The Royal Hawaiian Hotel is a beachfront luxury hotel located in

Waikiki Waikiki (; haw, Waikīkī; ; also known as Waikiki Beach) is a neighborhood of Honolulu on the south shore of the island of Oahu in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Waikiki is most famous for Waikiki Beach, which is one of six beaches in the distri ...

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the isla ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, on the island of

Oahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O ...

. It is part of

The Luxury Collection Marriott International, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates, franchises, and licenses lodging including hotel, residential, and timeshare properties. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. T ...

brand of

Marriott International Marriott International, Inc. is an American multinational company that operates, franchises, and licenses lodging including hotel, residential, and timeshare properties. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. The company was founded by ...

. One of the first hotels established in Waikiki, the Royal Hawaiian is considered one of the most luxurious and famous hotels in Hawaiian tourism, and in its 95-year history has been host to numerous celebrities and world dignitaries. The bright pink hue of its concrete

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

façade with its

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Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or s ...

styled

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...

and prominent location on the wide sandy beach have earned it the alliterative nickname of "The Pink Palace of the Pacific".

History

With the success of the early efforts by

Matson Navigation Company Matson may refer to: *Matson (surname) *Matson, Gloucester, England, a suburb of Gloucester *Matson, Missouri, an unincorporated community *2586 Matson, an asteroid *Matson, Inc., a shipping company, formerly Matson Navigation Company *Matson Films ...

to provide steamer travel to America's wealthiest families en route to Hawaii, a series of resort hotels were built in Honolulu at the start of the twentieth century, including the Moana Hotel (1901) and Honolulu Seaside Hotel, both on Waikiki Beach, and the Alexander Young Hotel in downtown Honolulu (1903). By the 1920s, they were all owned by the Territorial Hotel Company. In 1925, with tourism to Hawaii growing rapidly, the Matson Line partnered with Castle & Cooke, one of the Big Five companies in territorial Hawaii. They formulated a "grand scheme" to make the islands a luxury destination. They would construct the fastest, safest, most expensive ocean liner ever built for the Hawaiian service (the SS ''Malolo''); a luxury beach resort hotel to serve the liner's passengers; and an exclusive golf club for the hotel's guests (the Waialae Country Club). Because Matson and Castle & Cooke had never operated hotels, they bought the Territorial Hotel Company, to run the new hotel, and then demolished the company's Honololu Seaside Hotel. On its site, they contracted the acclaimed New York firm of

Warren and Wetmore Warren and Wetmore was an architecture firm in New York City which was a partnership between Whitney Warren (1864–1943) and Charles Delevan Wetmore (June 10, 1866 – May 8, 1941), that had one of the most extensive practices of its time and w ...

to design the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. The sprawling pink stucco concrete façade

styled complex, built at a cost of over $4 million (1927 prices), was surrounded by a fifteen-acre (60,700 m²) landscaped garden. The H-shaped layout featured 400 rooms, each with bath and balcony. The Royal Hawaiian opened on February 1, 1927, with a

black tie Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element f ...

gala attended by over 1,200 guests, and quickly became an icon of Hawaii's glory days. The hotel was a huge success, and in 1928 the islands counted over 20,000 visitors for the first time. However, the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

struck in 1929, cratering tourism. In 1933, the Territorial Hotel Company was dissolved, with Matson assuming control of their hotels through its Hawaii Properties Ltd. division, and Castle & Cooke writing off their investment. In 1941, Hawaii Properties Ltd. was dissolved and Matson assumed direct control of the hotel. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the Royal Hawaiian was used exclusively by the US military as an R&R center. Barriers of concertina wire blockaded access from the adjacent beaches. The hotel recouped much of its clientele after 1945. It was sold, along with the rest of Matson's hotels in Hawaii, to

Sheraton Hotels Sheraton Hotels and Resorts is an international semi-luxury hotel chain owned by Marriott International. As of June 30, 2020, Sheraton operates 446 hotels with 155,617 rooms globally, including locations in North America, Africa, Asia Pacific, Ce ...

in 1959. During the 1960s, the "Pink Palace" was home to "Concert by the Sea" which broadcast daily through the

Armed Forces Radio Network The American Forces Network (AFN) is a government television and radio broadcast service the U.S. military provides to those stationed or assigned overseas. Headquartered at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland, AFN's broadcast operations, which i ...

(AFN). In September 1974,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

ese businessmen-brothers Kenji Osano and Masakuni Osano purchased the Royal Hawaiian Hotel from ITT Sheraton. They formed Kyo-ya Company Ltd, a subsidiary of Kokusai Kogyo Company Ltd as the corporate entity to manage all their hotels. After the Osano brothers' deaths, Takamasa Osano inherited their properties. The ground upon which the hotel is built is owned by

Kamehameha Schools Kamehameha Schools, formerly called Kamehameha Schools Bishop Estate (KSBE), is a private school system in Hawaii established by the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate, under the terms of the will of Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, who was a formal memb ...

, which leases the land. The Royal Hawaiian closed on June 1, 2008 for renovation. It reopened on January 20, 2009 as a member of

. An extended renovation of the Royal Beach Tower was completed in 2010. The Royal Hawaiian Hotel is a member of Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 ...

Architecture

The six-story structure has 400 rooms. It was designed in the

and

styles with

façades. Its design was influenced by

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

film star and legend

Rudolph Valentino Rodolfo Pietro Filiberto Raffaello Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguolla (May 6, 1895 – August 23, 1926), known professionally as Rudolph Valentino and nicknamed The Latin Lover, was an Italian actor based in the United States who starred ...

and his

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Pl ...

n movies.

Cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, f ...

s were created to resemble

Spanish Mission style The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...

bell towers. The

architects An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

were

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The hotel's public rooms were redecorated in 1946 by Frances Elkins, the sister of architect David Adler.

In popular culture

The hotel has featured in numerous media projects.

In film

* The hotel was used in the 1931

Charlie Chan Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan was conceived as an alter ...

film '' The Black Camel''. * The hotel lobby was used in the 1952 film ''

Big Jim McLain ''Big Jim McLain'' is a 1952 American film noir political thriller film starring John Wayne and James Arness as HUAC investigators hunting down communists in the postwar Hawaii organized-labor scene. Edward Ludwig directed. This was the fir ...

''. * The hotel appeared in the 1952 ''

Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series centers on the ...

'' animated/cartoon theatrical short '' Cruise Cat''. * The hotel was used in the 1962 movie '' Gidget Goes Hawaiian''. * The hotel was used in the 1978 film ''

Goin' Coconuts ''Goin' Coconuts'' is a 1978 American musical adventure comedy film directed by Howard Morris and starring Donny and Marie Osmond. The feature film was released in theaters on October 18, 1978. It was both a critical and commercial failure. Sho ...

'' * The hotel appeared in the 2002 film ''

Punch-Drunk Love ''Punch-Drunk Love'' is a 2002 American absurdist romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, and starring Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Luis Guzmán, and Mary Lynn Rajskub. It follows an entr ...

''. * The hotel appeared in the 2014 film ''

Big Eyes ''Big Eyes'' is a 2014 American biographical drama film directed by Tim Burton, written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, and starring Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz. It is about the relationship between American artist Margaret Keane ...

'' * The hotel was mentioned in the 1953 film " From Here to Eternity" by Burt Lancaster's character, Sgt. Warden. The film took place in 1941, so the reference to the Royal Hawaiian Hotel was in the context of 1941, not 1953, when the film was made.

In television

* The hotel's exterior appeared in the 1968-1980 procedural drama '' Hawaii Five-O''. * The hotel appeared in the 1977 ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, producing five seasons and 115 episodes. The series was created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts and was produced by ...

'' episode "Angels in Paradise". * The hotel appeared in the 1979 ''

Eight Is Enough ''Eight Is Enough'' is an American television comedy-drama series that ran on ABC from March 15, 1977, until May 23, 1981. The show was modeled on the life of syndicated newspaper columnist Tom Braden, a real-life parent with eight children, who ...

'' episode "Fathers and Other Strangers" Parts 1 and 2. * The hotel appeared in two episodes of the series '' Murder She Wrote''. * The hotel appeared in the 2002 episode "The Kyles Go To Hawaii" of ''

My Wife and Kids ''My Wife and Kids'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from March 28, 2001, to May 17, 2005. The series was produced by Touchstone Television. It starred Damon Wayans as Michael Kyle, the patriarch of an African-American family. Wayans and ve ...

''. * The hotel appeared in the 2013 ''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its f ...

'' season 6 premiere, "

The Doorway "The Doorway" is the two-part sixth season premiere of the American television drama series ''Mad Men''. Officially counted as the first two episodes of the season, it figures as the 66th and 67th overall episodes of the series. It was written ...

In music

* The hotel is referenced in

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her st ...

's 1970 song '' Big Yellow Taxi'' (as the "pink hotel").

In video games

* The hotel was featured in the Hawaii level in '' Tony Hawk’s Underground'', released in 2003 for the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube.

In books and novels

* The hotel is featured in the 1953 A A Fair novel "Some women won't wait" (Cool and Lam series)

Gallery

Image:Royal Hawaiian.jpg, The Royal Hawaiian Image:Royal-hawaiian.JPG, The Royal Hawaiian Image:Royal-hawaiian from beach.JPG, Royal Hawaiian seen from Waikiki Beach Image:Diamond head from Sheraton Waikiki.JPG, The Royal Hawaiian and Diamond Head, seen from the Sheraton Waikiki Royal Hawaiian Hotel - from outside - oct 2015.jpg, The Royal Hawaiian, with the modern Sheraton Waikiki behind it Image:Royal Hawaiian Hotel seen from the sea.jpg, The Royal Hawaiian, seen from the sea Image:Corp2267 - Flickr - NOAA Photo Library.jpg, The same view in 1969.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1927 establishments in Hawaii Commercial properties of Kamehameha Schools Hawaiian architecture Hotel buildings completed in 1927 Hotels established in 1927 Hotels in Honolulu Mediterranean Revival architecture in Hawaii The Luxury Collection Waikiki Warren and Wetmore buildings Historic Hotels of America