Conrad Hilton

Business Personality Born: 25 December 1887 Died: 3 January 1979 Birthplace: San Antonio, New Mexico Territory (now New Mexico) Best known as: The founder of Hilton Hotels Name at birth: Conrad Nicholson Hilton Conrad Hilton founded the international chain of business hotels which bear his name. He bought his first hotel in 1919, and founded the first so-named Hilton Hotel in 1925 in Dallas, Texas. Hilton Hotels grew into the first coast-to-coast hotel chain, placing a special emphasis on the business traveler, and Hilton became one of the world's wealthiest men. He also purchased other prestigious inns, including the Sir Francis Drake in San Francisco, New York's WaldorfAstoria, and the Palmer House in Chicago. Hilton's son Barron followed him as head of the company, which by the year 2000 had nearly 500 hotels around the world. Conrad Hilton died in 1979, leaving the bulk of his estate to his philanthropic organization, the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. He also endowed the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management at the University of Houston. His 1957 autobiography was titled Be My Guest. Extra credit: Hilton had three sons by his first wife, Mary Barron: Conrad, Jr.; William Barron; and Eric Michael... He had a daughter, Francesca, with his second wife, the actress Zsa Zsa Gabor (married 1942-47)... Hilton's son Conrad Jr. ("Nicky") was the first husband of actress Elizabeth Taylor; the couple were married from 1950-51... Hilton is the great-grandfather of party girls Paris and Nicky Hilton... He was played by actor Chelcie Ross on episodes of the TV show Mad Men in 2009. http://www.factmonster.com/biography/var/conradhilton.html

Ellsworth M. Statler in Buffalo, NY

Click on illustrations 1908 Statler Restaurant for larger size -- and The 1896 Ellicott Square Building had Ellsworth Statler's first additional information restaurant. Statler first came to Buffalo in 1896 on his way home to Wheeling, West Virginia, following a fishing trip in Canada. He was overwhelmed by the Ellicott Square Building and after several days of negotiations he convinced John N. Scatherd, the building's owner, to lease him space for a restaurant. Within months, however, Statler's plush restaurant failed. Scatherd had warned him that Buffalo simply wasn't a restaurant town. Businessmen, Statler was told, more often than not went home for Ellsworth Statler lunch, and if people did go out in the evening they went to places in their neighborhoods. But Statler was determined. He redesigned his restaurant for efficiency and quick turnover. First, he fired his French chef imported from New York and hired a local man in his place. Then he introduced a serving table which he had invented. It rolled on wheels and contained separate compartments for cutlery, linens, 1908 Statler Hotel, glasses, condiments, and bread and butter. southeast corner of Washington and The biggest change was in prices. Statler offered full-course Swan lunches at twenty-five cents-paid in advance. (Statler was obsessed with "skippers." At his two thousand-room hotel near the Pan American Exposition he collected from his guests when they checked in. He also insisted that they purchase a meal ticket in advance.) Next, he launched an advertising campaign designed to change the eating habits of Buffalonians. Every day advertisements appeared in the newspaper: "The increase in your business has been brought about by modern up-to-date methods. You can further increase your business upon the same lines. Losing the heart out of your business day by going home to noon lunches is calculated to increase the business of your competitor who lunches downtown. Let Statler's help you." He added the notion of premium merchandising. Every day he had his chef put five-dollar gold pieces in five different servings of ice cream. Statler was revolutionizing the restaurant business and Buffalo's downtown business district in the process.

1901 Hotel, one block from the Pan-American Exposition

This was a temporary hotel to house the some of the many visitors to the Exposition. It
was demolished soon after the Exposition 1908 Statler Hotel, Washington & Swan Streets

In 1896, the magnificent Gothic style St. John's Episcopal Church, built in 1846, was
demolished and replaced by the Statler Hotel kitty-corner from the hive of offices in the Ellicott Square Building. See postcards of the hotel. 1923 Statler Hotel, 107 Delaware Avenue at Niagara Square

George B. Post and Son designed the Statler Hotel at 107 Delaware Avenue. Many
hotels erected nationally by Ellsworth M. Statler followed. The presence of the Renaissance Revival Statler at Niagara Square (where it replaced the Hollister-Fillmore house/Hotel Fillmore/Castle Inn) accelerated the commercial development that gradually overtook the two-mile stretch of Delaware Avenue between downtown and North Street. Ellsworth M. Statler died in his suite at the Pennsylvania Hotel in New York of double pneumonia. He was one of the best known hotel proprietors in the United States. He built the first Statler hotel at the corner of Swan and Washington streets. Then he branched out and a string of Statler hotels were built by him in other cities. When Niagara Square had been decided upon as a civic center, Mr. Statler bought the. old Fillmore mansion and built a large hotel thereon, calling it Hotel Statler, and changing the name of his first hotel on the corner of Swan and Washington streets to Buffalo hotel. He also built the Erlanger theatre. Mr. Statler was born in Somerset County, Pennsylvania on October 26th,1863. He was an officer in various associations and a member of several clubs, as well as a 33rd degree Mason and a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France. - Source: Buffalo Historical Society Publications, Volume 30, 1930 While the practice of renting space to travelers stretches back to antiquity, what could be considered the modern concept of a hotel derives from 1794, when the City Hotel opened in New York City. While the practice of renting space was not new, the City Hotel was purported to be the first building devoted exclusively to hotel operations. For its time,

the building was quite large and possessed 73 rooms. Similar operations soon appeared in such nearby cities as Baltimore, Boston and Philadelphia. Interestingly, New York Citys first skyscraper was a hotel - the six story Adelphi Hotel. Hotels took a distinct step up in style and class when the Tremont House opened in Boston in 1829. This hotel was considered by many to be the beginning of what was regarded as first class service. With 170 rooms, the Tremont House was a large facility. In addition, the hotel offered features which, for the time, were amazing. Private single and double rooms were available, which offered not only privacy, but also security. In addition to water pitchers and a washing bowl, free soap was provided in each room. The Tremont House offered French cuisine and, reportedly, was the first hotel to have a Bellboy. In 1908, the Buffalo Statler opened, marking the beginning of the modern commercial hotel era. Many services now considered standard were introduced by the Statler, including such amenities as a light switch next to the door, private bathe, ice water and a morning newspaper. The Statler set the standard of the day by being clean, comfortable and affordable. The Statler served as the pattern for hotel design and operation for many years. In the 1920s, hotel building entered a boom phase and many famous hotels were opened, including the Waldorf Astoria, New Yorks Hotel Pennsylvania, and the Chicago Hilton and Towers, which was originally named the Stevens. Motels began to replace roadside cabins as use of the automobile spread throughout society. Offering clean rooms with adjacent parking, motels enjoyed great popularity with the traveling public. In the 1950s and 1960s, the practice of franchising appeared within the industry. Franchising enabled entrepreneurs to expand their operations without the use of substantial capital. For much of their history, hotels were owned and operated by individuals. However, as franchises and chains began to appear, individually owned hotels found themselves increasingly at a competitive disadvantage. By the 1960s, independent prospects began to improve as the result referral organizations such as Quality Courts, Best Western, Master Host and Best Eastern. From the 1980s forward, mergers and acquisitions became common within the industry, and brands become hotly traded commodities. Recently, use of management companies has entered the mainstream. As a result, many chains are more involved in management than in ownership. These chains realize a much

more predictable and steady income stream than had normally been yielded by ownership.

[1] History of Hospitality. 27 March 2007. 6 June 2007. http://schonwalder.org/historyHotel.htm back to table of contents

Trends
In the 1980's there was extensive merger and acquisition activity between hotel and nonhotel companies. Many companies are now selling specific brands in an effort to get back to their core business. Another trend in the hotel and beverage industry is paperless inventory systems. Improvements in scanning equipment have made this possible. In many instances, ordering, delivery, payment and stocking are all initiated and accomplished by software prompted by information captured by scanning equipment with very little human involvement. Some chains have sold ownership in their hotels to foreign investors while still maintaining control. This provided the capital that was needed for further expansion. REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) have been created to allow smaller investors to participate in mortgages and equities. Product segmentation has become more popular. Luxury and first class hotels have created more amenities and products for their customers while economy and budget motels have cut back services in order to maintain lower prices. Also specialized extended stay and suite hotels have become more popular. Hotels with indoor water parks are one of the newest trends. Timeshares is another segment that many hotel companies are involved with recently. The development, sale, and management of timeshares have become particularly popular with the large chains. Franchising continues to flourish in the hotel industry. Audit issues cover a variety of areas, as would be expected. In addition to matters such as cost segregation, which impact numerous industries, hotel companies have undertaken such activities as donating used bedding as they upgrade their equipment, using trusts to defer income, delaying recognition of last day of the year receipts, franchising, condo conversion, and so forth.

Several years ago, customers generally called a toll-free number to make room reservations. In 2006, about 50% of hotel rooms were booked through the internet. The number of domestic hotel rooms reserved for smokers is declining as major hotel chains are beginning to decrease their total number of smoking rooms or becoming nonsmoking facilities altogether. Other recent trends in the industry include luxury mattresses, complimentary breakfast, high definition TV, high speed internet access, Wi-Fi (wireless internet access), and room suites. A recent 2006 trend is hotels re-imaging their lobbies to destination places. For example part of the lobby may be used for a breakfast area in the morning and a bar at night. This may include sliding walls, decorative lighting, and music. One reason for this is to generate more income per square foot. A July 2005 article from Knight Ridder Newspapers[2] highlights what the major chains are upgrading in the sleep department. The article provided the following information: Marriott International has been replacing mattresses at its Marriott and Renaissance hotels for several years and is adding new bedding at its 2,400 hotels, including higher thread count sheets, down comforters and duvet covers at a cost of $190 million. Hilton Hotels is introducing new bedding across its brand, including Hilton, Doubletree and Embassy Suites. There will be higher thread count sheets, plush top mattresses, extra pillows and user friendly clocks. Crown Plaza replaced some 50,000 beds and bedding in 2004, hired a sleep doctor for advice on relaxation, and tossed in a sleep kit for guests. Radisson in 2004 began moving in custom-designed Sleep Number beds at 230 of its hotels and resorts, with most of its 90,000 beds to be replaced by 2006. New bedding is also included in the makeover. Hyatt recently rolled out its Grand Bed, a 13 inch pillow-top mattress, and added more luxurious linens and decorative pillows. Starwood Hotels announced the debut of a new bed at its moderately priced brand, Four Points by Sheraton. The Four Comfort Bed, a $13 million investment, joins the Heavenly Bed and Sheraton Hotels Sweet Sleeper Bed in Starwoods lineup. Red Roof Inns will offer pillow top mattress pads, 230 thread count sheets and hypoallergenic pillows at select hotels.

Some Best Western hotels will add new mattresses, comforters, feather pillows and triple sheeting

Industry Terms

Industry Term ADJOINING ROOMS

Definition or Explanation Guestrooms located side by side without a connecting door between them. AFFILIATE A hotel chain's reservation system in which all participating RESERVATION properties are contractually related. Each property is represented SYSTEM in the computer system database and is required to provide room availability data to the reservation center on a timely basis. AFFILIATED A hotel that is a member of a chain, franchise, or referral system. HOTEL Membership provides special advantages, particularly a national reservation system. AMENITY Service or item offered to guests or placed in guestrooms for the comfort and convenience of guests, and at no extra cost. Examples are various guest services (such as in-room entertainment systems, automatic check-out, free parking, concierge services, and multilingual staff) in addition to an array of personal bathroom items offered by most hotels and motels. Amenities are designed to increase a hotel's appeal, enhance a guest's stay, and encourage guests to return. ATRIUM A guestroom floor configuration in which rooms are laid out off a single-loaded corridor encircling a multistory lobby space; also the multistory lobby space, usually with a skylight. AVERAGE A ratio that shows the average number of paid guests for each OCCUPANCY PER room sold. Calculated by dividing number of paid room guests by ROOM number of rooms sold. Measures management's ability to use the lodging facilities. AVERAGE ROOM A ratio that indicates average room rate, and to what extent rooms RATE are being up-sold or discounted; calculated by dividing rooms revenue by number of rooms sold. Also called average daily rate or ADR. BANQUET A meal prepared for a particular group, for which the number of guests and the menu are predetermined. Most properties offering banquet service have special facilities for banquet food production and service. BARTER The trading of merchandise instead of paying cash. (e.g. advertising) BED & A small inn or lodge that provides a room and a breakfast. Often a B&B is in a residential home setting and/or a historic building converted to a quaint lodging facility. BREAKFAST (B&B) BILLING CLERK The person responsible for charging to hotel guests all vouchers representing food, beverages, room service, and merchandise purchases. CALL A system that is part of the telephone equipment that prices ACCOUNTING telephone calls made by hotel guests and sends the information to the property management system (PMS) for billing.

Industry Term SYSTEM CASINO HOTEL

Definition or Explanation

A hotel that features legal gambling, with the hotel operation subordinate to the gambling operation. CENTRAL Part of an affiliate reservation network. A central reservation RESERVATION office typically deals directly with the public, advertises a central OFFICE (usually toll-free) telephone number, provides participating properties with necessary communications equipment, and bills properties for handling their reservations. CHAIN OPERATING A firm that operates several properties, such as Holiday Inn COMPANY Worldwide or Hilton Hotels Corporation. Such an operator provides both a trademark and a reservation system as an integral part of the management of its managed properties. CHECK-IN The procedures for a guest's arrival and registration. CHECK-OUT (1) The procedures for a guest's departure and the settling of his or her account. (2) A room status term indicating that the guest has settled his or her account, returned the room keys, and left the property. COMMERCIAL A property, usually located in a downtown or business district, HOTEL that caters primarily to business clients. COMPLIMENT-ARY A complimentary or "comp" room is an occupied room for which ROOM the guest is not charged. A hotel may offer comp rooms to a group in ratio to the total number of rooms the group occupies. One comp room may be offered for each fifty rooms occupied, for example. CONDOMINIUM A hotel in which an investor takes title to a specific hotel room, HOTEL which remains in the pool to be rented to transient guests whenever the investor is not using the room. The investor expects to receive a gain from the increase in value of the hotel over time, as well as receive ongoing income from the rental of his or her room. Cooperative Any arrangement by which a product or service is brought to advertising public notice over the names of both the supplier and any intermediary who comes between that supplier and the ultimate purchaser. The intermediary may be a retailer who buys a product for resale, a distributor who sells to retailers or other form of intermediaries. This arrangement results in consumer advertising as well as other forms of promotion. The cost of the promotion may be shared by the supplier and the intermediary, or the supplier may pay all costs. The process commonly involves reimbursing retailers for advertising they create and place. CORPORATE Hotel organization that has its own brand or brands, which may be HOTEL CHAIN managed by the corporate chain or by a conglomerate.

Lodging and food service businesses that provide short-term or transitional lodging and/or food. A large lodging facility, generally a hotel is full service and a multi-story building with interior entrance guest rooms. INDEPENDENT A hotel with no chain or franchise affiliation. It may be owned by HOTEL an individual proprietor or a group of investors. LATE CHARGE Charged purchase made by a guest that is posted to the guest's folio after the guest has settled his or her account. MID-PRICE/ Hotel that caters mostly to persons who must be in an area for a EXTENDED-STAY week or longer. The guestrooms of mid-price/extended-stay hotels HOTELS have more living space than regular hotel guestrooms, and may also have cooking facilities. Guestrooms in these hotels tend to be less expensive than guestrooms in full-service or all-suite hotels. Occupancy The percentage of available rooms occupied for a given period. POINT OF SALE Computerized systems that retail outlets such as restaurants, gift SYSTEM (POS) shops, etc, enter orders and maintain various accounting information. The POS generally interfaces with the property management system (PMS). PROPERTY A computerized front desk system that manages hotel room inventory, guest billing and interfaces with various other systems such as telephone, call accounting, point of sale (POS), MANAGEMENT entertainment, etc. SYSTEM (PMS) PROPRIETARY A internet reservation system that is owned and operated by an BOOKING ENGINE individual hotel or group of hotels to allow them to take reservation on their own website without paying a fee to the GDS, third party booking engines or franchise reservation systems. RACK RATE The current public rate quoted for each accommodation as established by the property's management. However, most rooms are discounted. (i.e. rented at less than the rate rack) RESERVATIONS A guestroom that being held under an individual or business' name at a particular hotel for a specific date or range of dates. RESORT HOTEL A hotel, usually located in a desirable vacation spot, that offers fine dining, exceptional service, activities unavailable at most other properties, and many amenities. ROOM A device that uses infrared light or ultrasonic sound waves to OCCUPANCY sense the physical occupancy of a room. Sensors have the ability SENSOR to turn on devices and appliances such as lights, air conditioning, and heating whenever a guest enters a space, and to turn these devices and appliances off when the guest leaves.

Industry Term GENERAL MANAGER HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY HOTEL

Definition or Explanation The chief operating officer of a hotel.

Definition or Explanation A card index system that is constantly updated to reflect occupied and vacant rooms. In the evening, the room rack contains forms for only those registered guests remaining for the night who are to be charged for rooms. A daily room report can be prepared from the room rack. ROOMS A front office application of a computer-based property MANAGEMENT management system. The module (a) maintains up-to-date MODULE information on the status of rooms, (b) assists in the assignment of rooms during registration, and (c) helps coordinate various guest services. SERVICE CHARGE A percentage of the bill (usually 15% to 20%) added to the guest charge for distribution to service employees in lieu of direct tipping. THIRD PARTY An internet site that provides a booking engine where a traveler BOOKING can search a large number of lodging facilities for availability and ENGINE reserve a room. The lodging facilities are not affiliated with the site and pay a fee for the business that the third party site generates. Examples of third party sites include: hotels.com, priceline.com. Transient Occupancy City or County tax added to the price of a hotel room. Tax WATERPARK A hotel that offers large recreational water elements such large HOTEL pools, multiple pools, slides or other water related venues. back to table of contents

Industry Term ROOM RACK

Accounting Principles
The lodging industry was reportedly one of the first industries to develop definitive standards to provide specific guidance to accountants and operators. The standards evolved because uniformity of layout and presentation were, and are, still not stressed under U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). [3]; Those standards were and are contained in the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry (USALI), which is published by the American Hotel and Motel Association. [4] While the accounting profession may not have seen fit to develop GAAP standards specifically applicable to the lodging industry, the USALI has been widely adopted within the industry. Although there is no requirement that a lodging operator use the USALI, the degree of compliance with this time-tested, turnkey system is substantial. The primary reason for widespread adoption of the USALI has been comparability. Lodging operators tend to use financial statement data generated by competitors as a

benchmark against which to measure their own operations. If comparability is lacking, then there are no benchmarks. Additionally, while the system was developed for use within the United States, many hotel operators around the world have adopted the USALI. Financial statements prepared for external users, are based on GAAP. In addition to other items commonly found in most financial statements, lodging industry financials are likely to report on such items as China, Glassware, Silver, Linen, and Uniforms (CGSLU), and the House Bank. The USALI is a highly departmentalized system of accounting, and includes Departmental Statements of Income. There are two main department classifications in a hotel: operating and overhead. The operating (revenue-producing) departments include rooms, food and beverage, telecommunications, and similar departments. The overhead departments include administrative and general, data processing, human resources, transportation, marketing, guest entertainment, energy costs, and property operation and maintenance. The USALI itself provides for up to 30 departmental statements, which include, in addition to those already mentioned: telecommunications, garage and parking, golf shop, golf pro shop, guest laundry, health center, swimming pool, tennis, tennis pro shop, other operated departments, rentals and other income, human resources, information services, security, franchise fees, management fees, rent, property taxes and insurance, interest expense, depreciation and amortization, income taxes, house laundry, salaries and wages and payroll taxes and employee benefits. The principal differences between a hotels transactions and internal control and those of other businesses are found in the revenue cycle. Room revenue is the most important source of income to a hotel. The front desk is the center of the hotels operation and the place where the guest ledger, which summarizes and accumulates all charges to guests using the hotel facilities, is maintained. Some of the functions performed by front desk personnel are registering guests, recording room revenue, recording food and beverage and other guest charges, checking out guests, and settling guests bills. There are numerous articles and books that further explain the hotel business. For more information, refer to Montgomerys Auditing by OReilly,Vincent M., et al., Twelfth Edition. new York: Wiley, 1998. Montgomerys Auditing recommends the following substantive tests for room revenue for financial statement purposes:

Review reconciliations of rooms occupied per the front desk to the housekeepers daily inspection report or the exception report Compare the room rate charged on the guest folio with that on the guest registration and room rack for a selected number of folios Trace room charges to guest folios and compare with established rates

Trace cash receipts to the cashiers report and the cash receipts journal

Montgomerys Auditing recommends the following for revenue deductions (allowances):

Determine that adjustments (credits) made to guests accounts in connection with overcharges, disputed charges or rate changes were properly approved Review supporting documentation for propriety Trace credit postings to individual guest folios

From a tax audit standpoint, the available descriptions of hotel operations would seem to suggest considerable opportunity for manipulation of both revenue and expenses. Room rates vary considerably depending on a variety of factors - e.g., group rates versus individual rates, etc. The occupancy rate would appear to be another area of potential concern. While these concerns may not be overly great in the case of publicly traded companies who have to undergo an audit in the post Sarbanes-Oxley atmosphere, there may be of considerable concern with non-publicly traded companies. Additionally, one of the newest areas that is gaining significance in the industry is the barter transaction. A barter transaction occurs when a property agrees to provide accommodation and/or other services in exchange for external services, for example advertising. While USALI recognizes barter transactions as executory contracts that do not need to be recorded in the financial statements until service is provided or received, it suggests that to provide more complete information for decision-making, the internal records reflect the transaction by recording an asset and a liability at the time the barter transaction is negotiated. The value assigned to this transaction should be a conservative average of the market rate for similar accommodations or services at the property, per the USALI.[5] When services are provided by the property, revenues are recorded and charged to the barter liability. On the other side, the expense is offset against the barter asset account when the service is received. For external reporting purposes, USAL suggests that the asset and liability accounts be netted and reflected as a current asset or liability. This will result in revenues and expenses associated with the barter transaction being reported in different periods. [6] Ratio analysis, in general, comprises the same types of ratios used in almost any industry. However, there are a few industry specialized ratios peculiar to hotels and/or restaurants of which one should be aware.

Average Room Rate = Rooms Revenue divided by Paid Rooms Occupied.

Average Food Check = Total Food Revenue divided by Number of Covers. Covers refer to guests served in the food operation during the period.

A key recent addition is RevPar, which stands for Revenue per Available Room. It is calculated as either: Rooms Revenue divided by Rooms Available for Sale, or as Rooms Revenue divided by Rooms Available. The USALI expresses a preference for the second computation because [t]he purpose of the ratio is to determine whether the inventory of rooms is being managed optimally. Therefore, the denominator should also include rooms out of order and temporary house use rooms.[7] The USALI also discusses a sample chart of accounts, which uses a twelve-digit numbering system, consisting of four clusters of three digits each. The first three digits are the property number. The second three digits are the revenue departments or cost centers. The third three digits are the major accounts on the balance sheet or income statement and the final three digits are sub-accounts useful for analysis and control. Obviously, this may vary considerably from taxpayer to taxpayer. The descriptions contained in this guide only scratch the surface of standard practices within the hotel industry which are either unique to the hotel industry, or are uncommon in most other industries. A partial listing of available publications is provided elsewhere within this guide should additional information be required.

[3] Popowich, Taylor, and Daria Sydor. "Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry: Are you up to Date?" The Journal of Hospitality Financial & Technology Professionals. Volume 12, Number 7 (October/November 1997). 28 June 2007 http://www.hftp.org/members/bottomline/backissues/1997/Oct-Nov/index.html. [4] Hotel Association of New York City, Inc. Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry. Ninth Revised Edition. Lansing, MI. Educational Institue of the American Hotel & Lodging Association. 1996. [5] Popowich, Taylor, and Daria Sydor. "Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry: Are you up to Date?" The Journal of Hospitality Financial & Technology Professionals. Volume 12, Number 7 (October/November 1997). 28 June 2007http://www.hftp.org/members/bottomline/backissues/1997/Oct-Nov/index.html. [6] Ibid. [7] Ibid. Reference: http://www.irs.gov/businesses/article/0,,id=175619,00.html#3

Biography

Ritz was born in Niederwald, Switzerland, to a farming family. He began his career at Le Splendide, a hotel in Paris and was matre d'htel at Chez Voisin, a restaurant which closed following the Franco-Prussian war of 1870. In 1878, he became the manager of the Grand Htel National in Lucerne and held the same position, in parallel, at the Grand Htel in Monaco until 1888. A pioneer in the development of luxury hoteliering, he knew how to entice wealthy customers and quickly gained a reputation for good taste and elegance. In 1888, he opened a restaurant with Auguste Escoffier in Baden-Baden, and the two were then invited to London by Richard D'Oyly Carte to become the first manager and chef of the Savoy Hotel, positions they held from 1889 until 1897.[1] Ritz put together what he described as "a little army of hotel men for the conquest of London". The Savoy under Ritz was an immediate success, attracting a distinguished and moneyed clientle, headed by the Prince of Wales. Aristocratic women, hitherto unaccustomed to dine in public, were now "seen in full regalia in the Savoy dining and supper rooms".[1] In 1897, Ritz and Escoffier were both dismissed from the Savoy. Ritz was implicated in the disappearance of over 3400 of wine and spirits.[2] In 1898, he opened the celebrated Htel Ritz in the Place Vendme, Paris, France. He went on to open The Ritz Hotel in London, United Kingdom in 1906, which became one of the most popular meeting places of the era, for the rich and famous. The Hotel Ritz Madrid in Madrid, Spain opened in 1910, inspired by King Alfonso XIIIs desire to build a luxury hotel to rival the Ritz in Paris. Ritz enjoyed a long partnership with Escoffier, the famous French chef and father of modern French cooking. The partnership lasted until Ritz had to retire in 1907 due to deteriorating health. Ritz died in Kssnacht, near Lucerne, Switzerland at the age of 68. He is buried in the village of his birth.

[edit] See also

Charles Ritz

[edit] Notes
1. ^ a b Ashburner, F."Escoffier, Georges Auguste (18461935)", Oxford Dictionary of National 2.
Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, May 2006, accessed 17 September 2009 ^ Brigid, Allen. "Ritz, Csar Jean (18501918)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edition, May 2006, accessed 18 September 2009

[edit] References

Ritz, une histoire plus belle que la lgende - Claude Roulet - Editions Quai Voltaire - 1998 ISBN 2912517044 Ritz, The King of Hoteliers and Host of Kings, Film by Frank Garbely, r-film Zurich 2007, ISAN 0000-0000-62E8-0000-U-0000-0000-L

REFERNCE:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/CRitz.jpg
Colonel John Jacob Astor IV was born in Rhinebeck, New York on July 13th, 1864 the son of William Astor and great-grandson of John Jacob Astor the fur trader. Astor was educated at St. Paul's School, Concord and later went to Harvard. After a period of travelling abroad (1888-91) he returned to the United States to manage the family fortune. He had homes at 840 Fifth Avenue, New York and at Ferncliff , Rhinebeck, New York. In 1894 Astor wrote a semi-scientific novel A Journey in Other Worlds . During his life he also developed several mechanical devices including a bicycle brake (1898), helped to develop the turbine engine, and invented a pneumatic road-improver. In 1897 Astor built the Astoria Hotel, New York adjoining the Waldorf Hotel which had been built by William Waldorf Astor, his cousin. The new complex became known as the Waldorf-Astoria. Astor's real-estate interest included two other hotels, the Hotel St. Regis (1905) and the Knickerbocker (1906). He became Colonel-staff to General Levi P. Morton and in 1898, at the time of the SpanishAmerican War, was commissioned as a lieutenant colonel in the US volunteers. He placed his yacht Nourmahal at the disposal of the U.S. government and equipped a mountain battery of artillery for use against the Spanish. On 1 May 1891 Astor was married to Ava, daughter of Edward Shippen Willing of Philadelphia . Together they had a son and one daughter. However, in 1909 Astor divorced Ava and, two years later, married eighteen-year-old Madeleine Force (who was a year younger than his son Vincent). Public opinion was divided concerning the respectability of Astor's actions, and the newlyweds decided to winter abroad in order to let the gossip die down at home. Mr and Mrs Astor travelled to Egypt and Paris and, in the spring of 1912, decided to return to America as First Class passengers on board the brand new Titanic .

They boarded the Titanic at Cherbourg with Colonel Astor's manservant Mr Victor Robbins , Mrs Astor's maid Miss Rosalie Bidois , Miss Caroline Louise Endres Mrs Astor's private nurse and their pet Airedale Kitty. Their ticket was PC 17757 which cost 224 10s 6d. They occupied cabins C-62-64. After the accident Astor left his suite to investigate, he quickly returned and reported to his wife that the ship had struck ice. He reassured her that the damage did not appear serious. Later, when the first class passengers had begun to congregate on the boat deck , the Astors sat on the mechanical horses in the gymnasium. They wore their lifebelts but Colonel Astor had found another and cut the lining with a pen knife to show his wife what it was made of. Even as the boats were loaded Astor appeared unperturbed, he ridiculed the idea of trading the solid decks of the Titanic for a small lifeboat 'we are safer here than in that little boat' . He had changed his mind by 1:45 when Second Officer Charles Lightoller arrived on A deck to finish loading Lifeboat 4 . Astor helped his wife to climb through the windows of the enclosed promenade and then asked if he might join her, being as she was in 'a delicate condition'. Lightoller told him that no men could enter until all the women had been loaded. Astor stood back and just asked Lightoller which boat it was. After boat 4 was lowered at 1:55 Astor stood alone while others tried to free the remaining collapsible boats. Astor's body was recovered on Monday April 22 by the cable ship McKay-Bennett (#124):

Refernce: http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/titanic-biography/john-jacob-astor.html