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Photo © The Plaza Hotel
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Eloise at the Plaza - 2003 - Eloise is a series of children's books written in 1955 by Kay Thompson and illustrated by Hilary Knight. Thompson and Knight followed up Eloise with four sequels. Eloise is a young girl who lives in the "room on the tippy-top floor" of the Plaza Hotel in New York City with her nanny, her pug dog, Weenie, and her turtle, Skipperdee.
Toting a history as lively as its inspiration, this portrait was painted as a birthday gift by Hilary Knight for Eloise co-creator Kay Thompson in 1956, on the eve of Kay's appearance on Edward R. Murrow's Person to Person on CBS, where she proudly displayed the painting to guest host Jerry Lewis. Shortly thereafter, she loaned the work to the Plaza Hotel where it hung ceremoniously in the lobby as an homage to their most famous (imaginary) resident.The portrait captures the irrepressible spirit of one of the most influential children's book characters in history; was hung in the lobby of the Plaza until it closed for renovations in 2005. The portrait was re-hung in May 2008 after three years in storage.However, on the night of a Junior League Ball at the Plaza, November 1960, it disappeared. As Mr. Knight tells the story, "Kay called me, 'Drunken debutantes did it!' And soon it was all over the news, in the columns, and Walter Cronkite confirmed it on the evening news." The famed portrait of Eloise had been stolen. Despite the press and the hubbub, the portrait failed to reappear. Some years later, Mr. Knight received a call: "The painting had been found in a dumpster, frameless." Once identified as the missing artwork, it was returned to Mr. Knight, who had already replaced the Plaza portrait with a new one: an oil painting that still hangs there today. Mr. Knight rolled up the original and put it in his closet, forgetting about it for the next 50 years, until it was revived for an Eloise exhibition at the New York Historical Society 2017.
culture now
Photo © The Plaza Hotel
site of the Day
Mrs. Patrick Campbell lights a cigarette and brings her dog - 1907 - The Plaza Hotel became associated with celebrities and the wealthy upon its opening, surpassing the original Waldorf Astoria in that respect. The Palm Court (then the tea room), with its mostly female guest list, was particularly frequented. Weeks after the hotel's 1907 opening, actress Mrs Patrick Campbell attempted to smoke there, and the resulting controversy boosted the Plaza's stature.The British star known to her fans as “Mrs. Pat” sparked controversy while staying at The Plaza. After ordering dinner she lit up a perfumed Egyptian cigarette and proceeded to smoke it. This occurred in an age when such a thing was unheard-of, and soon the headwaiter appeared and insisted Mrs. Campbell put out the cigarette. She replied, “My good man, I understand this is a free country. I shall do nothing to change it.” The press got wind of the story and a debate started over the ills of smoking. Soon smoking was banned in New York City subways, a law which was said to have come about as a result of this incident.She reportedly received her inseparable canine companion, Pinky Panky Poo in 1890 from Leopold II, the King of the Belgians, who reigned from December 1865 to December 1909.
For her second U.S. tour, Mrs. Patrick Campbell had made arrangements to stay at the brand-new Plaza Hotel. Her schedule included lead roles in several plays, including “The Second Mrs. Tanqueray,” “The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith,” and “Hedda Gabler.” But when the family arrived there that afternoon (with several servants and about 100 trunks in tow), they were shocked to discover that the hotel did not allow dogs.The New York Dramatic Mirror had described the dog as having “bright, black, beady eyes; hair that in a less distinguished dog would be called weedy, and paws like overgrown spiders` legs.” One New York State newspaper even wrote an ode to Pinky, calling him a “high-bred puplet” and “sniffy little beast from kennels of a king.”Fred Sterry realized that rejecting Pinky Panky Poo would cause a public relations nightmare for the Plaza Hotel, so he decided right on the spot to allow small pets in the hotel. Mrs. Pat had to sign an agreement making her responsible for the dog`s good conduct. Poor Pinky was also relegated to either the maids` or baggage elevators. Later, according to The New York Times, the doggie checkroom was located in the main corridor of the hotel. But on that day in 1907, Pandora`s Box was opened, and every woman in Manhattan felt entitled to treat her own pup to an afternoon or longer stay at the Plaza Hotel.
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