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The La Quinta Resort is where legendary director Frank Capra is said to have penned the screenplay for his Christmas classic It’s a Wonderful Life. Watch my latest reel to learn all about it! Fun fact – according to Reality Steve, the Golden Bachelor is set to tie the knot on the premises in January.
Noise is a real trigger for me. I don’t know why, but loud sounds, namely of the musical variety, bother me to the extreme! I can’t think of anything that turns me off more, in fact, especially when I’m at a hotel. So I was thoroughly disappointed walking into LINE LA back in July 2015 only to discover techno music blaring from the lobby speakers. I could hardly hear myself think! The disappointment escalated as we made our way to Commissary, the lodging’s gorgeous former restaurant, and realized that the adjacent pool had been transformed into a weekend discotheque! As I wrote to my friend Michael (whom you may remember from his many fabulous guest posts and who vacationed at the hotel several months prior), “We would have needed noise-canceling headphones just to eat lunch!” Needless to say, we did not dine on the premises, nor did I get any photos of the place. I regretted that move last week when I spotted Commissary while scanning through the pilot episode of The L Word: Generation Q for my write-up on the InterContinental Downtown Los Angeles. Fortunately, Michael saved the day by kindly sharing the many images he took during his stay at the LINE for this post. Thank you, Michael!
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LINE LA started life as the Hyatt Wilshire in 1964.
The 12-story hotel, which originally encompassed 396 rooms, was designed in the Brutalist style by the Daniel, Mann, Johnson & Mendenhall architecture firm.
Boasting fabulous mid-century detailing, the exterior of the steel and glass structure looks like a wall of old-time televisions stacked on top of each other.
In December 1991, the Hyatt Wilshire was purchased by the South Korean-based Koreana Hotel company and renamed the Wilshire Plaza Hotel. You can check out some photos of what it looked like during that era here. It’s quite a difference from the current concrete-on-concrete-on-concrete aesthetic.
The lodging changed hands once again in 2012 when it was snapped up by the Sydell Group, the hospitality team behind The Saguaro Palm Springs. The company collaborated with chef Roy Choi, nightlife impresarios Mark and Johnny Houston, and interior designer Sean Knibb on a major overhaul of the site. The result is an atmosphere that is both highly modernized and minimalistic and in keeping with the property’s Brutalist origins.
LINE LA opened its doors in January 2014 boasting 388 rooms (each with floor-to-ceiling windows), 2 restaurants, a café, 2 nightclubs, a 24-hour fitness studio, a pool, and 12,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space.
The accommodations are tasteful, if not a bit odd. As Michael commented when he emailed me the photos, “I’m still haunted by that cement room with the crooked lamp.”
One area of the hotel that is right up both my and Michael’s alley is the poolside restaurant, now named Openaire (though it was still operating as Commissary during Michael’s 2015 stay).
The gorgeous, light-filled eatery, which is situated inside of a greenhouse next to the pool, was the brainchild of Choi.
With a glass ceiling and walls, hanging topiaries and a plethora of natural light, it is easily one of the prettiest restaurants in all of L.A.
And one of its most unconventional! As the menu states, “There are no description words. I know, I know. Don’t freak out. Trust the pictures. And choose your own adventure. This is the experience. Point and build. And have a great time.” Though an unusual culinary concept, Michael thoroughly enjoyed it.
In fact, he said dining there was the highlight of his stay! (That’s his Shrimp Po’boy lunch pictured below.)
Choi severed connections with the LINE in June 2018 at which time two-star Michelin Chef Josiah Citrin took over operation of Commissary, transforming it into Openaire.
The eatery definitely has a more upscale vibe now, with mirrored tables, tailored chairs, and a marble-capped bar, as you can see here, but it remains just as gorgeous as ever. As such, it’s no shock that it made its way to the screen.
In the premiere episode of The L Word: Generation Q titled “Let’s Do It Again,” which aired in 2019, Bette Porter (Jennifer Beals), Shane McCutcheon (Katherine Moennig), and Alice Pieszecki (Leisha Hailey) brunch at Openaire.
Thanks to Michael I learned that, way back in 1980, the Hyatt Wilshire popped up in the background of the Season 2 episode of Hart to Hart titled “What Murder?”
Issa Dee (Issa Rae) and Molly Carter (Yvonne Orji) dine at Commissary in the Season 1 episode of Insecure titled “Messy as F*ck,” which aired in 2016.
Besides filming, the hotel has another claim to fame! It was there that George Steinbrenner got into an elevator fight with two Dodger fans back in 1981, causing him to wind up with a bump on his head, a swollen lip, and a mangled left hand.
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Huge THANK YOU to my friend/guest poster extraordinaire Michael for providing the photos that appear in this post! 
Until next time, Happy Stalking!
Stalk It: LINE LA, from the pilot episode of The L Word: Generation Q, is located at 3515 Wilshire Boulevard in Koreatown. You can visit the property’s official website here.
Aside from flying, there is little I am afraid of. Spiders? Nope. Public speaking? Not even a lick! Heights? Not typically. But when the Grim Cheaper and I visited the new InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown inside Wilshire Grand Center, which stands at 1,100 feet, I almost had a panic attack! I am not sure why, but as soon as we stepped into the elevator and the GC pressed the 70th-floor button to head to the hotel’s sky lobby, my heart started fluttering and instinct had me running back out into the foyer before the doors could close. I finally got myself together and made it up to the building’s top (quite quickly, I might add – the elevators travel at 1,600 feet per minute!), but I never felt fully comfortable while there. In fact, my heart rate didn’t return to normal until my feet were firmly planted back on terra firma. I am sure glad I braved it, though, because not only is the hotel stunning, but it later popped up on The Morning Show!
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Construction on Wilshire Grand Center, which replaced the Wilshire Grand Hotel, began on February 15, 2014.
The Korean Air-backed metamodernist tower was designed by the AC Martin architecture firm. I had the pleasure of interviewing CEO and Chairman Chris Martin about the building for this 2015 Los Angeles magazine article and even got to tour the site mid-construction, both of which were highlights of my stalking career. That’s me perched atop what was then the property’s highest floor.
As I stated in the L.A. mag article, Wilshire Grand’s design was inspired by the California landscape, particularly Half Dome and Yosemite’s Merced River. Perhaps the most dramatic element of the building is the 240-by-60 foot skylight that hangs over the main entrance, which Martin dubbed a “river of glass.”
It truly does look like a wave cresting over the front doors.
Capped by a glass sail, Wilshire Grand is the only L.A. skyscraper sans a flat roof. Prior to its construction, all city buildings over 75 feet were required to have helicopter landing pads and, therefore, flat tops. Thanks to its plethora of fire safety measures which far exceed code requirements, though, the Grand was granted permission to instead have a small landing “platform,” allowing for a unique curved roofline. It definitely sets the place apart from the other structures in the skyline.
Officially, Wilshire Grand is L.A.’s tallest building, as well as the tallest edifice West of the Mississippi, though that is a point of contention among many as the distinction is only met thanks to its 294-foot spire. Runner-up U.S. Bank Tower, which stands at 1,018 feet, also dwarfs it due to its location atop Bunker Hill (as you can see here), further complicating the matter. But whether you think Wilshire Grand is deserving of the superlative or not, there’s no denying the tower is spectacular!
The mixed-use property, which is comprised of offices, retail space and the InterContinental, opened to the public on June 23rd, 2017. The 900-room hotel makes up the building’s upper 43 floors.
One of its most unique elements is its lobby, which can’t be found at street level, but all the way up on floor 70!
It’s a pretty striking place to check-in.
The sky lobby boasts plenty of comfortable spots to sit, windows galore, and a lounge serving food and drinks.
The construction beams . . .
. . . which stretch up to the ceiling . . .
. . . are an integral part of the space’s design.
As are the floor-to-ceiling windows.
When we first arrived at the sky lobby, I was too nervous to get close to the windows . . .
. . . which didn’t make for the best photos.
But I finally worked up the courage and, wow, once I did, I couldn’t get over the views!
Wilshire Grand seems to just tower over the neighboring buildings.
It felt like the entire city was stretched out below me.
Even the Hollywood Sign was visible!
Along with stellar views, the hotel boasts 3 restaurants, 3 bars (sadly, Spire 73, the rooftop bar, was closed when we were there), 94,977 square feet of event space, a 13,000-square-foot gym known as Attitude Fitness, and an outdoor pool (the latter three make up floors 5, 6 and 7 of the Wilshire Grand). The InterContinental really is a must-see for anyone visiting Los Angeles!
Considering its unique design, modern style, and stunning views, it is no surprise the place made its way to the screen.
The InterContinental was used several times throughout Season 1 of The Morning Show. It first showed up in episode 3, “Chaos Is the New Cocaine,” in the scene in which Alex Levy (Jennifer Aniston) delivers her great “You don’t have the power anymore!” speech to UBA network executives. The segment was filmed in one of the hotel’s sixth-floor board rooms, which you can see images of here and here.
Attitude Fitness (which you can see photos of here) is where Cory Ellison (Billy Crudup) watches Bradley Jackson’s (Reese Witherspoon) first TMS taping in episode 4, “That Woman.”
In episode 8, “Lonely at the Top,” and briefly in episode 10, “The Interview,” the presidential suite (which you can see here) masks as Mitch Kessler’s (Steve Carell) Las Vegas hotel room.
Alex and Chip Black (Mark Duplass) pass each other on the fabulous escalators leading up to the hotel’s conference area in episode 10, “The Interview.”
The InterContinental is most prominently used, though, as UBA President Fred Micklen’s (Tom Irwin) office, which first pops up in “That Woman,” but went on to appear in almost every episode following.
Fred’s office scenes were also shot in one of the hotel’s sixth-floor board rooms.
You can check out images of it here
Other productions have found their way to the InterContinental, as well. In the Season 7 episode of Silicon Valley titled “Exit Event,” which aired in 2019, Dinesh Chugtai (Kumail Nanjiani) scaled the staircase inside the rooftop sail.
That same year, one of the hotel’s boardrooms portrayed a meeting room at Núñez Incorporated in the first two episodes of The L Word: Generation Q, titled “Let’s Do It Again” and “Less Is More,” respectively.
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Until next time, Happy Stalking! 
Stalk It: The InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown, from The Morning Show, is located at 900 Wilshire Boulevard in downtown L.A. You can visit the property’s official website here.
Not only do The Morning Show and Little Fires Everywhere share a leading lady, Reese Witherspoon, but the two new series also seem to be sharing locations! Both made use of The Wolves, an insanely beautiful downtown Los Angeles bar that I blogged about in December, as well as Hotel Barclay, a historic and oft-filmed DTLA lodging that I covered way back in 2011. Considering the latter’s recent screen cred, though, I figured it was worthy of a redo.
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Hotel Barclay, which is also referred to as the “Barclay Hotel,” began life in 1897 as the Van Nuys Hotel.
Commissioned by businessman Isaac Newton Van Nuys, the Beaux Arts-style property was designed by the Morgan & Walls architecture firm.
During its early days, the 6-story hotel was the epitome of luxury, boasting a light-filled lobby lined with stained glass windows, a Ladies’ Parlor, a 150-seat formal dining room, a casual grill, a bar, a billiard room, a cigar stand, a newsstand, a buffet, a barbershop, and 160 rooms, each with both a long-distance and local telephone, as well as electric service. Per the Los Angeles Conservancy, the Barclay was, in fact, the first hotel in the city to provide those last two luxuries.
In 1929, ownership changed hands, the fancy dining room was closed and the property re-dubbed Hotel Barclay. The move kicked off a decline not only in the building’s exclusivity, but also its patronage.
Though it fell into some disrepair in the years that followed, eventually becoming a residential hotel (you can read up on the more sordid parts of its history here), the Barclay’s original interior somehow remained intact and still, miraculously, looks much as it did on opening day over 120 years ago!
During my 2011 stalk of the place, the manager invited me inside for a look at the lobby, which is where the interior photos in this post come from. I was practically giddy walking around snapping pictures of all of the historic enclaves! The hotel is like a time capsule come to life!
The Barclay, which, again per the Los Angeles Conservancy, is the city’s oldest continuously operating hotel, was put on the market in 2016 for $40 million and eventually sold in 2018 for $21 million. There are currently plans in the works to turn it into a luxury boutique lodging, though it does not appear as if that project has gotten off the ground yet.
In the “Duo” episode of Little Fires Everywhere, Hotel Barclay stands in for the exterior of New York’s fictional Varick Hotel, where Elena Richardson (Witherspoon) stays while visiting Manhattan.
Interiors were shot at The Mayfair Hotel, another historic DTLA lodging that has been completely revamped since my 2012 post on it, meaning I have to get back out there stat!
On The Morning Show, the Barclay also portrays a New York locale – the Manhattan apartment building where Hannah Shoenfeld (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) lives, said to be at 103 Wooster Street in SoHo. The site initially appears at the end of episode 7, “Open Waters,” in a scene that continues into episode 9, “Play the Queen,” in which Mitch Kessler (Steve Carrel) asks Hannah to come forward and say that the network bosses were complicit in his predatory behavior.
The Barclay is also featured in The Morning Show’s Season 1 finale, “The Interview” in which (spoiler alert!) Claire Conway (Bel Powley) shows up to discover than Hannah has overdosed.
In the episode, it is apparent that a façade containing a fake set of stairs and an elevator was added just beyond the hotel’s front doors for the shoot.
In real life, the Barclay’s front doors open directly into the lobby, as you can see in the photo below.
Only the exterior of the Barclay was utilized on The Morning Show. I believe interior scenes involving Hannah’s apartment may have been shot at the Pan American Lofts, located at 253 South Broadway. You can check out what a unit in that building looks like here.
Hotel Barclay has quite an extensive film and television resume – so much so that it would be impossible for me to chronicle all of its appearances here. A few of the more notable include . . .
Way back in 1975, Det. Ken ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson (David Soul) and Det. Dave Starsky (Paul Michael Glaser) chased a suspect through the hotel in the pilot episode of Starsky & Hutch.
The lobby is used extensively as Café 24 Heures, where Carol Connelly (Helen Hunt) works and where Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson) regularly dines, in 1997’s As Good As It Gets.
Frank Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio) gets kicked out of the place for writing bad checks at the beginning of Catch Me If You Can.
Hotel Barclay is the Columbian lodging where John (Brad Pitt) and Jane (Angelina Jolie) meet in 2005’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
The lobby masks as the café where Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and his friends hang out in the 2009 drama (500) Days of Summer.
Also in 2009, Detectives Flynn (Tony Denison) and Provenza (G.W. Bailey) dine in the hotel’s former restaurant, which sits vacant in real life, in the Season 5 episode of The Closer titled “Tapped Out.”
Leonardo DiCaprio visits the Barclay once again as Cobb in 2011’s Inception. This time it’s posing as a casino in Africa. (One of the hotel’s 2nd floor rooms is also where Cobb was dunked into a bathtub in an earlier scene).
Fellow stalker Anne informed me via a comment on my original post that a now-vacant anteroom at the lodging masked as Drake’s Magic Shop in the Season 3 episode of Castle titled “Poof, You’re Dead,” which aired in 2011. The show’s production team must really love the Barclay! The hotel was also featured in the episodes titled “Ghosts,” “Knockdown,” “Swan Song,” “Sleeper,” “XY,” and “The Blame Game.”
NYPD detectives interview a bunch of clowns outside of the Barclay in the Season 7 episode of CSI: NY titled “To What End,” which also aired in 2011.
In 2018, Hotel Barclay popped up as the supposed San Antonio, Texas-area Gunter Hotel in the Season 2 episode of Timeless titled “The King of the Delta Blues.”
And it portrays the supposed Lahore hotel where Bravo Team captures a terrorist in the Season 2 episode of Seal Team titled “Never Out of the Fight,” which aired in 2019.
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Until next time, Happy Stalking! 
Stalk It: Hotel Barclay, aka the Varick Hotel from the “Duo” episode of Little Fires Everywhere, is located at 103 West 4th Street in downtown Los Angeles.
One of the best parts about finally watching The West Wing for the first time is all of the L.A. locales I’ve been able to identify and stalk (you can read about a few of them here, here, and here). One spot that I recognized on sight was Hilton Checkers Los Angeles, which masked as a supposed Washington D.C.-area hotel in the Season 1 episode titled “Take This Sabbath Day.” I’ve had the pleasure of staying at Checkers several times over the years (even once in the penthouse!), so it was not hard to ID it when it appeared onscreen. Though I blogged about the lodging back in 2009, I figured it was worthy of a redo, so while staying at the Millennium Biltmore, which is across the street, back in December of last year, my mom and I headed over to Checkers for a cocktail and to do some stalking! I was shocked when I walked in to discover that the place had been completely revamped and looked quite a bit different than it did during my last visit in late 2017.
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Initially opened as the Mayflower Hotel in 1927, the property was designed by architect Charles Whittlesey.
Built on a lot measuring a scant 60 by 160 feet, the skinny lodging towers over the street below at 12 stories, which was the city’s height limit at the time.
The Mission Revival-style façade boasts amazingly intricate Spanish Moorish ornamentation with a nautical theme. Sadly, the bas-relief sculptures of the Mayflower and the Santa Maria that once flanked the hotel’s front doors have since been removed.
The Los Angeles Conservancy describes the building’s original interior as “Pilgrim Revival.” With restaurants named Mayflower Tavern and Ye Bull Pen Inn (you can check out what the latter looked like here), The Mayflower certainly had a different aesthetic than it does now. At some point, Chart Room, another bar with a maritime slant, opened on the premises. You can see the exterior of it here. It’s quite a leap from the hotel’s current state!
The Mayflower shut its doors in 1985 at which point it was purchased by a group of developers who began a massive $49-million, 4-year renovation. Two floors were added to the top of the structure to house the property’s mechanical appliances as well as a new gym and spa. (You can see those two rather boxy floor additions in this side image of the hotel.) The lobby area was also revamped to include a new bar, a new restaurant and a library lounge. Rooms and suites were expanded considerably, bringing down the total units from 348 to 188. The site re-opened as Checkers in December 1989. The Hilton eventually took over the property in 2002 and it became known as Hilton Checkers. The AAA Four Diamond lodging boasted a very upscale European interior, with ornate mirrors, plush seating and dark wood tables scattered throughout, as you can see in the pictures below, which were taken during a 2009 stay.
I loved the look of the place, but in 2019 management embarked upon yet another massive renovation.
Several lobby walls were removed in order to open up the bar (now named 1927 Bar+Kitchen) and library. The bar circa 2009 is pictured below.
And there it is today.
Yes, the interior is sleeker, brighter and airier, but I think it has lost quite a bit of its charm.
Per aerial views and this image, the rooftop pool, one of my favorite aspects of the hotel, also appears to have been filled in (the photo below is from 2009).
Though the hot tub remains.
I still consider the place one of downtown L.A.’s top lodgings, despite the changes. As my mom and I discovered, 1927 Bar+Kitchen serves up some fabulous fare and libations, the onsite Zagat-rated restaurant, Checkers Downtown, remains one of the area’s top eateries, and the hotel is within walking distance to pretty much every local attraction.
In the “Take this Sabbath Day” episode of The West Wing, which aired in 2000, Checkers masks as the D.C. hotel where Joey Lucas (Marlee Matlin) stays while in town. It is in the lobby bar that Josh Lyman (Bradley Whitford) apologizes to Joey on behalf of the president.
The West Wing was not Checkers’ first rodeo.
The hotel served as the outside of San Francisco’s Bix restaurant in the 1992 thriller Final Analysis.
In the Season 1 episode of Shark titled “Fashion Police,” which aired in 2006, Sebastian Stark (James Woods) dines with the mayor in Checkers Downtown . . .
. . . and later crashes a party on the rooftop deck.
Checkers appears as the exterior of The Algonquin Hotel in the Season 7 episode of Mad Men titled “Field Trip,” which aired in 2014.
It pops up as the New Amsterdam Hotel, where Vikram Singh (Sunkrish Bala) hacks into the mainframe of the attorney general’s office, in the Season 8 episode of Castle titled “XX,” which aired in 2015.
Irvin Irving (Lance Reddick) and Jun Park (Linda Park) also dine on Checkers’ rooftop patio in the Season 3 episode of Bosch titled “Right Play,” which aired in 2017.
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Until next time, Happy Stalking! 
Stalk It: Hilton Checkers Los Angeles, from the “Take This Sabbath Day” episode of The West Wing, is located at 535 South Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles. You can visit the hotel’s official website here. Please be advised that the hotel is temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Check the website for any updates.
The Grim Cheaper likes to say that I fixate on the silliest of things. I typically scoff at the notion, but he’s 100% right. Case in point – a few months back favorite blogger Emily Schuman, of Cupcakes and Cashmere, did a photo shoot at the Arts District Firehouse Hotel, a stylish fire-station-turned-lodging in downtown L.A. While there, she recorded an Instagram story showing an assortment of blush matchbooks displayed at the check-in desk. As it so happens, I had recently changed up my kitchen décor by adding some pops of pink, including a bowl filled with two rose-colored matchbooks. One look at Emily’s story and I decided I had to snag some of the hotel’s matches ASAP to add to my new collection. When the GC and I headed out to L.A. to take care of some business a few weeks later, I, of course, tried to reserve a room at the property, but it was completely booked. Undeterred, I ventured right on over there as soon as we arrived in town to grab that matchbook – and an iced latte from the lobby coffee bar, natch. The Arts District Firehouse Hotel is so artfully designed and unique that I couldn’t help but snap some pics while waiting for my drink, which turned out to be quite fortuitous, because, as it turns out, the place is a filming location!
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The Arts District Firehouse Hotel began life as Engine Co. 17, which started servicing the downtown area on April 1st, 1905. Interestingly, it was situated in a slightly different location at the time – at 2100 East Seventh Street, about 100 feet north of its current home. At its inception, the handsome vine-covered building (which you can see here) sat facing Seventh Street, in pretty much the spot where Bread Lounge stands today When the Seventh Street Bridge, which ran in front of the station, was raised above grade in the mid-20s, Engine Co. 17 had to be re-located. I’ve come across a few reports stating that to accommodate the project, the entire building was picked up and moved the short distance to 710 South Santa Fe Avenue, but I don’t believe that to be true. Though similar, the edifice of the original Engine Co. 17 is quite different from that of the Arts District Firehouse Hotel. The former boasted an intricately paned, three-panel window with angled projections across its second floor (as you can see here), while the latter has six separate flat windows in that spot. And while the original featured one bay door, the hotel has two. Though subtle, the differences are just enough to lead me to believe the 1904 firehouse was razed during the bridge project and a replacement then built at the new location. Whatever the case, per LAFire the Santa Fe Avenue facility opened its doors on September 9th, 1927. The station operated at that site for the next five decades before being decommissioned in 1980, at which point Company 17 re-located once again to a new building eight blocks south at 1601 South Santa Fe.
The former firehouse was subsequently sold to photographer Robert Blakeman who transformed it into four separate artist studios which he shared with various contemporaries over the next 20 years. In 2006, he put the property up for sale for $2.95 million. At the time, the 8,721-square-foot, 2-story structure boasted the station’s original kitchen, an indoor handball court, and parking for 13 cars. There were no takers, though, and it was removed from the market in 2007.
At some point, Engine Co. 17 did change hands and the owners began making plans to transform the space into a hotel, but those plans did not reach fruition until hospitality magnate Dustin Lancaster was brought onboard in 2016. He quickly tapped interior designer Sally Breer, with whom he partnered on two prior projects, to reimagine the station’s interior. Sally worked her magic, converting the site into an operable lodging, all the while keeping intact all of the original firehouse elements that make it so unique. A woman after my own heart, she told the Los Angeles Times, “Always our job first and foremost is to respect the architecture and breathe some new life into it.” Yaaaaas! With that mantra in mind, Breer preserved the building’s concrete flooring, pressed-tin ceiling, and exposed beam work.
To say the finished project is stunning would be a gross understatement! Since the transformation, the hotel has been written up by everyone from Vogue to Architectural Digest to Time – and it’s not very hard to see why. The place is serious #designgoals!
Opened this past April, the boutique lodging features nine suites, a restaurant and bar, event space (the station’s former handball court now serves as a private dining room), a coffee bar, a large patio complete with a fire pit, and a small shop featuring Los Angeles- and California-themed wares.
I did not realize Engine Co. 17 had appeared onscreen until long after I got home, though it really shouldn’t have come as a surprise. A decommissioned firehouse with many of its original elements intact that operated as a studio (and therefore could easily be shut down for filming) for over two decades? Sounds like a dream site for any location manager working on a procedural!
In the Season 8 episode of ER titled “A River in Egypt,” which aired in 2002, Kerry Weaver (Laura Innes) confronts her paramour, firefighter Sandy Lopez (Lisa Vidal), at Engine Co. 17 for outing her to her fellow County General Hospital coworkers.
Thanks to firehouse expert Richard Yokley (you may remember him from this post and this post), I learned that Jack Malone (Anthony LaPaglia) and Danny Taylor (Enrique Murciano) investigated the disappearance of a firefighter at Engine Co. 17 in the Season 2 episode of Without a Trace titled “Trip Box,” which aired in 2003.
Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) interrogates Rod Halstead (John M. Jackson) at Engine Co. 17 about a fire her mother had been looking into in the Season 4 episode of Castle titled “Rise,” which aired in 2011, though little of the building is visible in the scene.
Richard also informed me that Captain Ray Holt (Andre Braugher), Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) and Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio) headed to Engine Co. 17 to apologize to Fire Marshall Boone (Patton Oswalt) in the Season 1 episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine titled “Sal’s Pizza,” which aired in 2013.
The episode gives us some nice glimpses of the firehouse’s Interior, as well.
The music video for A Great Big World’s 2014 song “Already Home,” which you can watch here, also largely took place at Engine Co. 17. The song tells the story of lovers who live on opposite coasts, which explains why the top screen capture below is split.
Per On Location Vacations, the pilot of Like Father was also lensed at the firehouse in 2012, but, sadly, it appears as if the show never made it on air.
And for those asking, pictured below are the matchbooks I went out of my way to procure – a fabulous addition to my collection, don’t you think?
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Until next time, Happy Stalking! 
Stalk It: The Arts District Firehouse Hotel, aka the former Engine Co. 17 from the “A River in Egypt” episode of ER, is located at 710 South Santa Fe Avenue in downtown Los Angeles. You can visit the lodging’s official website here.
In “I must be living under a rock” news, I had no idea that a Poltergeist remake had debuted in 2015 – in 3D, no less! Considering the so-called curse that plagued the OG trilogy, I’d have to think long and hard before signing up to be a part of any sort of reboot! That cast and crew were seriously brave – yet it turns out the only thing plaguing the recent flick was bad reviews. The rumored curse has never stopped me from stalking locales from the franchise, though, including the motel where the Freeling family stayed at the end of the 1982 original. The location was actually a mystery for years, with several sources claiming that filming took place at Hotel Silver Lake in Westlake, and I am not entirely sure who finally pinpointed the correct spot. Whoever did discover that the hotel utilized in the production was the Holiday Inn at 1801 East G Street in Ontario (now the Ontario Airport Inn), I thank you! Since the lodging is situated right off the 10 Freeway between L.A. and Palm Springs, I figured it would be the perfect place for a pit stop on the way home from my last visit to the City of Angels, as wells as a perfect Haunted Hollywood posting.
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The property currently known as the Ontario Airport Inn was originally built as a Holiday Inn in the mid-1960s.
At the time, nothing was surrounding it but vacant land as you can see in the 1980 image from Historic Aerials below.
Aerial views look quite different today, though amazingly the hotel hasn’t changed a bit, structurally at least.
Per ads I came across on newspapers.com, by 1996 the lodging had become the Good Nite Inn which it remained through at least 2000. Today, the Ontario Airport Inn, situated less than a mile from Ontario International Airport, boasts a huge pool, a courtyard with a BBQ, a laundry room, free coffee and fruit available 24 hours a day, a business center, park-and-fly services, rooms with Tempur-Pedic memory foam beds, and a complimentary continental breakfast and airport shuttle. Not bad for rates that start at $69.95!
Before snapping any photographs, the Grim Cheaper and I popped into the lobby to ask permission from the powers that be. A front desk clerk welcomed us and I explained that I was hoping to see the area of the hotel featured in Poltergeist. She retreated to ask the manager if it was alright and when she returned she told me it was perfectly fine and then produced a map of the property, pointed to a building on the southern side and informed me that filming had taken place in front of Room 209. Shocked that she knew the precise spot and figuring her awareness had to be due to the countless requests from stalkers like myself, I said, “Oh, do a lot of people come by asking to take photos because of Poltergeist?”, to which she deadpanned, “Nope, not really.” And here I thought maybe I was in good company! The GC and I could not stop laughing as we headed out the door toward Building 4, where we had been pointed (that’s it below).
Said to be “the Holiday Inn on I-74,” the weary Freelings venture to the hotel after leaving Midwestern suburbia, where their possessed home has just been sucked into a paranormal vortex, at the end of Poltergeist. (That scene was achieved using a 6-foot by 4-foot model of the Simi Valley property that stood in for the family’s residence, the debris of which were, at least for a time, displayed in Steven Spielberg’s office.)
Room 209, where the Freelings check in, can be found on the second floor of Building 4.
I was shocked to discover upon walking up to the Freelings’ door that Ontario Airport Inn not only boasts the same coloring it did onscreen in 1982, with red doors and yellow walls, but that the number placards also remain entirely unchanged!
It is incredible that so little of the hotel has been altered since the filming, especially considering two changes in ownership and the passage of 37 years! Aside from the addition of some hedges and the removal of the Holiday Inn signage, though, the place is frozen in time.
In an interesting twist, the locale is not included in the shooting schedule featured on Poltergeist: The Fan Site which covers all sixty days of principal photography, as well as one day of second-unit photography. That coupled with the fact that Ontario is a somewhat out-of-the-way spot to film, especially considering the rest of the thriller was lensed in Simi Valley, Agoura Hills, Irvine, and Culver City, makes me wonder if the hotel segment was a re-shoot or perhaps a scene added after initial filming wrapped.
Figuring one of the Poltergeist DVD iterations had to feature a commentary of some sort which might provide clarity on the issue, I got to Googling and was shocked to discover via DVD Exotica that is not actually the case. Amazingly, the only home release of the film with any sort of extras about the movie itself (and not paranormal activity in general) is the 1982 LaserDisc which boasts a stills gallery, the original trailer, and a 7-minute making-of featurette (that you can watch here). Sadly, none of the three provide any info on the hotel. An Upland resident named Don J. did inform the Daily Bulletin in 2017 that producers landed on the locale thanks to its classic neon signage, which few Holiday Inns in the area still had at the time. Whether that information is true or not is anybody’s guess.
The Ontario Airport Inn has another claim to fame! The many musicians hired to perform at the California Jam music festival in 1974 were put up there and shuttled back and forth to the venue, the Ontario Motor Speedway, via helicopter. During their stay, the motel’s marquee read “Welcome Western States Police Officers Assn.,” a rather humorous attempt to mislead any fans heading to the property hoping to catch glimpses of the various acts, which included such bands as Earth, Wind & Fire and the Eagles.
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Until next time, Happy Stalking! 
Stalk It: Ontario Airport Inn, aka the Holiday Inn from Poltergeist, is located at 1801 East G Street in Ontario. Filming took place in front of Room 209 on the second floor of Building 4. Please keep in mind that the hotel is private property and you need permission to be on the premises. You can visit the lodging’s official website here.
Today’s post is loooooong overdue. For ages now, I’ve been talking about putting together a guide to Palm Springs. Having lived in the desert for over six years, regularly playing a tourist in my own town, has given me quite an insider’s knowledge of the area. Who better to share that knowledge with than my fellow stalkers? As was the case with My Guide to L.A., this list is not geared toward filming locations (though there will be a few mentioned), but will instead catalog non-filming-related recommendations of places to stay, eat, drink, grab coffee, and see/shop/play while in town. The guide also won’t be limited to Palm Springs proper but will cover most Coachella Valley cities including Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage and La Quinta. First up are my picks for the best area hotels!
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Thankfully, there is no shortage of extraordinary properties to book while visiting the desert. And I have checked in to quite a few of them during my tenure here. For the purposes of this post, I will only be listing hotels where I have actually stayed or spent considerable time. For a pricing key, I chose a random Friday in October (at the start of Palm Springs’ high season – rates are much cheaper in the summer) to base the nightly costs at my recommended lodgings. Those rates (which include all taxes and fees) are posted next to each property name and the hotels are listed in order from lowest to highest price. And now, without further ado, I present My Guide to Palm Springs Hotels!
1. Renaissance Esmeralda Resort & Spa ($234) 44400 Indian Wells Lane, Indian Wells – I spent a birthday here a couple of years back with my parents and the Grim Cheaper and we all absolutely loved it! We are quite a disparate group when it comes to dietary needs and pickiness and our favorite part about the hotel was the many onsite restaurants (there are five, serving such diverse fare as pizza and sushi). During our stay, we’d meet with my parents each night in The Place, the resort’s central cocktail lounge, for an aperitif, then go our separate ways to grab takeout from whatever restaurant struck our fancy, bringing our choices back to The Place to all dine together. We spent three nights at the hotel and were never bored with our food choices once! The other amenities, including an onsite coffee bar, a spa (where I bought the softest sweatshirt), a pool with a sand beach, a massive lagoon, tennis courts, and a gym, were also bar none. All in all, a great hotel experience!
2. Miramonte Indian Wells Resort & Spa ($235) 45000 Indian Wells Lane, Indian Wells – A gorgeous 215-room resort spread out over 11 manicured acres. Designed to resemble a Tuscan villa, there’s no reason to leave this place after checking in. With 3 pools (one is adults-only!), a 12,000-square-foot spa, 24-hour room service, access to 2 golf courses, a restaurant, a bar, a fitness center, a fabulous gift shop, and gardens throughout, the Four Diamond-property has everything you’ll need and then some, all while retaining the feel of a boutique hotel. While the interiors and amenities are great, it is the grounds that make this spot so special. Miramonte Indian Wells truly is an oasis in the desert. And it’s a filming location, as well, having appeared on both The Real Housewives of Orange County and Flavor of Love!
3. Omni Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa ($254) 41000 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage – Another area property with countless amenities, Omni Rancho Las Palmas features a golf course, 4 restaurants, a spa, a whopping 240 acres of land, and 3 pools, one of which, Splashtopia, is its real claim to fame. The 2-acre onsite water park is made complete with a lazy river, 2 water slides, and a man-made beach! Not something you ordinarily find at a hotel. The property also has the best gift shop I’ve ever visited! And it is situated directly across the street from The River at Rancho Mirage, a massive outdoor shopping/dining destination. Needless to say, Omni Rancho Las Palmas is another spot you never need to leave after checking in. It’s also something of a pop culture landmark! It was there that Ray Pruit (Jamie Walters) infamously pushed Donna Martin (Tori Spelling) down the stairs on Beverly Hills, 90210!
4. Hotel Paseo ($297) 45400 Larkspur Lane, Palm Desert – While this spot is obviously gorgeous, has amenities galore and countless Instagram opportunities (like the “California” wall below), Hotel Paseo really is all about location, location, location! Situated in the heart of Palm Desert’s exclusive El Paseo shopping district, the lodging is steps from countless boutiques – everything from Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co., and Kate Spade to Anthropologie, Banana Republic and Loft. Staples like Apple and Sephora are also there. Hotel Paseo itself features unique art, a restaurant, a pool, a pool bar, a putting green, a gym, a spa and a café that serves Starbucks coffee. Could you ask for anything more?
5. Hyatt Regency Indian Wells ($318) 44600 Indian Wells Lane, Indian Wells – Three words for you – adults-only pool! This spot was a favorite escape of mine and the GC in the early days of our relationship, back when I was teaching, the Oasis Adult Pool providing a much-needed respite from youngins. In a rare turn, the Oasis, which you can see a photo of here, is actually nicer than the hotel’s main pool, featuring its own bar/café, luxury cabanas, grassy expanses, a perimeter of palm trees, and stunning views. The rest of the Hyatt isn’t too shabby either, with four restaurants (in addition to the Oasis Pool Bar), a spa, a fitness center, a total of seven pools (!), a kids’ camp, pet accommodations, mountain views, lagoons, pathways, a golf course, and 45 gorgeous landscaped acres.
6. JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa ($353) 74855 Country Club Drive, Palm Desert – One of my absolute favorite area lodgings, JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa is truly a unique property, the majority of it surrounded by huge lakes which guests can tour via manned gondolas. Heading to one of the hotel’s nine (!) onsite restaurants on a boat truly is a unique experience. Though the resort is massive, with 884 rooms and 450 acres (and a Starbucks!), it still manages to be warm and friendly. Even if you don’t book a stay there, I highly recommend popping by for a visit and taking a boat tour because the JW truly is a sight to behold! And it has a major film location connection. It was there that Jessie Spano’s (Elizabeth Berkley) dad got married in the Season 3 episodes of Saved by the Bell titled “Palm Springs Weekend: Part I” and “Palm Springs Weekend: Part II.”
7. Triada Palm Springs ($353) 640 North Indian Canyon Drive, Palm Springs – This Mediterranean-style property oozes Old Hollywood charm and, in fact, has many ties to the Tinseltown of yore. Formerly The Ambassador Hotel, the lodging counts such stars as Lana Turner, Tyrone Power, Jimmy Durante, Esther Williams, Howard Hughes, Elizabeth Taylor, and Richard Burton as one-time guests. Dating back to the 1920s, the picturesque site has had several different iterations over the years, but was finally revamped by Marriott in 2014 and today is one of Palm Springs’ most fabulous destinations. It’s pretty much my family’s go-to spot for a staycation. Though it looks small from the outside, Triada is actually quite sprawling with an onsite restaurant, two bars, three pools, a gym, and 56 rooms. The hotel bills itself on being “exactly like nothing else” and it definitely delivers on that promise.
8. La Quinta Resort & Club ($374) 49499 Eisenhower Drive, La Quinta – My family and I first booked a stay at this spot in 2010 (as I blogged about here) and have since come back more times than I can count. It is one of our favorite desert locations. Though I am not a fan of the recent remodel (like at all!), the resort is still no doubt a very special, very historic place. Initially built in 1926, the Hacienda-like retreat existed before La Quinta was incorporated. In fact, the city was named after the hotel – one of only two West Coast municipalities with that claim to fame. (The other is Beverly Hills.) Long a playground for the rich and famous (Frank Capra wrote It’s a Wonderful Life there!), the property, part of the Waldorf-Astoria Collection, boasts 796 rooms, most of which are standalone casitas situated around lush courtyards with pools. The hotel is massive – featuring 23 tennis courts, 4 restaurants, 41 pools, 53 Jacuzzis, 6 boutiques, and 5 golf courses – yet it feels insanely intimate and private. The resort is a gem and truly one of a kind.
9. Two Bunch Palms ($379) 67425 Two Bunch Palms Trail, Desert Hot Springs – Situated north of the 10 Freeway in Desert Hot Springs, this one is a bit out of the way and far removed from most desert attractions, but don’t let that dissuade you from making a reservation. It is the place to stay if you truly want to get away from it all. The tucked-away oasis, which rumor has it once served as a hide-out for Al Capone, has long been a celebrity haven thanks to its remoteness, exclusivity, stunning grounds, and fabulous spa. Everyone from Julia Roberts to Neil Diamond has checked in. Boasting 70 rooms and bungalows, a grotto, two mineral pools, a lap pool, a gym, 77 acres of land (all of them lush!), a lagoon, a 3,000-square-foot yoga dome, and a farm-to-table restaurant, the wellness hotel feels more like a tropical getaway than a desert retreat. It’s also a filming location, having appeared in everything from The Bachelor to The Player, as I chronicled here.
10. The Riviera Palm Springs ($406) 1600 North Indian Canyon Drive, Palm Springs – You want a true Palm Springs experience, you say? Head straight to The Riviera! Originally opened in 1959, the lodging, built in the shape of a spoke wheel, was the stomping ground of Old Hollywood heavies Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Desi Arnaz, Sonny Bono, Cher, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, and Elvis Presley. The property is such an area landmark, it was even featured in the 1963 comedy Palm Springs Weekend! Reimagined first in 2008 and then again in 2016, The Riviera now offers the best in modern accommodations while still retaining a retro vibe. Easily one of the prettiest spots I’ve ever visited, the hotel, all soft greens, blushes and light blues, is an Instagrammer’s dream! With 398 rooms, six restaurants (!), a central pool, a spa (with a Watsu pool), 24 acres of manicured grounds, and its close proximity to downtown Palm Springs, you won’t regret booking a stay here. (Special thanks to my friend Kim for the photo below.)
11. The Chateau at Lake La Quinta ($411) 78120 Caleo Bay Drive, La Quinta – This hidden gem (most locals don’t even know it’s there!) sits perched overlooking the 25-acre man-made Lake La Quinta. The boutique lodging is small (there are only 24 rooms), but is not short on amenities, which include an onsite restaurant, a sprawling lawn, a patio strung with lights and a fire pit, a pool, and a jacuzzi. All rooms boast a patio or balcony facing the water and guests are greeted with a glass of champagne upon checking in (yaaaaassss!). The idyllic site, voted “Best of the Best” boutique hotel in La Quinta by Palm Springs Life magazine this year, is frequently completely booked out for weddings and events (especially on weekends), so if you want to stay there, be sure to make a reservation far in advance.
12. Sands Hotel & Spa ($449) 44985 Province Way, Indian Wells – Every square inch of this hotel has been styled to within an inch of its life – but in the best way possible! Sands is, simply put, gorgeous. A relative newcomer (formerly a rather dumpy timeshare, it opened last year after a lengthy renovation and expansion), this spot has become my absolute favorite local lodging. And it definitely gets the award for the area’s most Instagrammable hotel, thanks to the efforts of designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard. Outfitted in subtle greys and greens with blush accents, Sands is #décorgoals! The quaint lodging has an onsite restaurant (The Pink Cabana – it’s gorgeous, too!), a pool, cabanas that are free for guests to utilize, daybeds, an incredible spa (it literally looks like the inside of Jeannie’s bottle!), and 46 rooms. The neighboring Nest restaurant (which is a must-visit spot – it will be included in the upcoming My Guide to Palm Springs – Restaurants post) can get a little lively at night, so if you are seeking quiet, ask to be placed far removed from the eatery.
13. Kimpton Rowan Hotel ($499) 100 West Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs) – Modern, sleek, and situated right in the heart of downtown Palm Springs there’s not much more you can ask for when it comes to area hotels. This spot was built from the ground up in 2017, with serious attention to detail. The hotel couldn’t be any more PS, with its Mid-Century modern accents, if it tried. Standing at 7 stories, it is the tallest building in the city. It offers 153 rooms, a rooftop pool and restaurant, a lobby bar, a Mediterranean café, a gym, 270-degree views of the city, free bicycle rentals, and a nightly social hour with free wine and finger foods. (Not to mention serious bookshelf goals, amirite?) If you want to channel your inner Don Draper, this is the spot to do it.
14. Avalon Hotel and Bungalows ($523/night, 2-night minimum) (415 South Belardo Road, Palm Springs) – Another boutique hotel situated steps from downtown Palm Springs, the Avalon is a designer’s dream. Initially built in 1933 as the Estrella Inn, it was given an Old Hollywood Regency-style revamp in 2001 thanks to owner/interior designer Kelly Wearstler. Favoring a yellow aesthetic, the retro vibe has been done to perfection here. Pretty and polished, the hotel is somehow also warm and inviting. One look at the plush chaises and you’ll want to plunk down and never get up. Though seemingly small, the 3.5-acre site boasts 3 pools, an on-site restaurant, a spa, gardens, thirteen bungalows, and event space. And it’s a filming location! The Avalon is where Justin Bobby famously gave longtime on-again/off-again girlfriend Audrina Patridge a ring on the Season 4 finale of The Hills.
15. Ingleside Inn ($545) 200 West Ramon Road, Palm Springs – This hotel holds a very special place in my heart. It was there that the GC and I got engaged back in 2009. Regardless of that fact, though, I would still love the Ingleside Inn. The intimate hotel is secluded, tranquil and serene. Boasting amenities like a 24-hour pool and an onsite restaurant/bar with nightly dancing, the 30-room property still manages to be a quiet little haven. As such, celebrities have flocked to it, including Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston who spent three days there following their 2000 wedding. Along with Two Bunch Palms, this is a place to truly get away from it all. Since getting engaged, the GC and I have returned to the inn on several occasions and each time counts as one of my best hotel experiences. I can’t recommend the Ingleside more.
16. Korakia Pensione ($595/night, 2-night minimum) 257 South Patencio Road, Palm Springs – This hotel is nothing short of magical! The GC and I checked into the Moroccan-themed property for a two-night visit to celebrate our anniversary a few years back and wound up staying a full week! Each morning, we woke up and decided we just didn’t want to leave. The hotel has that effect. With vistas galore, tucked-away corners, two serene pools, lantern-strewn walkways, cobbled paths and foliage aplenty, beauty is literally at every turn. Essentially a bed and breakfast, morning meals are served on the picturesque front patio and afternoon tea is offered in the charming lobby. Old movies are also shown each evening al fresco, projected onto one of the Korakia’s courtyard walls, guests lounging on nearby pillows and bean bags to watch. It was there that the GC first saw The Wizard of Oz! The pensione offers one of the most unique hotel experiences you’ll come across, not just in Palm Springs, but anywhere.
17. The Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage ($610) 68900 Frank Sinatra Drive, Rancho Mirage – Newly renovated in 2014, The Ritz in Rancho Mirage is one of the desert’s premier properties. Sitting atop a 650-foot bluff, the views of the surrounding area are unparalleled – as are the service and the amenities. There are three restaurants onsite (made-to-order sushi is even served at the pool!), a spa, two swimming pools, and countless expanses overlooking the Coachella Valley. They say you get what you pay for and a stay at the Ritz is definitely a luxury experience. Though I much preferred the look of the place before the remodel, the hotel is still undeniably beautiful. And it has a ton of Tinseltown ties! Not only did Trista and Ryan from The Bachelorette tie the knot there in a televised ceremony, but everyone from Katharine McPhee to Kym Johnson to Ryan Seacrest has checked in.
18. Parker Palm Springs ($740/night, 2-night minimum) 4200 East Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs – A former Holiday Inn, this spot is now one of Palm Springs’ most exclusive lodgings. The Mid-Century site is eclectic in all the right ways thanks to designer Jonathan Adler who gave the space a $27-million overhaul in 2003. Unique décor is at every turn here (the “drugs” sign in the lobby is an Instagram favorite). While vintage in theme, this is is definitely not your mom’s hotel! Featuring four pools, a lemonade stand, a golf course, a spa with 21 treatment rooms, croquet courts, two restaurants, two tennis courts, 13 shaded acres, and 144 rooms, the Parker has all of the amenities of a major resort, but still retains its intimacy. Perhaps that’s why celebs have flocked to it over the years. It was there that Brad Pitt and Angelia Jolie famously stayed – at opposite ends of the property, per their publicist – while shooting their “Domestic Bliss” cover story for W Magazine in 2005. And the Parker is also a filming location, having popped up in a Season 1 episode of The Comeback. Though the most expensive hotel on my list, I’ve literally never heard one bad thing about this place! Everyone I know who has stayed there counts it as an absolute favorite.
For those wishing to rent a private house rather than book a hotel, look no further than Oranj Palm Vacation Homes! As a surprise for my 40th birthday, my family leased a residence through the company and it was absolutely heavenly! The Aqua House (below) was well-appointed (there literally wasn’t one thing we needed that wasn’t supplied), decorated to Mid-Century Modern perfection, and completely comfortable. It was the ideal spot for our group of eight to relax, play, cook and imbibe. The rest of Oranj’s inventory is just as spectacular. The company is highly responsive and manages their properties insanely well. I couldn’t recommend them more.
Be sure to check out the other posts in My Guide to Palm Springs series about the desert’s best restaurants, coffee houses, bars and places to see/things to do. And, as always, for more stalking fun, you can follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
While I was initially on the fence as to my feelings regarding BH90210, I have to say the meta-revival has really grown on me. Though I did not particularly love the pilot, by episode 4, I was absolutely enthralled and am so saddened that Season 1 will be coming to a close this week. And it’s not just the nostalgia factor that is hooking me. The show is really well done and really funny. Can I hear it for a Season 2, please?!? One thing about the production that I cannot get behind is the fact that none of it is shot in L.A. In a perplexingly move, Fox chose to shoot the reboot of one of the most famous series about Los Angeles in Vancouver of all places! Sacrilege, I know! BH90210 doesn’t even really make use of SoCal establishing shots. So I was thrilled to finally see a local spot, Santa Monica’s The Georgian Hotel, pop up as the exterior of the private club Jason Priestley belongs to in episode 4. I actually stalked the locale years ago, but never blogged about it. Figuring now was the perfect time to do so, I scanned through my extensive photo library to look for my pics of it, but couldn’t find them anywhere. So I called upon my friend Brian, of the Celebrity Net Worth website, who lives in L.A., to stalk the property on my behalf the next time he was in the area. Incredibly, he obliged the following day! Thank you, Brian!
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The Art Deco masterpiece that is The Georgian Hotel was commissioned by judge Harry J. Borde, owner of the neighboring Hotel Windermere which was originally established by his mother, Rosamund, on Ocean Avenue in 1909. (That site has long since been demolished.) As Santa Monica grew in popularity with vacationers, Borde decided to build a second, adjacent lodging, figuring it would also be profitable. Ground broke on his new project in 1931. Designed by architect Eugene Durfee at a cost of $500,000, the striking Georgian opened to the public in 1933.
At its inception, the 8-story hotel, commonly referred to as “The Lady,” boasted such modern amenities as a beauty parlor, a formal dining room, a barber shop, and, per a 1933 newspaper ad, “electrically-equipped kitchens.” Rates started at $40 a night. Oh, how times have changed! Today, rooms at The Georgian run about $300 on the low end.
The Georgian became a celebrity haven from the outset. Not only did the beach provide more temperate climates than other areas of L.A., but hidden in the hotel’s basement was a speakeasy. Some of the stars who frequented the place during its early days, whether to illegally imbibe or just relax, include Charlie Chaplin, Carole Lombard, Clark Gable, Bugsy Siegel, Al Capone, and Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle.
The lodging has gone through several renovations and transformations throughout its 86-year existence. It even served as an upscale apartment building in the ‘60s, housing the likes of Rose Kennedy, who summered onsite.
Today, the property offers 84 rooms (28 of which are suites), turn-down service, complimentary Wi-Fi (a rarity in L.A.), 24-hour room service (yes, please!), a gym, views of Palisades Park and the Pacific Ocean, the alfresco Veranda Restaurant, a business center, and event space. What happened to the basement speakeasy, you ask? Per the hotel’s website, it is being re-opened as Nineteen33 Underground Kitchen & Bar in the very near future.
Thanks to its exclusivity, The Georgian remains a celebrity enclave today, with such luminaries as Matthew Perry, Al Pacino, Tim Robbins, Matt LeBlanc, Robert Downey Jr., Ron Yerxa, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Claire Danes, Nicolas Cage, Oliver Stone, Robert De Niro, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Charlie Webber all known to stop by.
On BH90210, The Georgian masks as the private club Jason Priestley belongs to (and is a founding member of), where the cast regularly hangs out. It’s kind of like the modern-day Peach Pit. Oddly, while the club has appeared in every episode from “The Pitch” on, typically only the interior is shown. The Georgian did not pop up until episode 4, “The Table Read.” The two establishing shots featured are below. The very same images were also used in episode 5, “Picture’s Up.”
Only the exterior of The Georgian is utilized on BH90210. The Interior of Jason’s club is nothing more than a set created at North Shore Studios in Vancouver, where the series is lensed.
Said set actually reminds me a lot of the Beverly Hills Beach Club set from the CW’s 2008 90210 reboot, which you can see images of here.
BH90210 is not the only production to feature The Georgian. Det. Dave Starsky (Paul Michael Glaser) and Det. Ken ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson (David Soul) chase down a hit man there in the Season 4 episode of Starsky & Hutch titled “Ninety Pounds of Trouble,” which aired in 1979. As you can see, the hotel looked very different – and much less colorful – then.
The following year, it popped up in an establishing shot of the Los Angeles hotel where con man Harley Dexter (Vincent Baggetta) stayed in the Season 4 episode of Charlie’s Angels titled “Three for the Money.”
Chili Palmer (John Travolta) heads to The Georgian to track down Ray ‘Bones’ Barboni (Dennis Farina) and retrieve his stolen “black leather jacket, fingertip length, like the one Pacino wore in Serpico” in Get Shorty.
In the 1995 classic, The Georgian is said to be located in Miami. It is not very hard to see how it got pegged for the role, being that it does have a very Florida look and feel to it.
Lucia DeLury (Lisa Kudrow) and Bill Truitt (Martin Donovan) also check in to The Georgian while visiting Los Angeles in the 1997 comedy The Opposite of Sex.
Big THANK YOU to my friend Brian, from Celebrity Net Worth, for stalking this location for me and taking all of the photos that appear in this post. 
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Until next time, Happy Stalking!
Stalk It: The Georgian Hotel, aka Jason Priestley’s private club on BH90210, is located at 1415 Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica. You can visit the property’s official website here.
You wouldn’t expect a show centered around grief to be funny. But the Netflix original Dead to Me, about the recently-widowed Jen Harding (Christina Applegate) and her new BFF Judy Hale (Linda Cardellini), whom she meets in the Laguna Beach chapter of the Friends of Heaven grief group, is downright hilarious! One episode in particular, “I’ve Gotta Get Away,” in which Jen and Judy attend a Friends of Heaven-sponsored retreat, had me LOLing throughout. So I, of course, had to blog about the supposed Palm Springs hotel where the event took place, which, as it turns out, is a mash-up of several different L.A. spots. Two I’ve previously blogged about and recognized on sight (that’s the Sportmen’s Lodge above, which you may remember from this post) and the third I did a bit of digging to track down. What can I say – I always go the extra mile for my fellow stalkers. 
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The bulk of the Friends of Heaven Grief Retreat took place at The Garland Hotel Studio City, a spot I spent a few days at in 2015 and later blogged about. Numerous areas of the retro-fabulous property, which does have a very Palm Springs feel, were utilized in the episode including the Cabrillo ballroom, where Jen follows her new crush, Jason (Steve Howey), to a seminar titled “Big Question.” Though I stalked the space during my Garland stay, unfortunately the photos I took don’t jibe with the angles shown onscreen. Regardless, you can still see that the carpeting, wall color and chair railing match.
And while I failed to snap an image of the Cabrillo’s entrance, which appeared on Dead to Me, I did get a pic of the doors to another of the hotel’s venues, the Beverly Garland Theatre, which bears the same look.
The lodging’s Garland Ballroom was utilized for the Lost Angels: Finding Yourself After Pregnancy Loss workshop that Judy attends.
Again, my photos were taken from different angles than what was shown onscreen, but you can see that the chandeliers, mirrored paneling and carpet all match.
One of The Garland’s hallways was utilized in “I’ve Gotta Get Away,” as well.
And the hotel’s picturesque courtyard pops up twice in the episode.
It first appears toward the beginning of “I’ve Gotta Get Away,” in the scene in which Judy and Jen head to their respective seminars.
Later, Jen has a talk with Pastor Wayne (Keong Sim) there.
I am unsure if the two hotel rooms featured on Dead to Me are actual Garland rooms (which you can see images of here) or studio-built sets.
Though both suites do look very much like those of the hotel, there are some structural differences. For instance, Jason’s room on the show has louvered double closet doors . . .
. . . while The Garland’s rooms feature flat single closet doors with raised blue paneling.
On Dead to Me, similar blue paneled doors instead lead to the bathroom.
But The Garland’s bathroom doors are made of frosted glass.
Jason’s room also boasts crown molding and numerous ceiling beams . . .
. . . which the actual rooms do not, as you can see in the image below from the hotel’s website.
While I’m leaning toward the Dead to Me rooms being sets, the wallpaper and carpeting in both suites match those of the hotel precisely. It seems like duplicating those two décor items in such exacting fashion would not only be difficult, but rather pointless considering most viewers have likely never been to The Garland and would have no idea what the accommodations look like. So I’m really torn on this one.
And oddly, while The Garland does have a beautiful pool . . .
. . . for whatever reason, cast and crew headed three miles west to the Sportsmen’s Lodge for Dead to Me’s pool scene.
I have stalked Sportmen’s Lodge countless times in the past (you can read about one instance here), so I recognized the pool – and its signature orange chaises – immediately. Somehow though, I had never taken any photos of the area and when I recently headed back to the hotel to do so, I found it under massive construction. Despite the detritus, the pool is still recognizable from its appearance in “I’ve Gotta Get Away.”
In another odd twist, producers chose not to utilize any of the restaurants located at either The Garland or Sportsmen’s Lodge for the Carry On-Oke event that supposedly took place at the hotel bar. They instead made use of a Hollywood watering hole named Black. Though I have yet to stalk the place and actually had never heard of it prior to researching for this post, it was not very hard to identify thanks to its unique retro aesthetic. You can check out some photos of it here.
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Until next time, Happy Stalking! 
Stalk It: The Friends of Heaven Grief Retreat from the “I’ve Gotta Get Away” episode of Dead to Me took place at these three spots – The Garland Hotel at 4222 Vineland Avenue in Studio City, Sportsmen’s Lodge Hotel at 12825 Ventura Boulevard in Studio City, and Black bar at 6202 Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood.