The Hotel Edison at 228 West 47th Street

"You're so droll. They don't make droll people anymore. Where have all the droll people gone?" 

- Rayleen, 45 Seconds from Broadway by Neil Simon

The Hotel Edison was constructed in 1931 by hotelier Max Kramer. Thomas Edison was on hand to flip the switch and turn on the lights at its opening (though he did so remotely from his home in Menlo Park, New Jersey.) The hotel was able to accomdate 1,000 guests across its 26 floors, three restaurants, and one grand ballroom, though the ballroom was converted to the Edison Theatre from 1950-1991.

The hotel is a masterpiece of art deco from architect Herbert J. Krapp, who designed many Broadway theaters including the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, the Richard Rogers Theatre, and the Winter Garden Theatre redesign. Some of the art deco trappings may look familiar to movie fans. If you go through the back entrance to the Hotel Edison, you'll find yourself in a terraced hallway with gold-trimmed mirrors. Luca Brasi walked down these hallways in The Godfather, just before the meeting with Tattaglia and Sollozzo that sent him to sleep with the fishes. (Unfortunately, the bar scene itself was shot at the Hotel St. George in Brooklyn, which has since been renovated.)

The Edison has been home to many celebrities over the years. George Burns (Room 228), Ring Lardner (Room 1935), and Jack Benny (4th Floor) have all lived here at one point or another. The Edison has also been home to a number of sensational crimes. In 1935, house detective James Gerrity was shot in the head just outside Room 1135 by Saverio Bongiorno. Bongiorno turned himself in, with no motive other than "people were following him," which combined with several calls he placed for a doctor earlier that day, implies that he was mentally disturbed. And in 1958, safe crackers managed to steal $250,000 worth of jewelry and cash from hotel owner Lillian Kramer (daughter of Edison founder Max Kramer.) One of the rings alone was worth $75,000. The theft was an expert job; perfectly timed to coincide with Kramer's dinner at Delmonico's, the thieves made it through three locked doors and a specially-designed safe with a variety of drills, lock picks, and even a letter opener.

The hotel also contains the Cafe Edison, which was built in half of the space from the old Hotel Edison grand dining room in 1980. (Read Nick Carr's great piece on this at Scouting NY.) The dining room was an ornate space with two rows of beautifully molded columns and a bevy of crystal chandeliers. To expand the lobby, the dining room was cut in half, and Harry and Frances Edelstein created the present-day diner in the leftover space. (The two fell in love as children, spending five years hiding from the Nazis during the Holocaust.) It's a hangout for Broadway writers and producers, who've nicknamed it the Polish Tea Room. Neil Simon even wrote a play about it called 45 Seconds From Broadway.

Cafe Edison also plays host to "The Magic Table," a gathering of professional magicians who have exchanged tricks of the trade since 1947. The Society of American Magicians have met for lunches at Cafe Edison since 1986, and if you go on Friday afternoons, you may find them swapping stories and performing sleight-of-hand for each other. They may even perform a trick for you if you hang around. A classic illusion has one magician pouring a full salt shaker into his hand and making it disappear. The other magicians know this is their cue to start shaking salt out of their sleeves and pockets. Just head to a table in the back corner with the seven of clubs stuck to the ceiling.

TODAY: The Hotel Edison