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Photo courtesy of the Omni William Penn Hotel

First in first class

First-class hotels like the William Penn are a public stage with a rotating cast. Business travelers, U.S. presidents and celebrities arrive in its opulent lobby, still one of the city’s prime spots for watching people and relaxing.

Today, the Omni William Penn Hotel has 596 rooms. It once had 1,600 rooms, which were much smaller. During the 1930s, the William Penn was the largest hotel east of the Mississippi River. This photo includes a steel sculpture called "Forest Devil" that now is at the back entrance for the Carnegie Museum of Art in Oakland. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)

Every guest likes to feel special, but some require more pampering than others. Michael Jackson, the late “King of Pop,” had a gym installed next to his suite. Actor and comedian Jackie Gleason, who lives on in television reruns of “The Honeymooners,” ordered a bucket of ice cream from room service.

At 2 a.m., Liberace craved a birthday cake, so a bellman found a bakery to deliver one within an hour. Silent film star Mary Pickford slept on satin sheets in the French Suite. The late Elsie Hillman, beloved Pittsburgh philanthropist, enjoyed the hotel’s tea and pastries. And for many years, department store owner Edgar Kaufmann lived in one of the Downtown historic landmark’s spacious suites, making his commute to work a block and a half walk.

Managed by Omni since 2001, the AAA four-diamond hotel celebrates the 100th anniversary of its opening Wednesday by serving slices of a gigantic cake, the start of more festivities. During this nostalgic week, thousands of brides, grooms, conventioneers, debutantes, employees, film crews and former guests will recall comedies and dramas they starred in or witnessed at the Renaissance Revival building that opened March 9, 1916.

Electricity and a private bathroom represented the height of luxury in 1916. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
Today, a deluxe guest room with a king-size bed at the hotel offers comfort and aesthetics; electricity and private bathrooms are taken for granted. (Ed Massery, Massery Photography Inc., courtesy of the Omni William Penn)

Its architects, Janssen and Abbot, had designed the Fort Pitt Hotel, which stood at 10th Street and Liberty Avenue, now the site of the Westin Convention Center. The William Penn, an E-shaped hotel with three wings facing William Penn Place, rose to 23 stories, took two years to build, and cost $6 million. In 1929, the hotel expanded with a new wing facing Grant Street; with 1,600 rooms, it was the largest hotel outside New York and Chicago.

This back view of the William Penn Hotel shows it under construction in 1914. Built by industrialist Henry Clay Frick, the structure cost $6 million and was his last building project. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)

A century ago, a standard guest room cost $2.50. Amenities included iced drinking water on tap, electric lights, clocks connected to a master time piece and a telephone in every room. Many Americans still used outhouses, so a private bathroom for each of the 1,000 original guest rooms was a true luxury.

Staffed by 800 employees, the hotel had its own butcher, baker, print shop to produce ads and menus, silversmith and locksmith. The lower lobby offered a billiards room, a barber shop, a nail salon and a drug store. Guests could buy a box of Wilpentel candy, also made on the premises.

The hotel’s financier, industrialist Henry Clay Frick, spent opening night in the State Suite, which has one bedroom, a dining room, living room, sitting room, full and half bath. Now, the nightly rate for the State Suite is $2,500, which is 50 times higher than the $50 rate charged in 1916. Of course, Frick did not have Wi-Fi or a flat-screen television, but he never lacked for Old Overholt whiskey, distilled by his grandfather, Abraham Overholt. A very old bottle of the rye whiskey is displayed in the hotel’s cozy Speakeasy bar, where the password is still “green” — as in cash.

The hotel might never have been built if Frick’s wife, Adelaide, had not fallen ill one night in April 1912. The couple had booked passage on the Titanic, but canceled before the ill-fated ship sailed. That’s why Bob Page, director of marketing, keeps a newspaper dated April 16, 1912, that announces the ship’s sinking.

Current hotel staff

Bob Page, director of sales and marketing. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
Corey Makrush, catering sales manager. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
Rick Froehlicher, director of food and beverage, tends bar at the Speakeasy, a 1920s-style venue on the hotel's lower level. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)

Memorabilia

The original 1917 hotel menu included turtle soup, venison, Beluga caviar ($1.75), duckling, pheasant, and rolls and butter (10 cents). (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
The back side of the original 1917 menu showed a portrait of William Penn and the nine oyster dishes the hotel served. Oysters William Penn cost 50 cents. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
The original hotel registry from opening night on March 16, 1916, shows the signature of a lineal descendant of William Penn. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
"Eastern Isles" pajamas labeled by hand are part of a collection of memorabilia at the Omni William Penn Hotel. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
This Western Electric telephone, circa 1910-1920, is displayed on the William Penn Hotel's lower level. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
This coffee pot is original to the William Penn Hotel and was stolen by a guest who wanted to present it as a wedding gift. It was returned in 1991, when the hotel declared amnesty and invited "borrowers" to return hotel property with no questions asked. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
This automatic cashier (circa 1926) was used to make change the hotel's restaurants and lounges. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
The reason this bell from the steamboat Aliquippa ended up at the William Penn Hotel is a mystery. The boat, part of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp.'s fleet, sank on the Ohio River near Aliquippa in August 1928. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
The original 1917 hotel menu included turtle soup, venison, Beluga caviar ($1.75), duckling, pheasant, and rolls and butter (10 cents). (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
The back side of the original 1917 menu showed a portrait of William Penn and the nine oyster dishes the hotel served. Oysters William Penn cost 50 cents. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
The original hotel registry from opening night on March 16, 1916, shows the signature of a lineal descendant of William Penn. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
"Eastern Isles" pajamas labeled by hand are part of a collection of memorabilia at the Omni William Penn Hotel. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
This Western Electric telephone, circa 1910-1920, is displayed on the William Penn Hotel's lower level. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
This coffee pot is original to the William Penn Hotel and was stolen by a guest who wanted to present it as a wedding gift. It was returned in 1991, when the hotel declared amnesty and invited "borrowers" to return hotel property with no questions asked. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
This automatic cashier (circa 1926) was used to make change the hotel's restaurants and lounges. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
The reason this bell from the steamboat Aliquippa ended up at the William Penn Hotel is a mystery. The boat, part of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp.'s fleet, sank on the Ohio River near Aliquippa in August 1928. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)

Mr. Page recalls the world leaders who attended the G-20 summit in 2009 and the reason why then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stayed in the Presidential Suite instead of President Barack Obama. Mr. Obama’s security in that 16th floor suite could not be assured because there are no guest rooms on the 17th floor where Secret Service agents would have had to stay. But at another time, Rolling Stones vocalist Mick Jagger enjoyed presidential perks, and the next night, the Dalai Lama stayed in the suite, which has crystal chandeliers and decor in deep shades of blue and gold.

Count Basie and his orchestra were broadcast live playing from the Chatterbox Supper Club venue at the William Penn in 1937. (Courtesy of Stardust Records)

Mr. Page, who arrived in 2001, said that in the past 15 years, Omni has spent more than $20 million to renovate and improve the hotel’s public spaces and private rooms.

“This lobby cost almost $1 million,” Mr. Page said, adding that the floor includes marble from seven countries. The grand piano belonged to Andre Previn, former music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. All of the lobby furniture has been redone, and the elegant centerpiece is a blue tete-a-tete sofa. Today, the hotel has 597 guest rooms because of the demand for more spacious accommodations and amenities.

Click and drag in the lobby image below to explore this three-dimensional space.

The lobby today. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
The lobby as it appeared in 1916. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
Couples enjoying a drink in the Palm Court circa 1930. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
Guests registering for a convention in the main lobby. The original woodwork on the pillars, which was removed decades ago, is visible. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)

For decades, the hotel’s Speakeasy stood empty, its subterranean door covered by plywood. Reopened in 2012, it is tucked below the William Penn Place entrance. The space features a curved bar, period-inspired flocked wallpaper and a tin ceiling. Drinks include a Gin Rickey, a Pimm’s Cup and snacks such as shrimp cocktail, marinated olives or hummus. Relics of Prohibition are framed and displayed, including doctors’ prescriptions authorizing consumption of alcohol “for medicinal purposes.”

The Speakeasy today. The 1920s-style bar was built in 1916 as an ordinary bar, then boarded up during Prohibition (1920-1933), when the sale of alcoholic beverages was illegal. It was reopened in 2012. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
The Speakeasy today. The 1920s-style bar was built in 1916 as an ordinary bar, then boarded up during Prohibition (1920-1933), when the sale of alcoholic beverages was illegal. It was reopened in 2012. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
Page 1 of the 12-page Speakeasy menu today. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
Old Overholt is an American rye whiskey named for Abraham Overholt, a farmer, distiller and grandfather of industrialist Henry Clay Frick. Today, Old Overholt is made at the Jim Beam distillery in Kentucky. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)

Loraine Werling, secretary to her 10th general manager, started work at the William Penn in 1973. Well-dressed, personable and efficient, Ms. Werling guards the hotel’s history. One day, she took a call from the Lawrence Welk Museum in South Dakota, which wanted the hotel’s bubble machine, still on display in a glass case across from the front desk.

This undated image from "The Lawrence Welk Show" shows Lawrence Welk embracing Norma Zimmer, known as "The Champagne Lady." On New Year's Eve of 1938, Welk was a struggling young band leader who played at the William Penn's Terrace Room. He went on to host "The Lawrence Welk Show" on TV from 1951 to 1982. (Associated Press/The Lawrence Welk Show)

The bubble machine was made for the 1947 world premiere of a movie titled “Unconquered.” The late Mr. Welk, a band leader, performed in the Terrace Room on New Year’s Eve of 1938. A Pittsburgh woman named his signature song, “Bubbles in the Wine,” and Welk became famous for his “champagne music.”

Ms. Werling put the Lawrence Welk Museum on hold, slowly rolled another piece of paper into a typewriter, took the museum off hold and told the caller that the hotel would not part with the bubble machine.

“I never consulted anybody,” Ms. Werling said, joking that she made an executive decision. A hotel reception room is named for Mr. Welk.

Soldiers stayed at the hotel during World War II and because so many men joined the armed forces, women landed jobs at the hotel as elevator operators. In 1943, a group of civic and corporate leaders lunched at the William Penn, where they formed the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, which led the city’s first renaissance. During the next 60 years, the hotel changed hands several times, endured a long strike and underwent renovations during the 1970s that cost $6 million. Restaurants came and went, including a fancy French venue called “La Plume.”

The Grand Ballroom in 1968. (Richard Spangler/Post-Gazette Archives)
The Valentine Gala of 1982 in the Grand Ballroom. (Harry Coughanour/Post-Gazette Archives)
Dave Burrows kissed his daughter, bride Dana Burrows, outside the Omni William Penn in 2014. The wedding of Conor McCaskey, 34, and Ms. Burrows, 33, both of Dormont, started with a procession of an antique fire pumper and antique cars, including this 1957 Morgan that Mr. Burrows restored. (Bill Wade/Post-Gazette)
From left, Caroline Colville, Holly Hoover and Sydney Jones were among the debutantes presented at the 90th Cinderella Ball at the Omni William Penn on January 30, 2016. (Rebecca Droke/Post-Gazette)
Dancers from the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater appeared in a pop-up performance in the lobby of the Omni William Penn to promote cancer awareness in 2015. (Larry Roberts/Post-Gazette)
Legend has it that more deals were made over a drink in the hotel's Continental Bar than in Pittsburgh board rooms. The hotel was said to have the second-largest liquor account in Pennsylvania, and the Continental Bar alone sold more than 500 Old Fashioned cocktails a day. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
Business was brisk when the Hotel Penn-Sheraton's bar -- the Bar d'Or -- began Sunday beverage sales on June 19, 1961. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Local artist Don Hill daubed fluorescent paint on this copy of Velázquez' "Venus and Cupid" so the picture would glow in black light, circa 1954. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Mary Winbush cleaned one of the hotel's 1,000-pound hand-crafted chandeliers in September 1970. The chandeliers -- made in France in 1956 -- were cleaned by hand one at a time once a year. In 1970, their worth was estimated at $20,000 to $25,000 apiece. (Paul Slantis/Post-Gazette Archives)
Bob Page, hotel director of sales and marketing, stands in the Presidential Suite. President Barack Obama did not stay here in 2009 during the G-20 Summit because his security could not be assured. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
Park Place served breakfast and lunch at the hotel. Today it is a Starbucks. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
This dining room was known at various times as the Georgian Room, Park Place and La Plume. It is now a Starbucks. This undated photo shows a time before air conditioning; fans on the wall circulate air. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
This image shows what the Italian Terrace Room looked like when the hotel opened in 1916. The space has been used for private functions and a restaurant. During World War II, the hotel dropped "Italian" from the name because Italy was allied with Nazi Germany. Wall murals also were removed during World War II. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
During World War II, women went to work while men were drafted into the armed forces. Sylvia Lahomey was one of the young women operating elevators at the William Penn and the Law and Finance Building in 1945. (Pittsburgh Press)
This European Renaissance-inspired dining room is now known as the Sternwheeler Room. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
The William Penn hosted a four-day convention of hotel executives in 1935. At left, a forester from the state department of forestry explains his department's work to Ruth Donley. At right, Eunice Gregory admires a giant basket of fruit. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Strikers from the William Penn and Fort Pitt hotels marched in 1935 from their headquarters on Court Place to a meeting on the North Side. At right is a young striker, Jeanette Balbos. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The Grand Ballroom in 1968. (Richard Spangler/Post-Gazette Archives)
The Valentine Gala of 1982 in the Grand Ballroom. (Harry Coughanour/Post-Gazette Archives)
Dave Burrows kissed his daughter, bride Dana Burrows, outside the Omni William Penn in 2014. The wedding of Conor McCaskey, 34, and Ms. Burrows, 33, both of Dormont, started with a procession of an antique fire pumper and antique cars, including this 1957 Morgan that Mr. Burrows restored. (Bill Wade/Post-Gazette)
From left, Caroline Colville, Holly Hoover and Sydney Jones were among the debutantes presented at the 90th Cinderella Ball at the Omni William Penn on January 30, 2016. (Rebecca Droke/Post-Gazette)
Dancers from the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater appeared in a pop-up performance in the lobby of the Omni William Penn to promote cancer awareness in 2015. (Larry Roberts/Post-Gazette)
Legend has it that more deals were made over a drink in the hotel's Continental Bar than in Pittsburgh board rooms. The hotel was said to have the second-largest liquor account in Pennsylvania, and the Continental Bar alone sold more than 500 Old Fashioned cocktails a day. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
Business was brisk when the Hotel Penn-Sheraton's bar -- the Bar d'Or -- began Sunday beverage sales on June 19, 1961. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Local artist Don Hill daubed fluorescent paint on this copy of Velázquez' "Venus and Cupid" so the picture would glow in black light, circa 1954. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Mary Winbush cleaned one of the hotel's 1,000-pound hand-crafted chandeliers in September 1970. The chandeliers -- made in France in 1956 -- were cleaned by hand one at a time once a year. In 1970, their worth was estimated at $20,000 to $25,000 apiece. (Paul Slantis/Post-Gazette Archives)
Bob Page, hotel director of sales and marketing, stands in the Presidential Suite. President Barack Obama did not stay here in 2009 during the G-20 Summit because his security could not be assured. (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
Park Place served breakfast and lunch at the hotel. Today it is a Starbucks. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
This dining room was known at various times as the Georgian Room, Park Place and La Plume. It is now a Starbucks. This undated photo shows a time before air conditioning; fans on the wall circulate air. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
This image shows what the Italian Terrace Room looked like when the hotel opened in 1916. The space has been used for private functions and a restaurant. During World War II, the hotel dropped "Italian" from the name because Italy was allied with Nazi Germany. Wall murals also were removed during World War II. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
During World War II, women went to work while men were drafted into the armed forces. Sylvia Lahomey was one of the young women operating elevators at the William Penn and the Law and Finance Building in 1945. (Pittsburgh Press)
This European Renaissance-inspired dining room is now known as the Sternwheeler Room. (Courtesy of the Omni William Penn)
The William Penn hosted a four-day convention of hotel executives in 1935. At left, a forester from the state department of forestry explains his department's work to Ruth Donley. At right, Eunice Gregory admires a giant basket of fruit. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Strikers from the William Penn and Fort Pitt hotels marched in 1935 from their headquarters on Court Place to a meeting on the North Side. At right is a young striker, Jeanette Balbos. (Post-Gazette Archives)

Since the 1990s, the hotel has attracted film crews. Last year, cameras recorded scenes for ”Concussion” and “Southpaw” in the Grand Ballroom on the 17th floor. Other films that used the hotel as a location are “Fathers and Daughters” in 2014, “Foxcatcher” in 2013, “Love & Other Drugs” in 2010, “Smart People” in 2008 and “Out in the Cold” in 1996.

Some movies filmed at the William Penn

"Concussion" (2015) starred Will Smith, Alec Baldwin and Albert Brooks. (YouTube/Sony Pictures Entertainment)
"Southpaw" (2015) starred Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams and Oona Laurence. (YouTube/The Weinstein Company)
"Fathers and Daughters" (2014) starred Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried and Aaron Paul. Here director Gabriele Muccino and actress Jane Fonda are shown in the William Penn during a shot. (Justin M. Lubin)
A glimpse of the hotel lobby in "Foxcatcher" (2013), starring Steve Carell, Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo. (YouTube/Sony Pictures Classics)
"Love & Other Drugs" (2010) starred Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway and Judy Greer. (Post-Gazette Archives)
"Smart People" (2008) starred Dennis Quaid, Thomas Haden Church and Sarah Jessica Parker. (Bruce Birmelin/Courtesy of Miramax Films)
"The Clearing" (2004) starred Robert Redford, Willem Dafoe and Helen Mirren. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The world premiere of "Unconquered," starring Gary Cooper and Paulette Goddard, was held in 1947 at the William Penn Hotel. (Post-Gazette Archives)
"Concussion" (2015) starred Will Smith, Alec Baldwin and Albert Brooks. (YouTube/Sony Pictures Entertainment)
"Southpaw" (2015) starred Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams and Oona Laurence. (YouTube/The Weinstein Company)
"Fathers and Daughters" (2014) starred Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried and Aaron Paul. Here director Gabriele Muccino and actress Jane Fonda are shown in the William Penn during a shot. (Justin M. Lubin)
A glimpse of the hotel lobby in "Foxcatcher" (2013), starring Steve Carell, Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo. (YouTube/Sony Pictures Classics)
"Love & Other Drugs" (2010) starred Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway and Judy Greer. (Post-Gazette Archives)
"Smart People" (2008) starred Dennis Quaid, Thomas Haden Church and Sarah Jessica Parker. (Bruce Birmelin/Courtesy of Miramax Films)
"The Clearing" (2004) starred Robert Redford, Willem Dafoe and Helen Mirren. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The world premiere of "Unconquered," starring Gary Cooper and Paulette Goddard, was held in 1947 at the William Penn Hotel. (Post-Gazette Archives)

Catering sales manager Corey Makrush joined the hotel staff as a front desk agent in 1981. Back then, chefs still used leftover William Penn cheesecake for the breakfast danishes sold in the coffee garden deli, just a few steps off the main lobby. But, Mr. Makrush cautioned, if you have a recipe for the hotel’s cheesecake, chances are good it’s the version given out for publicity’s sake. The pastry chefs who made this popular dessert never parted with their sweet secret.

During the 1990s, Mr. Makrush managed the Terrace Room restaurant. In 1992, Bruce Willis stayed at the William Penn while filming “Striking Distance,” a movie shot on the city’s rivers. Demi Moore, his wife at the time, breakfasted with her young daughters in the Terrace Room.

Afterward, “She got down on her hands and knees and picked up everything they dropped,” Mr. Makrush said.

Famous guests

Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger got the sell-out crowd rocking in 2005 at PNC Park. He has stayed at the William Penn. (Alyssa Cwanger/Post-Gazette Archives)
The late entertainer Michael Jackson, shown at a Civic Arena concert in 1988, stayed at the William Penn. (Bill Wade/Post-Gazette)
The Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyasto, shown here in Pittsburgh in 1998, once stayed at the Presidential Suite in the William Penn. The Dalai Lama is the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet, currently occupied by the People's Republic of China. (Lake Fong/Post-Gazette)
President Barack Obama (center) greets Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto (left) and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald on July 21, 2015, in Pittsburgh. (Bob Donaldson/Post-Gazette)
Evangelist Billy Graham joined presidential candidate (later President) Richard M. Nixon at Pitt Stadium in 1968. (Post-Gazette Archives)
President John F. Kennedy alights from his limousine at the back of the William Penn Hotel in 1962. Kaufmann's department store is in the background. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Former President Harry S Truman visits the William Penn Hotel in the early 1950s, while the hotel marquee welcomes President Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Morris Berman/Sun-Telegraph)
Former President Theodore Roosevelt was in Pittsburgh in 1917 for the annual Loyal Order of the Moose Convention. He was greeted by hundreds in the William Penn Hotel lobby and told them to "buck up for America." (Associated Press)
President William Howard Taft during a visit to Pittsburgh circa 1909. At right is Pittsburgh Mayor William Magee. (Post-Gazette Archives)
British actress Helen Mirren stayed at the William Penn while filming "The Clearing" (2004). (Associated Press)
Actress Demi Moore, shown here in 1995, got on her hands and knees in the Terrace Room to clean up after her children ate breakfast. She was in town while her then-husband, Bruce Willis (pictured), was filming "Striking Distance" in 1992. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The late Christopher Reeve, shown here in a 1989 photo, was a hotel guest and is best remembered for his 1978 portrayal of Superman. (Post-Gazette Archives)
In 2000, actress Kathleen Turner starred as Tallulah Bankhead in a play about the movie star at the Byham Theater. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Entertainer Liberace had a late-night craving for a piece of birthday cake in 1956 while he was staying at the William Penn. Bellman Bill Richey found a bakery able to deliver a whole cake within an hour. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Actress and comedienne Lucille Ball, shown here in 1948, also stayed at the hotel.
Actor Mickey Rooney came to Pittsburgh September 12, 1943, to rally support for government war bonds. He shook hands with a young girl named Ruth Greb, daughter of a Pittsburgh police officer. (Sun Telegraph)
Actress Jane Russell came to Pittsburgh in 1957 to promote her movie "The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown." The William Penn staff painted the French Suite pink in her honor. (RKO Radio Pictures)
Indiana, Pa., native Jimmy Stewart, star of such movies as "It's a Wonderful Life," enjoyed having tea at the William Penn Hotel. (Associated Press)
Actor Jackie Gleason ran a mock Presidential campaign in 1954. He is shown here with his campaign team, local models from left to right: Betty Jane McCormick of Groveton, Mary Jane Olsen of Rankin, Virginia Campbell of Brookline and Peggy Smith of Washington, Pa. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Actor Jackie Gleason showed Pittsburgh Press newsman Ed Beachler how to hold a pool cue while surrounded by the "Glea Girls" in 1962. Later, the two men played a game of pool. Gleason was in town to promote his movie "The Hustler." (Post-Gazette Archives)
Ginger Rogers (left) strolls around the RKO radio lot with composer Jerome Kern, who was writing the musical score for a 1936 movie "Never Gonna Dance." Mr. Kern was a guest of the William Penn Hotel, where he wrote "Why Do I Love You?" for his hit musical "Showboat." (Post-Gazette Archives)
Socialite and radio personality Elsa Maxwell loved to trade gossip in the Terrace Room. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Silent movie actress Mary Pickford, "America's Sweetheart," slept on satin sheets in the William Penn's French Suite. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Silent film star Pola Negri also stayed in the French Suite. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The mayor and City Council hosted a dinner to honor aviator Charles Lindbergh at the William Penn in 1927, the year Lindbergh made the first transatlantic flight. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Edgar (right) and Liliane Kaufmann, the couple who ran Kaufmann's department store in Pittsburgh for many years, lived in a suite in the William Penn. After Liliane died of an overdose of sleeping pills in 1952, Edgar and his mistress received condolences at the hotel. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The Broadway power couple of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne waited for the St. Patrick's Day flood waters to recede while staying at the William Penn in 1936. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Douglas Fairbanks Jr., son of legendary silent film star Douglas Fairbanks and founding member of United Artists, stayed at the William Penn Hotel. (Associated Press)
Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld (center, man in hat) and his showgirls stayed in the hotel in 1931. They arrived by train at Pennsylvania Station during a taxi strike. They are shown here waiting for cars to be brought in to take them from the station to the hotel. They performed at the Nixon Theatre. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Sophie Tucker, "the last of the red hot mamas," stayed at the hotel. She was known for her powerful delivery of risque songs such as "Nobody Loves a Fat Girl, But Oh How a Fat Girl Can Love." (Photofest Inc.)
Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger got the sell-out crowd rocking in 2005 at PNC Park. He has stayed at the William Penn. (Alyssa Cwanger/Post-Gazette Archives)
The late entertainer Michael Jackson, shown at a Civic Arena concert in 1988, stayed at the William Penn. (Bill Wade/Post-Gazette)
The Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyasto, shown here in Pittsburgh in 1998, once stayed at the Presidential Suite in the William Penn. The Dalai Lama is the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet, currently occupied by the People's Republic of China. (Lake Fong/Post-Gazette)
President Barack Obama (center) greets Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto (left) and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald on July 21, 2015, in Pittsburgh. (Bob Donaldson/Post-Gazette)
Evangelist Billy Graham joined presidential candidate (later President) Richard M. Nixon at Pitt Stadium in 1968. (Post-Gazette Archives)
President John F. Kennedy alights from his limousine at the back of the William Penn Hotel in 1962. Kaufmann's department store is in the background. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Former President Harry S Truman visits the William Penn Hotel in the early 1950s, while the hotel marquee welcomes President Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Morris Berman/Sun-Telegraph)
Former President Theodore Roosevelt was in Pittsburgh in 1917 for the annual Loyal Order of the Moose Convention. He was greeted by hundreds in the William Penn Hotel lobby and told them to "buck up for America." (Associated Press)
President William Howard Taft during a visit to Pittsburgh circa 1909. At right is Pittsburgh Mayor William Magee. (Post-Gazette Archives)
British actress Helen Mirren stayed at the William Penn while filming "The Clearing" (2004). (Associated Press)
Actress Demi Moore, shown here in 1995, got on her hands and knees in the Terrace Room to clean up after her children ate breakfast. She was in town while her then-husband, Bruce Willis (pictured), was filming "Striking Distance" in 1992. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The late Christopher Reeve, shown here in a 1989 photo, was a hotel guest and is best remembered for his 1978 portrayal of Superman. (Post-Gazette Archives)
In 2000, actress Kathleen Turner starred as Tallulah Bankhead in a play about the movie star at the Byham Theater. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Entertainer Liberace had a late-night craving for a piece of birthday cake in 1956 while he was staying at the William Penn. Bellman Bill Richey found a bakery able to deliver a whole cake within an hour. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Actress and comedienne Lucille Ball, shown here in 1948, also stayed at the hotel.
Mickey Rooney came to Pittsburgh September 12, 1943, to rally support for government war bonds. He shook hands with a young girl named Ruth Greb, daughter of a Pittsburgh police officer. (Sun Telegraph)
Actress Jane Russell came to Pittsburgh in 1957 to promote her movie "The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown." The William Penn staff painted the French Suite pink in her honor. (RKO Radio Pictures)
Indiana, Pa., native Jimmy Stewart, star of such movies as "It's a Wonderful Life," enjoyed having tea at the William Penn Hotel. (Associated Press)
Actor Jackie Gleason ran a mock Presidential campaign in 1954. He is shown here with his campaign team, local models from left to right: Betty Jane McCormick of Groveton, Mary Jane Olsen of Rankin, Virginia Campbell of Brookline and Peggy Smith of Washington, Pa. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Actor Jackie Gleason showed Pittsburgh Press newsman Ed Beachler how to hold a pool cue while surrounded by the "Glea Girls" in 1962. Later, the two men played a game of pool. Gleason was in town to promote his movie "The Hustler." (Post-Gazette Archives)
Ginger Rogers (left) strolls around the RKO radio lot with composer Jerome Kern, who was writing the musical score for a 1936 movie "Never Gonna Dance." Mr. Kern was a guest of the William Penn Hotel, where he wrote "Why Do I Love You?" for his hit musical "Showboat." (Post-Gazette Archives)
Socialite and radio personality Elsa Maxwell loved to trade gossip in the Terrace Room. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Silent movie actress Mary Pickford slept on satin sheets in the William Penn's French Suite. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Silent film star Pola Negri also stayed in the French Suite. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The mayor and City Council hosted a dinner to honor aviator Charles Lindbergh at the William Penn in 1927, the year Lindbergh made the first transatlantic flight. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Edgar (right) and Liliane Kaufmann, the couple who ran Kaufmann's department store in Pittsburgh for many years, lived in a suite in the William Penn. After Liliane died of an overdose of sleeping pills in 1952, Edgar and his mistress received condolences at the hotel. (Post-Gazette Archives)
The Broadway power couple of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne waited for the St. Patrick's Day flood waters to recede while staying at the William Penn in 1936. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Douglas Fairbanks Jr., son of legendary silent film star Douglas Fairbanks and founding member of United Artists, stayed at the William Penn Hotel. (Associated Press)
Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld (center, man in hat) and his showgirls stayed in the hotel in 1931. They arrived by train at Pennsylvania Station during a taxi strike. They are shown here waiting for cars to be brought in to take them from the station to the hotel. They performed at the Nixon Theatre. (Post-Gazette Archives)
Sophie Tucker, "the last of the red hot mamas," stayed at the hotel. She was known for her powerful delivery of risque songs such as "Nobody Loves a Fat Girl, But Oh How a Fat Girl Can Love." (Photofest Inc.)

Today’s guests stay in rooms equipped with a flat-screen television, Wi-Fi, coffee maker, beverage chiller, a pair of slippers and a robe. Rewards program members receive turn down service with chocolates on their pillow. This week, that treat will bear the William Penn crest.

Fifty years ago, Downtown lacked enough hotel rooms. Today, accommodations abound. There’s The Fairmont, a sleek, new building with a gas fireplace in its lobby and a canine ambassador named Edie. The Renaissance Pittsburgh exemplifies Gilded Age elegance, and its presidential suite offers excellent views of the Allegheny River. The boutique Hotel Monaco is known for its bold, playful decor and supplies bicycles and yoga mats to its guests.

But if you want to enjoy afternoon tea in the Palm Court lounge or sleep where Ewan McGregor, Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams and Amy Schumer have laid their celebrity heads, you will feel right at home at the William Penn. ■

Credits

Story: Marylynne Pitz

Marylynne Pitz writes about art, architecture, history and historic homes. She has received Golden Quill awards for her work in 2012, 2014 and 2015. A native of Indianapolis, Ms. Pitz earned her journalism degree at Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind., before joining the staff of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Development: Laura Malt Schneiderman

Laura Malt Schneiderman develops interactive websites for the Post-Gazette. She has received an award from the Society of Professional Journalists and statewide journalism awards. She earned her journalism degree from the University of Missouri and her master's degree in information science from the University of Pittsburgh.

Other credits

Design: Ben Howard
Photography: Steve Mellon

Special thanks

Post-Gazette Librarian Angelika Kane
Sierra Green, archivist, Senator John Heinz History Center

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