Story and history of the Old Diplomat Hotel Owner: Samuel Friedland from Moldovia (Russia) Children: Three boys and one girl (half-sister) Margie. Mr. Cowan married Margie 1958 Samuel Friedland founder of Food Fair Supermarket chain, opens the 750 room Diplomat on South Ocean Dr. designed by the famous Miami Beach architect Normal Giller. 1962 Lawrence Welk filmed his first TV show in Florida. Saudi Arabian Sheik Mohammed Al-Fassi rented two floors at the Diploma and was arrested after trying to skip out of a 1.4 million dollar tab. He unsuccessfully sued the hotel for 1 trillion dollars. 1965 Sen. Robert Kennedy, his wife Ethel, and his mother Rose Kennedy attended the John Kennedy Memorial Ball. 1966 Judy Garland played at the hotels Cafe Cristal. 1967 Sammy Davis Jr. and Liza Minelli did their first host concert. A record of 3,200 attended. 1983 The hotel is closed for the winter season after a series of arson fires leads to losses of $30 million in business and $20 million in recent renovations. 1984 The hotel reopens. Former president Ronald Reagan addresses the ILA at the Diplomat and Bob Hope performs at the hotels 1984 New Years Eve Gala. Late 1980s financial difficulties resulted in entire floors of guestrooms and suites being closed. The hotel runs out of operating capital; and could not pay their 200 creditors. 1987 Irwing Cowan, son-in-law to Sam Friedland, gave up control of the hotel to a consortium of labor union pension funds, whose managers agreed to bail out the hotel with $44 million loan. June 1988 Harbaugh Hotels of Palm Springs, California, a management company hired by the lenders, began renovating the hotel. Jan. 1990 financial troubles persisted, forcing the hotels lenders to file a foreclosure suit only to later be dropped , creating the opportunity for new financing. May 30 1991 the hotel is sold to one if its lenders, the Union Labor Life Insurance Co.. The hotel was closed for renovation, but never reopened. July 1997 The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the US and Canada (UA) announced it had reached a tentative agreement to buy the hotel. October 1997 The hotel is sold to the UA. December 1997 The Diplomat hires the Coral Gables-based firm, Nichols, Brosh, Sandoval and Associates, to design a new 1,000-room hotel, convention center and retail complex. April 17, 1998 Five hundred pounds of dynamite are used to implode the historical hotel, marking the beginning of the new era of the Diplomat. March 15, 1999 The Country Club at the Diplomat opens to the public; Joe Lee-designed golf course, Pro Shops, locker rooms, 60 luxury guestrooms, 10-clay tennis courts, Grand Ballroom, The Royal Palm Room, The Links grill and the Tack Room Lounge. September 2000 The Spa at the Diplomat opens to the public; 30,000 sq ft featuring 20-treatment rooms and complete fitness facility August 2001 Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. appointed management company for the renamed Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa along with The Diplomat Country Club and Spa members of the Starwoods Luxury Collection January 2002 Scheduled opening of the main beachfront 1,000 hotel, adjacent 209,000 sq ft Convention Center and The Diplomat Landing a connected retail center and marina **See the Hollywood Historical Society’s book ‘Then & Now Hollywood’, page 62 for photos of both the original and current hotel structure, which the Historical Society sells for $21.99. Call if interested in purchasing a copy at (954) 923-5590.
Posted on: Wed, 28 May 2014 02:24:22 +0000
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