Photo by William Henry Jackson, 1900

I was contemplating a post for Labor Day but just wasn’t feeling anything until I went on a search for some Labor Day history. Turns out the first Labor Day in the United States was celebrated in 1882. That got me thinking about one of my favorite jobs working at the Hotel Del Coronado. This beachfront luxury hotel opened in 1888. Do you see the Pop Culture synapse? Labor Day- 1882, Hotel Del-1887… anyway let’s move on to my story about working at the Del.

Local residents of the beautiful peninsula known as Coronado Island call the resort The Del. Like I said it opened in 1888 so it’s loaded with historical, vintage wonder. I took more than a few breaks each day just so I could sneak away and wander The Del grounds. I’d go up and down the old bird cage elevator and take a stroll through the workers areas hidden behind, under and around the resort. On my way back to work I’d take the outdoor route and watch the sunset over the ocean while listening to the Mariachi band. Of course I always made a stop to say hello to my favorite bartender and get a fountain Coke or a virgin Pina Colada.

Most of my time at The Del, I worked in the Crown Room restaurant as a hostess. The best thing about this job was “a hostess” was part of management and management could order their “lunch” off the menu. Another perk was the hand dipped chocolate strawberries. One of my duties was getting the silver platter full of these decadent treats from the hotel candy shop downstairs. You know I had to be sure they tasted alright.

Besides taste testing sweets and eating Shrimp Scampi on my lunch break I had the splendor of the historic Crown Room to behold all night long. I could feel the history coming out of the walls in that room. Standing and walking for 8 hours wasn’t always a piece of the Hotel Del’s bakery cake but the beauty of the dining room made each night a thrill.

I could go on and on with Hotel Del stories but I’ll save those for a future post. I would like to say I met more than a few celebrities while working at The Del. Some I was introduced to and others I met by chance. There was also a few I just looked at in passing. Dustin Hoffman spent days playing tennis, Luke Perry was surrounded by 90210 fans, and Jim Carrey came in looking for a window table. Loni Anderson liked frequenting The Del in style. I would never have recognized a dressed down Richard Gere if it wasn’t for a waitress almost passing out at the sight of him. Bowzer from Sha Na Na gave me a 5 dollar tip after giving his family a window seat and I felt bad telling the star of Doogie Howzer there was an hour wait. It seemed like every day there was another story or celeb encounter.

Not only do celebs frequent the Hotel Del Coronado but it’s also quite famous for being a film location. The Flying Fleet was filmed at The Del in 1927 & according to Wikipedia at least 12 more films have been shot there.

Remember the movie Some Like it Hot? It was filmed at the Hotel Del Coronado. Check out the trailer with Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis & one of my favorites, Jack Lemmon.

Have you been to The Del? Any fun stories to tell?

When I think of Labor Day weekend I think of The Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon. I remember staying up almost all night in 1977 watching the pledges come in, the performances by celebrities, Jerry Lewis and Ed McMann looking more tired as the hours went by, waiting for the timpani and the numbers to be tallied up. The next morning with very little sleep I got my piggy bank together full of pennies, nickels and dimes and took it to the nearest 7-Eleven store. Back in the 70′s the radio featured a DJ named Wolfman Jack. He was the one that told me via the radio to get my money together, take it to 7-Eleven for Jerry’s Kids, and have a Slurpee afterward. Wolfman Jack is probably the only DJ I’ve ever paid any attention to. With his unique voice, Be-Bop Medley’s he played over the radio, and his signature howl, he really was a cool dude. Some of you might remember Wolfman Jack being featured in the movie American Graffiti. For those of you who never heard him or if you’re a fan already, take a listen via Youtube:

The telethon has been around since the 60′s. Just like everything in showbiz it’s had some controversies. Jerry has shown his human side on live television with jokes that may not be politically correct, and maybe offensive to some, but I still believe his heart and passion for the cause that he’s spent so much personal time and effort on is true. Lewis is a performer from old Hollywood, before politically incorrect was uttered for the first time, when Las Vegas was more about Downtown and less about The Strip, when the Rat Pack reigned supreme and you could smoke and drink a scotch while performing a number on TV.

I won’t be dragging my piggy bank to the store this year but I will be donating to the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon online. You can too. Check it out here www.mda.org/