After fall into disrepair and undergoing serious renovation since closing its doors in 2011 , New York City ’s notoriousHotel Chelseais finally reopening ( particular “ grueling hat ” rates are currently uncommitted from $ 375 a Nox if you want to take a peek before the prescribed grand reopen this summertime ) . invitee can expect shiny fresh amenities like a French - style bistro , a swank new Lobby Bar , a sumptuousness event quad prognosticate the Bard Room ( make forStanley Bard , the hotel ’s former carbon monoxide - proprietor and longtime manager ) , and a rooftop fitness center and spa . El Quijote , an update version of the hotel ’s iconic 1930s restaurant , is now open , serving up Spanish - inspired food and cocktails .
Since its original opening move in 1884 , Hotel Chelsea has made news for everything from its intriguing famous person encounters , appearances in democratic books and flick , and for past outcome that can only be described as downright macabre . Here ’s a aspect at some of the most interesting facts about the legendary Manhattan landmark .
1. It’s one of the most haunted hotels in New York City.
Hotel Chelsea is constantly listed as one of the most haunted building in New York City , and for upright reason . TheLiving with legend : Chelsea Hotel Blogkeeps tab on apparitional encounters throughout the holding , includingThe Sopranosstar Michael Imperioli ’s brush with Mary , aTitanicsurvivor who perish by suicide in her room after hearing her hubby had perished ; she is often seen checking her appearance in mirrors . Another lingering spirit , Larry the Hipster Ghost , is a bigmouthed type known for interrupting other ghosts as they attempt to tell their stories to visiting mediums , bestow his sempiternal flow of wiseness on whoever will take heed .
2. A number of strange deaths have occurred at the hotel.
Perhaps the understanding the Hotel Chelsea is so haunted is due to the amount of outlandish fatality that have hap here over the yr . Cymric poet Dylan Thomas famously die in room 205 after saying he had consumed 18 barb of whiskey ( his deathwas in reality caused bybrain swelling due to pneumonia ) , while Nancy Spungen was infamously stabbed to death bySid Viciousof the Sex Pistols in elbow room 100 ( he die there four month later of a drug overdose ) .
3. Many celebrities have called Hotel Chelsea home.
Oftend referred to as “ The Last Bohemian Haven , ” the inclination of celebrities who have called the Hotel Chelsea home is long and admit instrumentalist — Bob Dylan , Bette Midler , Jim Morrison , Patti Smith , Madonna , Rufus Wainwright , the members of Pink Floyd , andJimi James Marshall Hendrix , among others — as well as creative person such asAndy WarholandJackson Pollock . Literary luminaries includingMark Twain , Tennessee Williams , Allen Ginsberg , Charles Bukowski , Jean Paul Sartre , Thomas Wolfe , Dylan Thomas , and O. Henry all took up abidance in the hotel over the years as well . It ’s whereJanis JoplinandLeonard Cohenconducted their affair ; Arthur Miller lived there after his union toMarylin Monroe ; Sir Arthur C. Clarke indite the2001 : A Space Odysseyscreenplay within the hotel ’s wall ; andJack Kerouacis said to have crank up out his Beatnik masterpieceOn the Roadin three week while hold up there .
4. Jimi Hendrix was once mistaken as a member of the hotel’s staff.
According to Hotel Chelsea lore , legendary guitaristJimi Hendrix — a longtime resident — was once circumstantially err for a bellhop by an elderly female Edgar Guest who fail to recognise him . Hendrix , ever the gentleman ( and apparently amuse by the mixup ) gracefully bind , and sway the woman ’s baggage up to her room .
5. It used to be the go-to place for orgies.
One of the things Hotel Chelsea was most known for was its lack of formula and complete disregard for inhibition among guests and resident physician likewise . Nothing was considered remotely shameful here , so folks clump to this place with wild abandon . During the 1970s , sex worker frequented the first storey , whilefamed sex party queenMs . Palagia hosted her monthlyOne Leg Upgathering there for more than a decade , ask for celebrity guests , house physician , and even the hotel ’s director to join in the erotic sport . They only stopped fall out there in 2011,after new managementtook over .
6. Hotel Chelsea has appeared in books, movies, and music videos.
Over the years , Hotel Chelsea ’s coming into court became famous in its own right . Madonna conducted her scandalous - at - the - time photoshoot for her bookSexin way 822 in 1992 , after living there in the eighties . Portions of Andy Warhol ’s filmChelsea Girlswere filmed within the hotel ’s sacred halls , and it serve as the background for Bon Jovi ’s medicine video for “ Midnight in Chelsea . ” The Isaac Bashevis Singer - songwriter can be seen strumming his guitar out front and from the windowpane of one of the rooms . The prop also appear in the films9½ Weeks , The Interpreter , House of D , andHotel Chelsea , among innumerous other titles .
7. Eccentric tenants have kept interesting pets at the hotel.
In add-on to more typical pets like bozo and dogs , one renter in particular was know for keeping an array of interesting fauna in his Hotel Chelsea apartment . George Kleinsinger , an American composer have sex for his 1940s children ’s vocal , “ Tubby the Tuba , ” reportedly had several turtle , a rapscallion , a prized Patagonian lounge lizard , and Snake River , which were know to hunt cockroaches in the hotel ’s stairwell .
8.Dreaming Walls, a new documentary, sheds light on the hotel’s intriguing past.
If you ’re concerned in learn more about the historied history of the Hotel Chelsea as well as its current residents ’ fight to restore the building to its former glory , do n’t missDreaming Walls : Inside the Chelsea Hotel , a novel docudrama that premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2022 . shoot amid the 9th year of the attribute ’s drastic renovations , the film follow several residents as they prepare for the nameless , looking back on the belongings ’s retort - culture past and the enumeration it face under Modern possession and the beckoning call of commercialism .
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