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'''Fontainebleau Miami Beach''' or '''Fontainebleau Hotel''' is one of the most historically and architecturally significant hotels on [[Miami Beach]]. Built in 1954 and designed by [[Morris Lapidus]], it was considered the most luxurious hotel on Miami Beach, and is thought to be the most significant building of Lapidus's career. The resort reopened in November 2008 following a brief closure for a $1 billion renovation, and is once again a celebrated resort playground and hotspot for celebrities like Sting, Gwenyth Paltrow, and Kate Hudson. |
'''Fontainebleau Miami Beach''' or '''Fontainebleau Hotel''' is one of the most historically and architecturally significant hotels on [[Miami Beach]]. Built in 1954 and designed by [[Morris Lapidus]], it was considered the most luxurious hotel on Miami Beach, and is thought to be the most significant building of Lapidus's career. The resort reopened in November 2008 following a brief closure for a $1 billion renovation, and is once again a celebrated resort playground and hotspot for celebrities like Sting, Gwenyth Paltrow, and Kate Hudson. |
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Fontainebleau Miami Beach is situated on oceanfront Collins Avenue in the heart of [[Millionaire's Row]] and is currently owned by [[Fontainebleau Resorts]]. Fronting the Atlantic Ocean, the |
Fontainebleau Miami Beach is situated on oceanfront Collins Avenue in the heart of [[Millionaire's Row]] and is currently owned by [[Fontainebleau Resorts]]. Fronting the Atlantic Ocean, the 1,504-room resort’s most distinguishing features include 11 restaurants and lounges, most notably Gotham Steak, Scarpetta, and Hakkasan; a 40,000-square-foot spa with mineral-rich water therapies and co-ed swimming pools; and a dramatic oceanfront poolscape featuring a free-form pool shaped as a re-interpretation of Lapidus’ signature bow-tie design. |
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Revision as of 22:12, 9 February 2009
Fontainebleau Hotel | |
 | |
  | |
| Location | Miami Beach, Florida, USA |
|---|---|
| Built | 1954 |
| Architect | Morris Lapidus |
| NRHP reference No. | 08001318[1] |
| Added to NRHP | December 22, 2008[1] |
Fontainebleau Miami Beach or Fontainebleau Hotel is one of the most historically and architecturally significant hotels on Miami Beach. Built in 1954 and designed by Morris Lapidus, it was considered the most luxurious hotel on Miami Beach, and is thought to be the most significant building of Lapidus's career. The resort reopened in November 2008 following a brief closure for a $1 billion renovation, and is once again a celebrated resort playground and hotspot for celebrities like Sting, Gwenyth Paltrow, and Kate Hudson.
Fontainebleau Miami Beach is situated on oceanfront Collins Avenue in the heart of Millionaire's Row and is currently owned by Fontainebleau Resorts. Fronting the Atlantic Ocean, the 1,504-room resort’s most distinguishing features include 11 restaurants and lounges, most notably Gotham Steak, Scarpetta, and Hakkasan; a 40,000-square-foot spa with mineral-rich water therapies and co-ed swimming pools; and a dramatic oceanfront poolscape featuring a free-form pool shaped as a re-interpretation of Lapidus’ signature bow-tie design.
History
Lapidus once wrote, “If you create a stage and it is grand, everyone who enters will play their part.” He conceived of the ideas for the hotel each morning as he took a subway from Flatbush to his office in Manhattan. The hotel was built by hotelier Ben Novak on the Firestone estate.
Fontainebleau is famous for its victory in the landmark 1959 Florida District Courts of Appeal decision, Fontainebleau Hotel Corp. v. Forty-Five Twenty-Five, Inc. 114 So. 2d 357, in which the Fontainebleau Hotel successfully appealed an injunction by the neighboring Eden Roc Hotel, to prevent construction of an expansion that blocked sunlight to the Eden Roc's swimming pool. The Court rejected the Eden Roc's claim to an easement allowing sunlight, in favor of affirming the Fontainebleau's vertical property rights to build on its land.[2][3]
In the 1970s a suite in the hotel is known to have been used by members of the Black Tuna Gang to run their operations.
The hotel closed a large part of its property in 2006, though one building remained open to hotel guests, and the furnishings were available for sale. The expanded hotel and its new condominium buildings re-opened in November of 2008[4], with a new generation of VIPs for the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2008. Singer and song writer Robin Thicke and a surprise performance from Grammy Award winning global icon Mariah Carey entertained a star-studded audience including Sean “DIDDY” Combs, A-Rod, Terrence Howard, Paris Hilton, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Hudson and Chloe Sevigny.
Film history
Fontainebleau Miami Beach is featured in the James Bond film Goldfinger, most notably in the sweeping aerial shot that follows the opening credits and accompanies composer John Barry's big-band track "Into Miami".
The swimming pool is shown in Frank Sinatra's 1959 A Hole in the Head. Sinatra, Tony Manetta comes to a party for businessman and friend Keenan Wynn Jerry Marks.
The hotel was also the setting for Jerry Lewis's comedy film, The Bellboy. It gained a second round of architectural fame by its inclusion in critic and novelist Tom Wolfe's From Bauhaus to Our House, published in 1981, which referred to the condescending way that Lapidus was treated by the architectural profession and critics. The hotel, predominantly the pool area, was featured in the 1983 film Scarface. Other movies filmed there include Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach, The Specialist and Bodyguard.
The Fontainebleau was also the location of the Bravo television network's show Top Chef in the third season.
Renovations
Fontainebleau's star-studded grand opening marked the end of a two year, $1 billion transformation. All 1,504 guestrooms and suites are outfitted with flat screen TVs and Apple technology, including iMac computers to deliver general hotel information, daily newspapers, and interactive capabilities.
Fontainebleau Miami Beach features an unprecedented collection of dining experiences, including some of the most celebrated and exciting chefs in the world today such as Alfred Portale, Scott Conant, and Alan Yau. The 22-acre, oceanfront property offers 11 dining destinations of varying style and cuisine, each showcasing fresh, innovative flavors in warm, engaging environments created by renowned designers including Jeffrey Beers and French firm Gilles & Boissier.
Restaurants and nightclubs in the complex including the signature:
- Gotham Steak
- Scarpetta (Italian)
- Hakkasan (Cantonese)
- La Côte (two-level poolside bar and grille)
- Blade Sushi Bar
- Vida (Pan American)
- Solo (Café & Patisserie)
- Fresh (Snacks & Gelato)
- LIV (Nightclub, a.k.a. '54 formerly Tropigala Lounge)
- Bleau Bar
On December 22, 2008, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.[1]
References
- ^ a b c "Weekly List Of Actions Taken On Properties: 12/22/08 through 12/24/08". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2008-12-30.
- ^ FOUNTAINEBLEAU HOTEL CORP., a Florida corporation, and Charnofree Corporation, a Florida corporation, Appellants, v. FORTY-FIVE TWENTY-FIVE, INC., a Florida corporation, Appellee. @ LexisNexis Academic
- ^ Case @ University of Chicago
- ^ Fontainebleau Hotel & Resort - Miami Beach, Florida - www.fontainebleau.com