Paramount | 1169 mins. | 1983 | Not Rated
Based on Arthur Hailey’s 1965 novel of the same name (which had also inspired a 1967 feature film), Hotel was created and produced by Aaron Spelling. Set in the elegant (and fictitious) St. Gregory Hotel in San Francisco, the show centered around the issues surrounding the revolving door if hotel guests and the steadying influence of the hotel staff. Like other Spelling shows before it, such as The Love Boat and Fantasy Island, Hotel’s premise allowed for a parade of past, present and future stars to appear in guest roles. Erin Moran, Shelley Winters, Robert Reed, Martin Landau, Jean Simmons, Donald O’Connor, Emma Samms and Eva Gabor are just a few of the people who stop into the St. Gregory during the first season.
James Brolin (Marcus Welby, MD) stars as Peter McDermott, the hotel’s handsome General Manager and the man responsible for maintaining order and keeping everyone happy. Looking like a slightly wiser version of his Welby character with a beard, Brolin lords over the soaper well; always quick with a big smile and a joke he serves as both a calming and stern presence for hotel guests and staff alike.
Connie Sellecca (The Greatest American Hero) is promotions manager Christine Francis; a real go-getter, she always goes above and beyond her job description. Nathan Cook is Billy Griffin, an ex-con in charge of the hotel’s security. Shari Belafonte Harper (daughter of legendary, Harry) is receptionist Julie Gillette and young couple Dave and Megan Kendall (Michael Spound and Heidi Bohay), a bellhop and a desk clerk respectively. Dave attends law school at night, so even though the Kendall’s work together the couple can never seem to find time to spend together. One of the series ongoing subplots is their various schemes to steal a few moments alone.
The gem of Hotel’s first season set is undoubtedly the two-hour pilot episode. The legendary Bette Davis stars as hotel owner Laura Trent. Davis shows that combination of chutzpah and wit that made her such a huge star for so many years. Though her subsequent memoirs indicated she intended to stay with the series, Ms. Davis was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy; just two weeks after that, Davis suffered a stroke. Academy Award winner Anne Baxter (The Razor’s Edge), was brought in to play her sister-in-law, Victoria Cabot. Though Baxter doesn’t have the nearly the same “wow” factor that Bette Davis gave the pilot, her talent and grace are unmistakable; she gives the show that touch of Hollywood glamour and panache that made Aaron Spelling series’ so popular in the 1980’s.
While Hotel has some thin storylines–a former cellmate of Billy’s who checks into the hotel may be plotting a heist; a woman claims Peter is her daughter’s father; Christine is being stalked–it’s hard to deny that the shows main interest lies in bringing viewers lots of well known guest stars and a touch of Hollywood’s golden age. The premiere episode plays out like a Rock Hudson/Doris Day film updated for the 1980’s: Pernell Roberts (Trapper John, MD), plays a recently divorced man and Shirley Jones, an unhappily married woman dealing with her feelings over her husband’s infidelity. The two meet in the hotel bar and begin an initially tentative relationship. Predictably, they are quickly engaged in a full blown affair, complete with tender gazes, walks in the park and bubble baths.
The New Yorker once labeled Aaron Spelling as a “schlock merchant”; Spelling himself once described his work as “mind candy.” Whatever it was, Aaron Spelling knew how to create fun shows that attracted an audience. While Hotel won’t be remembered as one of the best shows the 1980’s had to offer, it was definitely one of the most intriguing; on what other show could you find Morgan Fairchild, Lloyd Bochner, Jack Gilford, Shirley Jones, Pernell Roberts, Stephanie Faracy, Lainie Kazan, Bill Macy, Erin Moran, Alejandro Rey, former child star Lee Montgomery, and Mel Tormé in a single episode? It’s a pop culture fanatics dream.
In the end, Hotel: The First Season is the kind of show you can just pop into your DVD player when you just want to relax and watch actors you’ll recognize come and go. Aaron Spelling was right, his shows were “mind candy” and the television landscape would be a bleaker place without them.
Hotel: The First Season is presented in full screen (4:3) format. For a show more than twenty years old the image is fairly clearly. There are some occasional digital disturbances such as scratches and dirt but they don’t interfere with the viewing experience. While it would be a stretch to say the colors jump off the screen, they remain fairly vibrant and don’t show signs of fading or bleeding.
The audio is presented in mono and does the job adequately since this is a dialogue centered show, with some music.
There are no special features included.
*The back of the DVD case does have a disclaimer stating, “Some episodes may be edited from their original network versions.
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