The history of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. originates with The Ritz-Carlton, Boston.

The standards of service, dining and facilities of this Boston landmark serve as a benchmark for all Ritz-Carlton hotels and resorts worldwide. The legacy of The Ritz-Carlton, Boston begins with the celebrated hotelier Cesar Ritz, the king of hoteliers and hotelier to kings. His philosophy of service and innovations redefined the luxury hotel experience in Europe through his management of The Ritz Paris and The Carlton in London. The Ritz-Carlton, Boston revolutionized hospitality in America by creating luxury in a hotel setting: Private bath in each guest room Lighter fabrics in the guest room to allow for more thorough washing White tie and apron uniforms for the waitstaff, black tie for the Maitre d and morning suits for all other staff, conducive to a formal, professional appearance Extensive fresh flowers throughout the public areas A la carte dining, providing choices for diners Gourmet cuisine, utilizing the genius and cooking methods of Auguste Escoffier Intimate, smaller lobbies for a more personalized guest experience Cesar Ritz died in 1918 but his wife Marie continued the expansion of hotels bearing his name. In the United States, The Ritz-Carlton Investing Company was established by Albert Keller who bought and franchised the name. In 1927 The Ritz-Carlton, Boston, opened and other hotels followed in New York (at Madison and 54th), Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Atlantic Cityand Boca Raton. However, by 1940 none of the hotels were operating except The Ritz-Carlton, Boston. The hotel embodies the vision of Cesar Ritz, Yankee ingenuity and Boston social sensibilities. The Ritz-Carlton, Boston In 1927, Edward N. Wyner, a local Boston real estate developer, was asked by Mayor Curley to build a world-class hotel. Wyner, who was constructing an apartment building and was up to the second floor at the time, agreed and changed the apartment building into a hotel. Because of the reputation of Ritz in Europe and the cosmopolitan society in Boston, Wyner knew The Ritz-Carlton name would secure immediate success. He received permission from The RitzCarlton Investing Company and The Ritz Paris for use of the name and set out to create luxury in the he art of Boston. The Ritz-Carlton,Boston opened on May 19, 1927 with a room rate of $15.

In the tradition of Cesar Ritz, Wyner was meticulous about maintaining the privacy of his guests; a policy strictly adhered to today in all Ritz-Carlton hotels. And thus, the elite were drawn to his hotel. However, he was also very aware of the role and reputation the hotel had in the community: during the Depression Wyner kept the lights on in vacant hotel rooms to portray an aura of success. The Ritz-Carlton, Boston was regarded as a private club for the very wealthy. Up until the 1960s, the hotel was very formal. Guests were regularly checked to see if they were in the Social Register or Whos Who and the hotel sometimes went so far as to examine the quality of writing paper on which the guests wrote to the hotel requesting reservations (if it wasnt of high enough quality, they were refused). Dress codes were enforced for all guests, in great part due to the formality of Boston society. Restaurants were also very stringent with regard to whom they admitted. Women were not allowed to lunch alone in The Caf. Unescorted women were not allowed to enter The Ritz Bar until 1970. Cuisine in the hotel restaurants was created in the hallowed tradition of Cesar Ritzs partner Auguste Escoffier. The cuisine at The Ritz-Carlton has always been classic but never boring, innovative but never trendy. The popular entree Lobster au Whiskey was served on the hotels opening night in 1927 and remains a favorite dinner item today. The combination of cuisine and atmosphere ensured the restaurants were the place to swing, previewing such musical greats as Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey. The Roof closed in 1944, but was reopened to great success in the summer of 1995. Today, guests can enjoy gourmet dining and dancing under the stars to a live big band. More plays were written or reworked at the Boston hotel than anywhere else in the United States. Richard Rodgers composed Ten Cents a Dance on a piano in a Ritz-Carlton suite, Oscar Hammerstein wrote the lyrics to Edelweiss in the shower during an overnight stay and Tennessee Williams wrote part of A Streetcar Named Desire while a guest at the hotel. In addition to hosting numerous famous personalities, the hotel also entertained an extraordinary number of animals including: Rin Tin Tin, Morris the Cat and Louis the Swan (the central character in E.B. Whites classic childrens book The Trumpet of the Swan). The hotel maintained its own upholstery and print shops and even had a craftsman in-house whose sole job was to paint the gold stripes on the hotels furniture. As a result of this convenience, the hotel often catered to the whims of important guests. A suite for Joan Crawford was decorated with peppermint Lifesavers because it was her favorite candy and the guest room furniture in Winston Churchills room was reupholstered in red, his favorite color. Edward Wyner died in 1961. The land developers Cabot, Cabot & Forbes and their chairman and major shareholder, Gerald W. Blakely, owned and managed the hotel. However, the Ritz legacy endured with Charles Ritz, son of Cesar Ritz, who was an active board member of The Ritz-Carlton until his death in 1977. In 1983, Blakely sold the hotel and the rights to The Ritz-Carlton name to William B. Johnson, who established The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company.

The Ritz-Carlton Logo The lion and crown Ritz-Carlton logo is a combination of the British royal seal (the crown) and the logo of a financial backer (the lion). This logo was created by Cesar Ritz. In 1965, Cabot, Cabot and Forbes (owners of the Boston hotel starting in 1964 after complex negotiations with the heirs of the Wyner Estate) decided that the logo of the Boston hotel dating back to 1927* was not sufficiently noble. They revised the logo to what is utilized today. It is interesting to note that The Ritz-Carlton hotels in Atlantic City and New York had similar logos on their hotels in the late '20s. While in Europe at this same time, The Ritz London logo consisted of a lion and The Ritz Paris logo contained a crown.

*In 1927 when The Ritz-Carlton, Boston opened, it had obtained permission to use the name from The Carlton Investing Company of New York, which was licensed by The Ritz Hotels Development Company, Ltd. of London, England.

The Cobalt Blue Goblet Many of The Ritz-Carlton hotels and resorts worldwide continue to set their tables with the signature cobalt blue glasses. These goblets were designed to match the blue Czechoslovakian crystal chandeliers in the original Dining Room in The Ritz-Carlton, Boston. Coincidentally, blue glass was considered a status symbol in 1920s Boston. Window glass imported from Europe underwent a chemical reaction when hitting the Boston air and turned blue. Blue glass windows meant the homeowners could afford imported glass. The Ritz-Carlton, being quite fashionable, ordered glasses in this color.

Sheraton history
The origins of the brand date back to 1937 when Ernest Henderson and Robert Moore acquired the Stonehaven Hotel in Springfield, Massachusetts. The chain got its name from another early hotel that the pair had acquired, which had a lighted sign on the roof saying "Sheraton Hotel" which was large and heavy and therefore too expensive to change. Instead, they decided to call all their hotels by that name. Henderson and Moore had opened three hotels in Boston by 1939, continuing with their rapid expansion opening properties along the entire East Coast. In the 1940s, Sheraton purchased the famous Hotel Kimball of Springfield, Massachusetts, and transformed the 4-star hotel into The Sheraton-Kimball Hotel, attracting guests like President John F. Kennedy. In 1945, it was the first hotel chain to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. In 1949 Sheraton expanded internationally with the purchase of two Canadian hotel chains. The 1960s saw the first Sheraton hotels outside North America with the opening of the Tel Aviv-Sheraton in Israel in February 1961 and the Macuto-Sheraton outside Caracas, Venezuela, in 1963. By 1965, the 100th Sheraton Motor Inn had opened its doors. The multinational conglomerate ITT purchased the chain in 1968, after which it was known as ITT Sheraton. In 1985 Sheraton became the first Western company to operate a hotel in the People's Republic of China, assuming management of the state-built Great Wall Hotel in Beijing, which became the Great Wall Sheraton. In 1994, ITT Sheraton purchased a controlling interest in the Italian CIGA chain, the Compagnia Italiana Grandi Alberghi, or Italian Grand Hotels Company, which had been seized from its previous owner, the Aga Khan, by its creditors. The chain had begun by operating hotels in Italy, but overexpanded across Europe just as a recession hit. These hotels formed the core of what came to be the ITT Sheraton Luxury group, later Starwood's Luxury Collection. In April 1995, Sheraton introduced a new, mid-scale hotel brand Four Points by Sheraton Hotels, to replace the designation of certain hotels as Sheraton Inns. In 1998, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. acquired ITT Sheraton, outbidding Hilton. Under Starwood's leadership, Sheraton has begun renovating many existing hotels and expanding the brand's footprint.

Early Life
Rai Bahadur Mohan Singh Oberoi was born on 15th August, 1898 in erstwhile undivided Punjab, which is now in Pakistan. He was only six months old when his father died. Success and fortune did not, therefore, come easily to him. Initiative, resourcefulness and hard work, combined with the capability to face and overcome the most overwhelming odds can best characterise this phenomenal entrepreneur. Mohan Singh completed his primary education in Rawalpindi and moved to Lahore for his Bachelors degree. Shortly thereafter, to flee the ravages of a virulent plague, he went to seek his fortune in Shimla, the summer capital of British India. Arriving penniless, he found a job at a monthly salary of Rs. 50, as the front desk clerk at the Cecil Hotel. Today, The Oberoi Group owns the hotel The Oberoi Cecil where the young Mohan Singh found his mtier. The diligence, enthusiasm and intelligence displayed by Mohan Singh impressed Mr. Grove, the manager of the hotel. A quick learner, Mohan Singh did not restrict his efforts to fulfilling the job description of a desk clerk but sought and shouldered additional responsibilities. A few years later, when a Mr. Clarke acquired a small hotel he asked Mr. Oberoi to assist him. It was here, at Clarkes Hotel, that Mohan Singh gained first hand experience in all aspects of operating a hotel.

Budding Entrepreneur
In 1934, Mr. Oberoi acquired his first property, The Clarkes Hotel, from his mentor by mortgaging his wifes jewellery and all his assets. Four years later, he signed a lease to take over operations of the five hundred rooms Grand Hotel in Calcutta that was on sale following a cholera epidemic. With his customary confidence and sheer determination to succeed, he was able to convert this hotel into a highly profitable business venture. Over several years, Mr. Oberoi had purchased shares in Associated Hotels of India (AHI), which owned Cecil and Corstophans hotels in Shimla, Maidens and Imperial hotels in Delhi and a hotel each in Lahore, Murree, Rawalpindi and Peshawar. In 1943, Mr. Oberoi acquired controlling interest in AHI. He thus became the first Indian to run the countrys largest and finest hotel chain. In the tumultuous years just prior to Indian independence, Mr. Oberoi met and intimately interacted with the would-be leaders of Free India, all of whom were, at one time or other, guests at his hotels.

International Pioneer
Having consolidated his early ventures, Mr. Oberoi became the first Indian hotelier to enter into an agreement with an internationally renowned hotel chain, to open the first modern, five-star hotel in the country. The Oberoi Inter Continental, in New Delhi opened in 1965. The I-Con, as it became popularly known, offered facilities that no other hotel in the country matched and was Indias first luxury hotel. This achievement was enhanced with the opening of the 35-storey Oberoi Sheraton in Bombay, in 1973. Mr. Oberoi was the first Indian to work in association with international chains to woo international travellers to India. This led to a heavy influx of international travellers and foreign occupancy soared to an average of 85%. This enabled The Oberoi Hotels to significantly contribute to Indias foreign exchange earnings. Another pioneering landmark was the establishment in 1966 of the prestigious Oberoi School of Hotel Management, recognised by the International Hotel Association in Paris. Considered Indias premier institut e, the school is now known as The Oberoi Centre of Learning and Development and continues to provide high quality professional training in hospitality management. Other notable firsts were the decision to employ women in his hotels and to establish a chain of ancillary industries producing and supplying items like consumables and stationery to ensure the highest quality. The Oberoi Group was

also the first to start flight catering operations in India, in 1959. The Oberoi Flight Services, located in New Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin and Chennai, provide in-flight meals of international quality to reputed airlines. Mr. Oberoi realised that the hotel and hospitality business is greatly dependent on travel agents, a vital element in the distribution chain. Therefore, he decided to establish his own travel agency. Mercury Travels, part of The Oberoi Group, ranks amongst the leading travel agencies in India. With vision and imagination, Mr. Oberoi converted old and dilapidated palaces, historical monuments and buildings into magnificent hotels such as The Oberoi Grand in Calcutta, the historic Mena House in Cairo and The Windsor in Australia. It was, in fact, in the face of severe opposition that the State Government of Victoria awarded Mr. Oberoi the lease of The Windsor, a heritage building in Melbourne. He personally supervised the restoration of the hotel to its original grandeur and later acquired it. The Oberoi Cecil in Shimla, built in the early 20th century, reopened in April 1997 after extensive and meticulous renovation.