Sunday, September 27, 2009

"Honey, I think I've got writer's block!"

Was doing a web search for the Algonquin Hotel in St-Andrews-by-the-Sea, located about an hour south of us in New Brunswick, Canada, when I was stopped in my tracks by the following promotion at the legendary Algonquin Hotel in New York City:
Writer's Block Rate: Receive 25% off of the best possible rate. When you book through our website, simply by showing a work in progress or a published work upon check-in.
"But, Jake," you say, "A center-city New York hotel is going to be expensive." True, but the bright side is that the $500-plus nightly rate means you'll "save" $125 or more!!! A glance at the history page reveals that it's more than an intriguing marketing pitch--truly, you might be able to pick up some positive writing mojo. (Which, for that kind of dough, you darn well better.):
From its inception, manager (and later owner) Frank Case created a vision for The Algonquin as New York’s center of literary and theatrical life. His enduring fascination with actors and writers led him to extend them credit, in the process luring such luminaries as Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. and John Barrymore.

Famed women flocked to the hotel as well, as The Algonquin was unconventional early on in accommodating single women guests. Over the years, these have included Gertrude Stein, Simone de Beauvoir, Helen Hayes, Erica Jones, and Maya Angelou.

Three Nobel laureates visited on a regular basis, including Sinclair Lewis (who offered to buy the hotel), Derek Walcott, and most memorably William Faulkner, who drafted his Nobel Prize acceptance speech at The Algonquin in 1950.
The promotion, if you've got $375 plus tax burning a hole in your pocket, lasts through the end of 2009.

3 comments:

  1. I freaking love this! How brilliant...not just for the hotel...but for writers everywhere! Sign me up! --Kara

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  2. $375 isn't too bad for a Manhattan luxury hotel room. Does the "writer's block" part come with a money-back guarantee?

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  3. Ah, The Algonquin...ever hear of Nesya McMein? Famous for her cover art on the Saturday Evening Post...she drew the original Betty Crocker. ...."a lively and unselfconsciously beautiful woman and was a regular member of the Algonquin Round Table set, her closets friends being Irving Berlin, Noel Coward, Harpo Marx, Enda Ferber and Jascha Heifetz. Her 57th street studio was a popular gathering place." Neysa was born here in Hooterville...and only lived 2 blocks from where I live now. Cool.

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