What could scare a Simon Cowell? A ghost. The place they were staying at was The Stoneleigh Hotel & Spa in Dallas,Texas for their audition for the X-factor, a new reality talent show coming soon on FOX. Who ever book him to this place did not know this place was haunted. But this place is absolutely beautiful and luxury rooms and it was built in 1923, the year should have given the PR a clue.
Designed by architect F.J. Woerner in the Beaux Arts style and predominantly built by local contractors, the 11-story concrete fireproof structure adorned with stone, terra cotta, and brick marked the beginning of modern, luxury high rise living in Dallas. At the time, it was the tallest hotel west of the Mississippi offering “fine” views of the city from its prominent suburban address inOak Lawn–“out of the turmoil and dirt of the city.”
Guests socialized in the elegant lobby, women’s sun parlor, and men’s smoking lounge on the first floor. The eleventh floor was a magnificent ballroom/solarium for special functions and a dining room serving the finest continental cuisine overlooking the city. Building amenities included a children’s gymnasium, beauty shop and barbershop, a grocery store in the basement, and The Stoneleigh Court’s own refrigerating plant, radio station, and 40-car parking garage.
Highlighting The Stoneleigh’s long list of notable guests have been such luminaries as Frank Lloyd Wright, Lauren Bacall, Jack Benny, Judy Garland, Bob Hope, The Metropolitan Opera Company, Carol Burnett, Carol Channing, Tom Cruise, Robert Duvall, Darrell Royal, Paul Simon, LeAnn Rimes, and Oliver Stone. The Stoneleigh Hotel & Spa is also member of the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s “Historic Hotels of America”.
And I think the celebrities who stayed there have their share of ghost stories too. Simon Cowell was the first to notice when he entered the building, and he was about to be checked into his room. He felt someone was watching him, a presence in the room, like the owner of the place was staring at him and trying to find out who was Simon Cowell and what he was doing in the room and his hotel. Simon Cowell had a weird feeling about this, and his co-worker thought he was a diva and wanted to change hotels. So they did, they change hotels.
This old creepy hotel had renovations done to make it exquisite and beautiful with a lot of features included. It sure is a one stop place one can do anything without leaving the place.
