits MySpace

Tue, 27 Nov 2007 14:33:51 -0500

So much for the Chelsea Hotel's resident "eurotrash beachbum."

Glennon Travis, the new director of operations for the embattled bohemian enclave, whom The Observer profiled last week, has scrapped his revealing MySpace page following the article's publication.

Nevermind that part about "[d]espite the teasing, Mr. Travis has yet to remove or even alter his MySpace presence."

Yet the new guy continues to provide more juicy gossip for writer Ed Hamilton's blog about hotel life, Living With...

Bizarro Bard Goes Memo Mad At Chelsea Hotel

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 18:52:56 -0500

After nabbing managerial control of the hallowed Chelsea Hotel this past summer, luxury lodging moguls Richard Born and Ira Drukier promised a glorious rebirth of the ancient inn on West 23rd Street.

No wonder, then, that they’ve installed a baby dictator behind the front desk.

Fresh-faced Glennon Travis, 26, currently presides over day-to-day operations of the old bohemian enclave, following esteemed septuagenarian manager Stanley Bard’s highly publicized, highly controversial ouster in June.

...

Phantom Electrician Haunts Star Lounge, Snubs Bottle Service

Tue, 30 Oct 2007 11:13:08 -0400

It's often said that the ghost of Sid Vicious hangs out around the first-floor elevator at the Chelsea Hotel. Current resident Ed Hamilton may have also spotted the spectre of Thomas Wolfe.

Today's Daily News adds a new twist to the hotel's haunted lore:

Swanky Star Lounge, located in the hotel's basement, has lately seen a rash of strange events, including an unexplained power outage.

After sawing through the ceiling, workers reached a...

Stanley Bard Ousted From History

Fri, 26 Oct 2007 09:08:47 -0400

The new managers of the historic Chelsea Hotel have launched a revamped Web site for reservations and information about the iconic lodge on West 23rd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues.

The "History" section drops the usual references to famous hotel inhabitants Dylan Thomas and Sid Vicious but makes no mention of the old manager, Stanley Bard, whose ouster after nearly 50 years stirred up so much controversy this year.

"It’s hard to deny that,...

Bohemians at Barnes & Noble: Trippy Turnout for Chelsea Hotel Book

Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:30:31 -0400

Artsy denizens of the embattled Chelsea Hotel turned out en masse to the not-so-bohemian Barnes & Noble on Sixth Avenue and 21st Street last night, as fellow hotel inhabitant Ed Hamilton read passages from his new book, Legends of the Chelsea Hotel.

"It's good he decided to dress up," one attendee joked as Mr. Hamilton took the podium dressed in jeans, a button-up shirt, and a blue baseball cap bearing the logo of a recent...

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 19:30:13 -0400

Some retail tenants of the embattled Chelsea Hotel refuse to publicly discuss their uncertain futures following this summer’s contentious management shake-up, for fear of hastening their own rumored exits.

Hairstylist April Barton isn’t one of them.

“There’s a lot of panic in the hotel,” the reputable scissor-slinger told The Observer. “I almost jumped on that boat. Then I took a step back and said, ‘Whatever the changes are, I’m going...

The Afternoon Wrap: Friday

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 14:19:45 -0400

Horrifyingly, the basement lounge at the Chelsea Hotel (where Leonard Cohen remembers you well) has been transformed into "an offbeat retreat." Designer Richardson Sadeki even had the gall to drop in some dead-Sex Pistols references. [Interior Design] After taking seven bad hits of L.S.D., Robert Scarano reimagines Stuy Town as a post-apocalyptic, post-Blade Runner wasteland [above]. [NY Post, via Curbed] Manhattan Prez Scott Stringer organized a city-wide preservation love-train. "It was great to have Uptown talking...

They All Live in City Boxes, But They’re Not All the Same

Sun, 18 Feb 2007 19:00:00 -0500

High Rise Low Down is a love letter to Manhattan’s better buildings, and, like most love letters, it’s sappy in parts, repetitive, and ends with rosy hopes for the future. It dishes, though, and that’s what New York real-estate voyeurs crave. Forget the architecture; tell us who did what with whom in which addresses that few on Earth could afford. Drama! Money! Power! Money! Now! Others have trodden this ground (The Sky’s the Limit,...

Venice in June

Sun, 06 Jun 2004 20:00:00 -0400

On a recent evening Venice Adrien, wearing a white terry-cloth pant suit, welcomed me into her apartment at the Chelsea Hotel, where she's been living for 14 years.

"It's a good place to live and it's a good place to hide," she said, as her Italian greyhound, Geist, sniffed me. She offered me a Tab and then poured me a glass of Veuve Cliquot. The door to her balcony overlooking 23rd Street let in a...

Power Punk: Carson Kressley

Sun, 14 Dec 2003 19:00:00 -0500

Queen of the Queer Eyes; the blond; Bravo!

On July 14, five nattily dressed fellows walked down the steps to the Chelsea Hotel's subterranean bar, Serena, where they were being fêted for the premiere of their new show, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy , on the Bravo cable network. Clad in black suits with brightly colored shirts peeking through, the nascently famous "Fab Five" posed for the cameras of Access Hollywood , cocking their...

Eight Day Week

Sun, 18 May 2003 20:00:00 -0400

Wednesday 14th

We're knee-deep in May, and that means drag queens, your skin going blotchy because of finicky weather, nubile editorial assistants pondering fake 'n' bake (answer: not till June, girls) and, as every schoolboy knows , 396 years ago today, the Brits sailed into Jamestown wearing puffy blouses , hoping they could cadge a place to stay and some free food and booze from naïve Americans. (Some things never...

We're Tough as Boots: Ode to Unscathed Broads

Sun, 28 Oct 2001 19:00:00 -0500

We're tough as old boots, you and me. But this isn't news.The survival instinct has always been the driving force behind the collective New

York psyche. Our city is peopled by unstoppable Type A's, all throbbing with passion, ambition and creativity. Anyone who tries to rain on our parade will be beaten into submission with our unique brand of chutzpah, bravery, purses and street smarts. There's a bit of Leona Helmsley in all of us....

Chef Leaves Las Vegas, Brings Food With Flair

Sun, 16 Jul 2000 20:00:00 -0400

Las Vegas is not a town I ever expected would become famous for its restaurants. Last time I was there, years ago, I went into a drugstore to buy some postcards to send home. They included pictures of mushroom clouds with a greeting underneath that read: "Welcome to Nevada, the Atomic State!" I haven't been back since.

But that was before celebrity chefs started heading down there and opening places bearing their names in the...