What's Wright?

From Primedia Publications

What's Wright?
The Arizona Biltmore

By JoAnn Greco

A pre-Depression triumph, the Arizona Biltmore was Warren McArthur's idea. A car salesman who eventually founded the Arizona Museum and the Arizona Club, a precursor to the Chamber of Commerce, McArthur was entranced by the desert. He and his brother Charles thought the state was a tourist paradise—but one that lacked the critical element of accommodations.

The McArthurs found a plot of land—a 200-acre citrus orchard then eight miles outside of downtown Phoenix—and a handful of investors. They turned to their brother, Albert, to build their hotel.

Albert had apprenticed under famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and even today many believe incorrectly that Wright designed the sweeping, low-lying resort. Wright did consult on the Biltmore's cement block construction. He'd used large cement blocks, made on site, in several of his own projects. The so-called Biltmore block designed by sculptor Emry Kopta features a pattern inspired by the underside of a palm frond and calls to mind the Mayan-like designs Wright used on the face of cement blocks for his buildings. In the same way Wright used patterned blocks as architectural accents, Kopta's Biltmore blocks appear throughout the Biltmore, inside and out. Wright's influence, either directly or through his apprentice, also appears obvious in such details as the foyer's geometric stained-glass mural and the ballroom's stained-glass windows. No one disputes the origins of the "Sprite" sculptures outside the main entrance; Wright designed them in 1914 for Chicago's Midway Gardens, and they were moved to the Biltmore in 1982.


	"But for him, Phoenix would have had nothing like the Biltmore, and it is my hope that he may be enabled to give Phoenix many more beautiful buildings . . . ."

Wright, however, was not pleased with the Biltmore. The curmudgeonly architect declared it "even worse" than he had expected, and when people began questioning the extent of his involvement, he drafted a letter that cunningly praised the building. "All I have done in connection with the building of the Arizona Biltmore, near Phoenix, I have done for Albert McArthur . . . . [He] is the architect of that building," Wright wrote. "But for him, Phoenix would have had nothing like the Biltmore, and it is my hope that he may be enabled to give Phoenix many more beautiful buildings . . . ."

Wright's careful praise notwithstanding, the new resort earned great acclaim. More than 600 celebrants attended its opening on February 23, 1929, as a plane circled overhead and dropped a large wooden key from the skies. That key is now on view in the Biltmore's History Room, on the third floor above the soaring lobby. Along with it are pages from the Arizona Republican with stories about the opening. "Phoenix Heralded Around the World as Biltmore Opens Today," trumpeted the front-page banner headline. Inside, the paper printed descriptions of the glorious ball gowns and lavish food. Since then, the Biltmore has seen a continuous parade of the glamorous and famous—the Reagans, the Clintons, Steven Spielberg, Marlon Brando, Clark Gable, Peter Falk, Mike Ditka, U2, the Chicago Bulls—the list is long. Clark Gable lost his wedding ring on the golf course and rewarded groundskeepers who found it.

Only six weeks after its glittering opening, the resort closed in deference to Arizona's intensely hot summer weather. On October 29, before the Biltmore could reopen its doors, the stock market crashed. Although the hotel managed to open on November 10, the McArthur brothers were ruined, and the resort passed into the hands of chewing gum magnate William Wrigley, Jr. Under Wrigley and then his son, Philip, the Biltmore was constantly freshened and expanded. In 1963 the resort finally installed air conditioning, a project that took weeks and cost $1 million.

Wrigley sold the Biltmore in June 1973, and the new owner closed it for renovations. Two weeks later, a spark from a welder's torch ignited insulation between the walls, setting off Phoenix's first six-alarm blaze. Ironically, the welder had been helping install a sprinkler system for fire protection. Architects from Wright's Taliesin West oversaw repair of the destroyed fourth floor and roof and the severely charred lower floors.

The resort reopened in September 1973 and hasn't closed since. After an extensive renovation and expansion in 1996, the hotel remains as reminiscent of Wright's style today as it was in 1929, though it's much larger and has all the latest amenities. Lobby and guest room furnishings are Mission-style oak pieces, and fabrics are soothing hues of beige and cream. In contrast to the sunburst of vivid geraniums, lush grass and turquoise pools that awaits outside, the high-ceilinged lobby seems refreshingly dim and cool.

Each Tuesday and Friday afternoon, staff members conduct a history tour of the Biltmore. If you'd rather explore on your own, the lobby has display cases holding artifacts such as registration cards and china, while the third-floor History Room and a wall off the lobby have displays of photos and news-paper clippings.

With a brand new spa, outdoor pools, golf courses, shops and dining at the acclaimed Wright's and several other eateries, guests need never leave the Biltmore grounds. But for those who do, the Biltmore Fashion Park is right down the street, and Phoenix offers Wright's stunningly beautiful Taliesin West, the Heard Museum and the recently expanded Phoenix Art Museum.

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JoAnn Greco is a Philadelphia-based freelancer who writes frequently on travel, arts, media and business.

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