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"The Man Who Knew Too Much" poster (1956)
(from Wikipedia)
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Famous filming location gets a facelift –
the San Francisco Fairmont Hotel’s penthouse suite
Hitchcock’s 1956 version of The Man Who Knew Too Much opens to introduce an American doctor and his wife (Jimmy Stewart and Doris Day) traveling with their son in Morocco. That scene was shot in the palatial pink stucco Hôtel la Mamounia, located near the medina in mysterious and magical Marrakech, Morocco.
La Mamounia is the former palace of a Moroccan crown prince, converted by the French administration into a hotel in 1923. This historical treasure is known for its gardens – a 17-acre intoxicating array of rose bushes, orange, lemon and olive groves, jacarandas and palms – where Prince Mamoun once threw lavish parties.
On September 27, 2009, after a three-year, $176 million makeover, Hôtel la Mamounia re-opened to rave reviews. The makeover was managed by French interior designer Jacques Garcia. Morocco, by the way, recovered its independence from France in 1956, the year this version of The Man Who Knew Too Much was released.
Most of La Mamounia’s 136 rooms and 71 suites overlook the famous gardens, and guests are served by a staff of 770. (That works out to about four staff members per room, a service rarity even among luxury accommodations.) The per-night price ranges from $776 to $10,350, depending on the room/suite and the season.
In prior years, Marrakech tourists who couldn’t afford to stay at the hotel would often “pop in” for a cup of mint tea. While post-renovation access is more restricted and that is no longer possible, manager Didier Piquot says outsiders may still visit if they’re dining at one of the hotel’s celebrity-chef restaurants (Le Français by Jean-Pierre Vigato, L’Italien by Don Alfonso and Le Marocain under the leadership of Rachid Agouray).
While you may not remember the hotel from Hitchcock’s movie, you probably remember a famous song from it, “Que Sera, Sera.” You may not know the song’s interesting background, however. It’s also interesting to note that prior to Hitchcock’s feature, the hotel was adored by another famous Brit, Winston Churchill, and he indulged his favorite pastime there.
After being unavailable for decades (Hitchcock bought back the rights to The Man Who Knew Too Much along with four other films, sometimes collectively referred to as “the five lost Hitchcocks” when they were an inaccessible part of his estate), the movie was re-released in theatres in the 1980s. It’s now available on DVD, along with several other films, as part of The Hitchcock Masterpiece Collection. What a perfect Christmas gift for a Hitchcock fan!
Comments
Fabulous look to this hotel. I saw the film, but don't remember any of the scenery by now. When I saw your headline I was expecting somewhere in California which pretended to be Morocco. People who live in SoCal are used to seeing familiar spots pretending to be somewhere else, but this was the real thing.
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