top of page

Celebrity Mayhem and Madness at the Chateau Marmont

seelainaday

Those who know don't tell, and those who tell don't know.


Los Angeles is full of hotels. Big chain hotels, boutiques, seaside resorts, youth hostels, 5 star accommodations, Airbnb's, and more. Many of these locations have gone on to become historic landmarks, notable for their architecture, architect, or clientele. Some become internationally known, like the tragic Hotel Cecil or the glamorous Beverly Hills Wilshire. Out of all the famous hotels in Los Angeles, one has garnered a reputation like no other; the Chateau Marmont. While some have called the Garden of Allah (a hotel worthy of its own article) LA's most debaucherous hotel, many would argue that title truly lies with the notorious Chateau Marmont. If the walls could talk at any building in LA, the Marmont would be the one to have a conversation with!


A view of the Chateau Marmont from Sunset Boulevard
A view of the Chateau Marmont from Sunset Boulevard

Fred Horowitz, a prominent LA attorney, bought the land where the Marmont sits today in 1926. He hired his brother-in-law, architect Arnold A. Weitzman, to design a residence that would evoke the old Chateau d’Amboise in France (near where Leonardo da Vinci is buried.) They kicked several names around, but settled on the Chateau Marmont, named for the street in front of the hotel. The street itself was named for Percy Marmont, an English silent film actor.


LA Times Advertisement from February 13th, 1929
LA Times Advertisement from February 13th, 1929

Opened in 1929, the Marmont stepped onto the LA scene with a newspaper marketing push. Papers across the city touted the Marmont as the new place to be for the emerging Hollywood aristocracy. Close enough to Hollywood and the studios for convenience while being far enough from the hustle and bustle to provide tenants with well-deserved privacy. Things got off to a slow, but ok start, but after the stock market crash in October of that year, many tenants did not, or could not, renew their leases. Fearing that the trend would continue (and forced to by his partners,) Horowitz sold the Marmont to Albert E. Smith of Vitagraph Studios for $750,000 in cash ($14 million today.) The property was converted to a hotel and silent film actress Ann Little took over as manager.


This is when the Marmont began to develop the reputation we know it for today. Having found success during the 1932 Olympics, the hotel cemented itself as a discreet getaway at the eastern end of what was becoming known as the Sunset Strip; a playground for the rich and famous stars of the silver screen.  As Hollywood faced a moral pushback due to multiple scandals (see Olive Thomas, William Desmond Taylor, Fatty Arbuckle, etc…), studio heads needed a place where they could allow their wild stars to let loose without fear of repercussions. The Marmont quickly filled that role. Harry Cohn, head of Columbia Pictures, famously told his actors “if you must get into trouble, do it at the Marmont.”


Chateau Marmont postcard // Water and Power Associates
Chateau Marmont postcard // Water and Power Associates

Stories at the Marmont range from comical to disastrous to salacious. On the comical side Billy Wilder (director of The Seven Year Itch, Sunset Blvd, Some Like it Hot) had to sleep in the closet sized antechamber of the women’s restroom off the lobby. He quipped “It was a small room, but it had 6 toilets!” For a disastrous/comical story, Jim Morrison stayed here in 1970, the year before his death. He was known for swinging around from balcony to balcony… until he fell 2 stories onto his back. Jim Morrison credited the Chateau Marmont with claiming 8 of his 9 lives. Bette Davis nearly burned down the hotel twice (once with a cigarette and once with a short-circuit), Led Zeppelin got kicked out of the main building for partying, Humphrey Bogart’s mother lived there and bragged to everyone about her son! For a sinister true crime connection, Sharon Tate and Polanski stayed here until she found out she was pregnant, they then moved to the home where she would be killed by the Manson Family. Then, Polanski came back to the Chateau Marmont for his final night in America before fleeing due to the statutory rape of Samantha Geimer. Photographer Helmut Newton had a heart attack in his car and lost control in the driveway. He crashed into a nearby wall and died later that day. Scarlett Johansen and Benicio del Toro (most likely) had a romantic encounter in the elevator. Desi Arnaz would slink off there after having been caught cheating by Lucille Ball, Lindsay Lohan was kicked out, and Britney Spears was banned… Stories about the Marmont are endless!


Now, discretion is the name of the game at the Chateau Marmont, and while some stories may have escaped the walls of the Marmont, it’s likely that MANY more have not and will never be known to anyone other than the guests and management. But, one story looms large over the history of the Chateau Marmont - the death of comedian John Belushi.


John Belushi // USA Today
John Belushi // USA Today

John Belushi was one of the hottest comedians on Earth in 1982. After success with Animal House, Blues Brothers, and Saturday Night Live, it seemed like nothing could stop Belushi. Unfortunately, Belushi’s drug habit would be the end of him. Belushi was massively addicted to cocaine and it was no secret. Dan Akroyd has even claimed that there was money set aside in the Blues Brothers budget for cocaine to get Belushi through night shoots. At his worst, Belushi was spending around $2,500 a week on cocaine (amateur numbers compared to John Holmes.) It could have been the pressure of his success or emotional issues, Harold Ramis described John Belushi as “exhausted” and in “total despair.” Whether he did cocaine because he was sad or was sad because he did cocaine is unclear, but it was unraveling his life.

 

In February of 1982, Belushi checked into bungalow #3 of the Chateau Marmont. Over the next week or so, he would frequent the home of Cathy Smith. Smith was a Canadian drug dealer that Belushi had met on the set of SNL. She would inject Belushi with cocaine over and over again during his stay in LA. On the evening of March 4th, after days of bouncing around Hollywood and avoiding the calls of his wife Judy and friend Dan, Belushi found himself in the company of Robert de Niro, Robin Williams, and Cathy Smith. De Niro and Williams dropped by individually after partying on the Strip. They did a little coke and were apparently grossed out by the state of the room and Belushi. De Niro, also, did not like the look of Cathy Smith, he described her as “trashy.” It was past 3am (on the 5th) by the time everyone had come and gone. Only Cathy remained with Belushi in his room.  Smith at one point injected Belushi with a speedball, a concoction of heroin and cocaine. Belushi apparently did not take it well and it made him vomit. The two slept through the night and, in the morning, Cathy signed for room service. She checked in on John and brought him a glass of water. He claimed to be ok, but also asked not to be left alone. Despite his request, Cathy left around 10am to run some errands. Closer to noon, Belushi’s bodyguard and trainer, Bill Wallace, discovered the body of Belushi. This being Hollywood, his first call was to Hollywood manager Bernie Brillstein - not 911. At first, Brillstein thought Belushi was playing some sort of joke on him, but Wallace’s repeated calls and panic made it clear that paramedics were needed. However, by the time they arrived, Belushi had stopped breathing and was pronounced dead at the scene.

*Note that versions of this story differ. Some versions have Belushi out, partying on the Strip and around LA on evening of the 4th. Other versions have Belushi staying in his hotel room and everyone coming to see him in bungalow #3.


LA Times front page March 6th, 1982
LA Times front page March 6th, 1982

The body was removed from the Chateau Marmont. Guests did not even know what had happened until they saw the coroner’s vehicle. But, quickly, press and paparazzi descended on the hotel. One hotel manager was so good at dealing with the press that the LAPD offered them a job. In spite of the hotel's attempts at discretion, by the end of the day, the whole world had heard of the Chateau Marmont. There have been so may noteworthy incidents and events at the Chateau Marmont throughout its history, still, it is the story of Belushi’s death that has gone on to define the legacy of the Chateau Marmont.


Media Madness at the Marmont // AP Photo
Media Madness at the Marmont // AP Photo

With so many wild stories and events having been set within the walls of the Chateau Marmont, it is no surprise the hotel is a hotbed of paranormal activity. Room 64 was famously the spot where Howard Hughes would stay. His mental health was deteriorating, leading to the eventual retreat to his Pantages Theatre. Something to note about Room 64 is that it has a great view of the pool and it is believed Howard Hughes took advantage of that fact so that he could watch starlets swim below him. Some have the theory that the Evan Peters character in American Horror Story: Hotel is tied to the stories of Room 64. Another story involves one man who awoke to find his room full of the sounds of a wild party raging all around him. It turns out that The Doors were frequent guests of that room all loved to throw an all-night rager! In a different tale, a woman was lying in bed and heard the window open. Struck with fear, she pulled the covers tight over her head. She could hear the sound of footsteps, someone was walking towards her bed. All of a sudden, the bed sagged with the weight of a second occupant, the intruder was now in the bed with this woman! Nothing happened after that, and when she peeked out from under the blanket there was nothing there. Phew! She thought that she must be losing her mind and had forgotten that her first floor room had security bars over the window. When that woman looked across the room, she noticed there were bars on her window… yet, the window itself had been opened. Perhaps it was the spirit of James Dean, who was said to sneak into the Marmont to solidify his rebellious persona for the upcoming Rebel Without a Cause?


The privacy of the Marmont provides its guests a blanket of protection when it comes to indulging certain desires. Many have hidden away at the Marmont, living here for months on end, treating their lives like an endless party. The Marmont is simultaneously the place for stars on their way up and their way down. As of 2020, the Chateau Marmont has pivoted to be more of a member’s only getaway in the heart of Los Angeles. So, don’t try and just walk-in while you’re exploring the Sunset Strip! Like the rest of Los Angeles and the Sunset Strip, the Chateau Marmont continues to evolve and change with the times. The wild party days may be behind the Chateau, but it still stands; a reminder of the appeal and danger of the Hollywood lifestyle.


You can see the Chateau Marmont as a part of the Sunset Strip True Crime tour!


Chris Westbrook


Sources:

Tales from the Sunset Strip: A Century in the Fast Lane by Van Gordon Sauter, Robert Landau, and Frans Evenhuis


6 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

コメント


  • Facebook
  • Instagram

©2021 by See LA in a Day. Proudly created with Wix.com

bottom of page