Geekstalt
Stanley Hotel Lobby
This is the Front Lobby of the Stanley Hotel. If you've seen the 1997 miniseries, "Stephen King's The Shining" you'll probably recognize it as it was shot at the Stanley. Guests who visited the hotel before the miniseries was made, however, will probably be confused. A favorite question that tour guides ask is "what kind of wood do you think this is on the walls?". The answer is: plaster. The Stanley Hotel was decorated by F.O. Stanley's wife, Flora. She loved bright, clean rooms, so the entire hotel was painted white.
Stephen King made it a condition of the filming of the miniseries in 1997 that they use the Stanley Hotel as the location. He hated the fact that Stanley Kubrick had chosen not to use the Stanley Hotel either for the interior or even exterior shots for the film version of "The Shining". However, both Stephen King and the producers of the miniseries decided the hotel didn't look "foreboding" enough being all white. They asked the hotel management to allow them to paint all the plaster columns and beams to look like wood, which was agreed to. So all the wood you see here is actually paint as applied by Hollywood special effects people. They also replaced all the light fixtures with period fixtures. After F.O. and Flora Stanley died the hotel struggled to remain open. All the original period light fixtures were sold decades ago as the hotel lurched from one foreclosure to another. The hotel management and the producers signed an agreement that the paint and lights would remain untouched for a period of time (can't recall how long). I also believe the hotel can ask the studio to return the hotel to its original look following that... which they haven't, of course!
The level of mastery shown in the paint technique is unbelievable. I've stood right next to the columns and stared at them. You cannot tell they aren't varnished wood until you touch them. It's an amazing tribute to the workmanship of people working in Hollywood.
Equally amazing is the fact that nearly the entire first floor is painted with faux wood, as are all the landings and other places you'd expect to see wood (like staircases) on the other 3 floors of the hotel. The only room on the main floor that was spared from the faux wood look was the old haunted Music Room which was left in its original white decor. Legend has it that Mrs Stanley herself haunts that room, so it's probably a good choice!
Stanley Hotel Lobby
This is the Front Lobby of the Stanley Hotel. If you've seen the 1997 miniseries, "Stephen King's The Shining" you'll probably recognize it as it was shot at the Stanley. Guests who visited the hotel before the miniseries was made, however, will probably be confused. A favorite question that tour guides ask is "what kind of wood do you think this is on the walls?". The answer is: plaster. The Stanley Hotel was decorated by F.O. Stanley's wife, Flora. She loved bright, clean rooms, so the entire hotel was painted white.
Stephen King made it a condition of the filming of the miniseries in 1997 that they use the Stanley Hotel as the location. He hated the fact that Stanley Kubrick had chosen not to use the Stanley Hotel either for the interior or even exterior shots for the film version of "The Shining". However, both Stephen King and the producers of the miniseries decided the hotel didn't look "foreboding" enough being all white. They asked the hotel management to allow them to paint all the plaster columns and beams to look like wood, which was agreed to. So all the wood you see here is actually paint as applied by Hollywood special effects people. They also replaced all the light fixtures with period fixtures. After F.O. and Flora Stanley died the hotel struggled to remain open. All the original period light fixtures were sold decades ago as the hotel lurched from one foreclosure to another. The hotel management and the producers signed an agreement that the paint and lights would remain untouched for a period of time (can't recall how long). I also believe the hotel can ask the studio to return the hotel to its original look following that... which they haven't, of course!
The level of mastery shown in the paint technique is unbelievable. I've stood right next to the columns and stared at them. You cannot tell they aren't varnished wood until you touch them. It's an amazing tribute to the workmanship of people working in Hollywood.
Equally amazing is the fact that nearly the entire first floor is painted with faux wood, as are all the landings and other places you'd expect to see wood (like staircases) on the other 3 floors of the hotel. The only room on the main floor that was spared from the faux wood look was the old haunted Music Room which was left in its original white decor. Legend has it that Mrs Stanley herself haunts that room, so it's probably a good choice!