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# Georgian has homeless on its mind at 70th bash
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/georgian-has-homeless-on-its-mind-at-70th-bash/
- Published: 2003-11-10T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T03:11:25.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Community, Ocean Park, #archive-import, Homeless

*By LEE RAJSICH Special to the Daily Press*

After seven decades, the city’s second oldest hotel is still standing tall amongst heightened competition in Santa Monica.

The Georgian Hotel celebrated its 70th anniversary last week with a gala charity fundraiser aimed at getting people off the street.

The event, attended by celebrities and prominent figures from the hotel’s past, raised more than $2,000 for the Ocean Park Community Center, a 40-year-old organization that provides shelters for homeless adults and low-income families.

It marks the first time that the Georgian Hotel has raised money for the OPCC. But Paul Hortobagyi, the hotel’s general manager is no newcomer to addressing the growing homeless population in Santa Monica. Before joining the Georgian Hotel in August of 1996, Hortobagyi was a spokesman for the Santa Monica Hotel Association and has addressed the negative effect the homeless population has on tourism.

“The homeless really drive our business into the ground,” Hortobagyi said, adding tourists are often put off guard by panhandlers and vagrants who engage in anti-social behaviors. “I think we have to do something about it.”

To fuel the fundraiser, everything was donated — from the red carpet to the search light, which brought back memories from the times when the hotel was frequented by Hollywood legends Clark Gable and Carol Lombard, and notorious mobsters Bugsy Siegel and Fatty Arbuckle.

The evening began with a cocktail reception in the lobby where art deco furniture, geometric marble floors and crown-molded ceilings visually transport the viewer to the height of the 1930s and Los Angeles’ art deco era. Later, dinner was served to about 60 guests in the Red Griffin Room, a sleek and handsome basement room that served as one of the first speakeasies in the Los Angeles area during prohibition.

Opened in 1933 after being commissioned by Rosamond Borde in the late 1920s, the present-day art deco landmark has not only withstood the test of time and design but also the fierce competition in the industry. The Georgian Hotel has focused on its distinct, unique and historic characteristics in order to stand apart from the large, luxury beachfront hotels.

The Georgian Hotel, 1415 Ocean Ave., currently has 56 rooms and 28 suites. It is only outdated only by the Fairmont Miramar Hotel, which became a hotel in 1921 after being built in 1898 as a private mansion for Senator John P. Jones. From 1961 to 1987, the hotel was converted to apartments under former owners Bud and Penny Wayne. During that conversion, much of the historical accuracy was lost.

In 1993, the hotel underwent a $5 million restoration project. Under the supervision of Hortobagyi and current owner Dick Dodrill, the hotel was brought closer to its 1933 state. Besides efforts which accentuated the art deco style on the facade, lobby and hallway areas, the hotel personnel and service procedures were reorganized, Hortobagyi said.

By reintroducing the position of the elevator attendant and changing the way guests are received in the lobby, Hortobagyi said the purpose of the restoration is not only to highlight the hotel’s architectural and interior design, but also to evoke the same feeling in guests who walk in now as was felt by those during the hotel’s first years.

With the old style of service comes a heightened level of personal attention that isn’t present in modern, larger hotels, Hortobagyi said. He believes that the little things — like remembering guest’s names — are what have allowed the Georgian Hotel to survive in the competitive marketplace.

“In this business you have to be nimble and adjust to different kinds of guests,” he said.

While the hotel radiates with a wealth of history, Hortobagyi said the renovation is in its initial phase.

“The next step is the contact the National Trust,” he said.

With the National Trust providing guidelines for further restoration, the hotel will be able to be authentically stocked with the most minuscule of details, all the way down to the sinks and faucets.

“I want to do it to be historically correct,” Hortobagyi said.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 10, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/111003.pdf?ref=smdp.com)