The Carlyle’s Star Turn (Sort Of) In “Tár”

Ever since Week-End at the Waldorf, a remake of 1932’s Grand Hotel that danced across theater screens in 1945, New York City hotels have played silent but memorable supporting roles in dozens of movies. Some, like Godfather III (filmed at the Waldorf Astoria), Scent of a Woman (filmed at the Waldorf and the Plaza) and Quiz Show (filmed at The Roosevelt), have scooped up Academy Awards or nominations.

This year, one New York City hotel got an Oscar nod, sort of. Though Tár didn’t take home any of the six awards it was nominated for, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress, it did offer hotel buffs a glimpse of what appears to be Carlyle Hotel. Read more

The Surprising Way Hotels Facilitated The Art of Edward Hopper

Edward Hopper’s lifelong obsession with New York City is well known as is his fascination with urban landscapes, peering into private rooms and the loneliness and isolation a teeming metropolis can breed.

Hotels embody all of the above, so it’s surprising in a way that he didn’t draw inspiration from them as he did from apartment buildings, restaurants and theaters.

But hotels facilitated a small but intriguing slice of the celebrated 20th-century artist’s work, as the Edward Hopper’s New York, on view at the Whitney Museum through March 5, shows. They helped him pay his bills and captured his interest early in his career, if only for mercenary reasons. And that’s more than enough to make this satisfying exhibition catnip for art-loving hotel geeks.  Read more