Thursday, December 6, 2012

AS SEEN ON TV: PETER McDERMOTT


PETER McDERMOTT

AS SEEN IN:
'Hotel'

CREATED BY:
Arthur Hailey

PORTRAYED BY:
James Brolin

TV STATUS:
Multiversal
(BookWorld, Cineverse, Toobworld)

TV DIMENSION:
Earth Prime-Time

From Wikipedia:
"Hotel" is a 1965 novel by Arthur Hailey. It is the story of an independent New Orleans hotel, the St. Gregory, and its management's struggle to regain profitability and avoid being assimilated into the O'Keefe chain of hotels. The St. Gregory is supposedly based on the Roosevelt Hotel, although the old St. Charles Hotel is also cited as the basis for the novel.

The novel was adapted into a movie in 1967, and in 1983 Aaron Spelling turned into a television series, airing for five years on ABC. In the TV series the St. Gregory Hotel was moved from New Orleans to San Francisco.


'Hotel' is an American prime time drama series which aired on ABC from September 21, 1983 to May 5, 1988 in the timeslot following Dynasty.


Based on Arthur Hailey's 1965 novel of the same name (which had also inspired a 1967 feature film), the series was produced by Aaron Spelling and set in the elegant and fictitious St. Gregory Hotel in San Francisco (changed from the New Orleans setting of the novel and film). Establishing shots of the hotel were filmed in front of The Fairmont San Francisco atop the Nob Hill neighborhood. Episodes followed the activities of passing guests, as well as the personal and professional lives of the hotel staff.

The Novel:
The main character is Mr. Peter McDermott; the general manager with a past. He is a graduate from Cornell University in Hotel Management and subsequently got a job in a hotel. However, he had been involved with a lady at time when he was supposed to be on duty. This gave Peter’s wife and the lady’s husband a reason to ask for a divorce. McDermott's dalliance was not a big thing for hotel, but the newspaper coverage was such that he was dismissed from the job and blacklisted. But Warren Trent, the head of St. Gregory Hotel, ignoring the past and considering the skill, hired him. The novel captures McDermott attempts to deal with several crises in the hotel which involve a range of other characters.

The TV Series:
Rich aristocrat Victoria Cabot (Anne Baxter) ran the St. Gregory Hotel, assisted by general manager Peter McDermott (James Brolin) and his staff. McDermott and assistant general manager Christine Francis (Connie Sellecca) became romantically involved. Halfway through the series Cabot died, leaving McDermott her share of the St. Gregory Hotel. When McDermott inherited half of the St. Gregory, he ran the hotel and promoted Francis to general manager.

BCnU!

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