The Hollywood Roosevelt
7000 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90028
The Story
The headquarters of early Hollywood
This iconic hotel opened in 1927, financed by some of the biggest names in the business: Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Sid Grauman and Louis B. Mayer. The guest list at the grand opening read like a roll-call of the era — Chaplin, Swanson, Garbo, Clara Bow — and the Roosevelt quickly became the headquarters of early Hollywood glamour. Charlie Chaplin, H.G. Wells, Clark Gable and Carole Lombard were all regulars. Errol Flynn was a frequent guest too, though one suspects the Roosevelt's management preferred not to ask too many questions about what Flynn got up to on the premises.
" Clark Gable and Carole Lombard carried on their infamous affair in the penthouse, which cost $5 a night.
The first Academy Awards
The very first Academy Awards ceremony was held in the hotel's Blossom Room on 16 May 1929, and the Roosevelt has been trading on that distinction ever since. It was a fifteen-minute ceremony — nothing like the four-hour endurance test the Oscars have become.
Marilyn, the pool and a Hockney
Marilyn Monroe lived at the hotel for two years while she was a struggling model, and did her first commercial photo shoot by the pool. She is said to haunt the corridors to this day. The Tropicana Pool itself opened in 1950 as part of a $1 million "Promenade" tropical resort redesign. The grand opening on 16 June was an exercise in amusing Hollywood absurdity: airline hostesses ceremonially poured water samples from every ocean in the world into the pool. Today the pool is a David Hockney painting come to life — literally, Hockney painted the bottom of it — and you can stay in the Marilyn Monroe Suite, with its wraparound balcony overlooking the water.
A martini and a frame
For a nightcap, the Spare Room cocktail bar has two vintage 1930s bowling lanes if you fancy rolling a frame after your martini, in a room that looks as though it was designed for William Powell and Myrna Loy.
Signature Experiences
The Tropicana Pool
The pool opened in 1950 as part of a $1 million "Promenade" tropical resort redesign, with a grand opening on 16 June at which airline hostesses ceremonially poured water samples from every ocean in the world into it. It still has the famous David Hockney mural painted on its bottom.
The Marilyn Monroe Suite
A suite with a wraparound balcony overlooking the Tropicana Pool, named for the star who lived at the hotel for two years while her modelling career was taking off. Exclusive to hotel guests.
The Spare Room
A cocktail lounge inside the hotel with a twist: two vintage bowling lanes from the 1930s sit in the middle of the room. Order a classic cocktail, bowl a frame, and contemplate the fact that Clark Gable and Carole Lombard were conducting their affair upstairs while you roll.
The Blossom Room
The room that hosted the first ever Academy Awards ceremony on 16 May 1929 — a fifteen-minute affair, nothing like the four-hour endurance test the Oscars have since become.
Famous Connections
Who Came Here
Plan Your Visit
Good to Know
- How to Book: Book direct at thehollywoodroosevelt.com or by phone. The Marilyn Monroe Suite is exclusive to hotel guests; the Spare Room cocktail bar and bowling lanes are open to visitors.
- Best Time: Year-round. Tuesdays and Thursdays tend to be the cheapest nights for rooms.
- Accessibility: Contact the hotel directly to confirm accessible rooms and step-free access to the pool, bars and historic public rooms.
- Tip: A word of warning for light sleepers: the hotel runs poolside live music on weekends and has hosted pool parties on Sundays through the summer months. Marilyn Monroe is said to haunt the corridors, along with the ghost of 1950s idol Montgomery Clift, with sightings of both regularly reported by guests.
Related Reading
From the archives
Swimming Pools of Classic Hollywood
From the Neptune Pool at Hearst Castle to the cabanas of the Beverly Hills Hotel, discover the iconic swimming pools where Hollywood's elite lounged, schemed, and made history.
26 Old Hollywood Hotels You Can Still Book Today
26 hotels with genuine old Hollywood pedigree — from the Beverly Hills Hotel to Raffles Singapore — still taking reservations, still serving martinis, and still trading on golden-age glamour.
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