A Roaring Twenties landmark, reawakened

1926

Elysée New York Opens

Elysée New York opens its doors on East 54th Street, beginning a century-long story of artists, actors, writers and colorful characters making the hotel their Manhattan home.

1948

Tallulah Bankhead

Tallulah Bankhead celebrates President Truman's unexpected victory with a five day party at Elysée New York, ending, as the story goes, with a cab ride in nothing but her mink coat. An 18-year resident, she shared her suite with Gaylord the mynah bird, a monkey and a lion cub named Winston Churchill.

1950

Marlon Brando

Legendary actor Marlon Brando added his own offbeat rhythm to the hotel's cast of characters. His favorite indulgence was famously simple: peanut butter by the jarful, eaten with bread, crackers or… nothing at all.

1962

Ava Gardner

Hollywood siren Ava Gardner brought sun-drenched glamour to the Elysée New York terraces, where she was often spotted sunbathing above the city and indulging in coconut cake, which she was said to enjoy all day.

“Ava Gardner 1951 by Virgil Apger” by “Virgil Apger” {{PD-US}} – US work that is in the public domain in the US for an unspecified reason, but presumably because it was published in the US before 1931, used under CC BY-SA 4.0.

1974

Jimi Hendrix

Jimi Hendrix filled his suite with late-night guitar, handwritten music sheets and tales of spaceships, aliens and galactic battles. After too many noise complaints, he left behind guitars, notes and clothes that would later have been treasured by collectors.

1986

Tennessee Williams

Pulitzer-winning playwright Tennessee Williams lived at Elysée New York for 15 years, writing late into the night. When a guest complained at 5am about the typing next door, the hotel simply moved the guest. No one asks Mr. Williams to stop playwriting.

“Tennessee Williams NYWTS – New York World-Telegram and Sun” by “Library of Congress” used under CC BY-SA 4.0.

2009

Monkey Bar Restored

Between 1986 and 2024, many notable moments took place at Elysée New York and its Monkey Bar in New York, including its 2009 restoration and reopening under Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter, which introduced the now-iconic Ed Sorel mural of Jazz Age icons and cemented the bar's status as a celebrity and media gathering spot.

2024

A New Chapter

Elysée New York is purchased and a new chapter begins, with Wolfgang Joop bringing his creative vision to a hotel whose character and history have long embodied the New York he knows and loves.

2026

Elysée New York Reimagined

One hundred years after first opening its doors, Elysée New York reopens for a new era. Its storied past is reimagined through Wolfgang Joop's creative lens, bringing together the hotel's history and a new generation of guests.