Fast Facts

• Presidents Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Carter and Reagan have called The Carlyle their “unofficial" New York home.

• During the Kennedy administration, the original owner, Robert Dowling, always kept the "Kennedy duplex" empty just in case the President decided to come to New York.

• Composer Richard Rodgers was The Carlyle's first tenant back in 1930.

• The Carlyle is a showcase of great art. Bemelmans Bar contains the only surviving public murals of artist/author Ludwig Bemelmans, the creator of the famed Madeline children's book series.

• Additional works by Audubon, Kips, Redoute and Vertes adorn the hotel's walls creating a veritable gallery environment.

• Diane Ginsberg Jaffe, the daughter of the hotel's founder, named The Carlyle after writer Thomas Carlyle.

• The two Jan Weenix murals in the Lobby were originally owned by William Randolph Hearst.

• The Carlyle is a virtual catalog of design history, home to the work of some of the world's most legendary decorators including: Dorothy Draper, Mark Hampton and Renzo Mongiardino.

• The Carlyle is alive with music; many suites have Steinway or Baldwin baby-grand pianos, which are tuned twice a week.

• The Carlyle has been the hotel of choice for Hollywood's elite since Ingrid Bergman checked in after completing Intermezzo.