Planet Hollywood facts for kids
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| Private | |
| Industry | Hospitality |
| Genre | Celebrity |
| Founded | October 22, 1991 in New York City, New York, US |
| Founders | Keith Barish Robert Earl |
| Headquarters |
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U.S.
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Number of locations
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3 (2024) |
| Services |
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| Owner | Robert Earl |
| Parent | Earl enterprises |
| Subsidiaries | Planet Hollywood Resorts International, LLC |
Planet Hollywood International Inc. is a restaurant chain that has a movie theme. It is inspired by the glitz and glamour of Hollywood movies. The company is owned by Earl Enterprises, a business started by Robert Earl.
Planet Hollywood first opened its doors in New York City on October 22, 1991. Famous Hollywood actors like Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis helped launch it. These stars were paid for their support and appearances with shares in the company. Other celebrities who joined in included Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Cindy Crawford, and even The Beatles drummer Ringo Starr.
Contents
How Planet Hollywood Started
Robert Earl had a lot of experience with themed restaurants. He opened many in Britain in the 1970s and later in Orlando, Florida. In 1987, he sold his restaurant group, which had 70 restaurants.
Later, he became the chief executive of Hard Rock Cafe International in 1989. While working there, he met Bryan Kestner. They both believed that music, movies, and sports could connect people from all over the world. This shared idea helped lead to the creation of Planet Hollywood.
Planet Hollywood's Journey Through Time
Planet Hollywood officially opened in New York City in late 1991. Actors like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, and Bruce Willis were early investors and helped promote the brand. By the next year, three more locations opened in London, southern California, and Chicago.
In 1993, two new restaurants opened in Washington, D.C., and Cancun, Mexico. Each new opening was a big party and brought in a lot of money. The company grew quickly, with each new restaurant earning nearly $15 million in its first year.
Growing the Brand
Because of its success, Planet Hollywood continued to expand in 1994. The company also started thinking about new restaurant ideas. One of these was the Official All Star Café, which was a sports-themed version of Planet Hollywood. They began to sign up famous sports stars and plan a menu with stadium-style food.
The most successful Planet Hollywood restaurant opened in Las Vegas in 1994. It was twice the usual size, with seating for 500 people. Another large location opened later that year at Walt Disney World.
In 1995, with the restaurants doing well, Robert Earl started working on other ways to grow. Construction began on the first All Star Café in New York City, which opened in December 1995. The company also began developing a Marvel Comics-themed restaurant. They even planned a TV game show called Planet Hollywood Squares.
By 1996, Planet Hollywood was so popular that it opened separate stores called Planet Hollywood Superstores. These stores sold merchandise like t-shirts and souvenirs.
Becoming a Public Company
In April 1996, Planet Hollywood became a public company. This meant its shares could be bought and sold on the New York Stock Exchange. On its first day, the share price reached $32. However, by 1999, the price had dropped to less than $1. The company faced financial difficulties and had to reorganize its business twice.
Planet Hollywood also teamed up with MBNA to offer Planet Hollywood VISA credit cards. These cards gave people special perks, like getting a table faster at the restaurants. The company also worked with Marvel Entertainment Group to create the Marvel Mania restaurant, based on comic book characters.
The company had big plans to grow by 30 to 40 percent each year. However, more competitors started up, like Country Star and Harley-Davidson Café. Some people thought Planet Hollywood was expanding too quickly. They worried that interest in novelty restaurants might drop, causing sales to fall.
In September 1997, Planet Hollywood announced a new chain of ice cream shops called Cool Planet Cafe. They planned to open 10 locations in 1998.
By late 1997, the company faced a big loss of $40 million. Many felt that focusing on too many new ideas meant the main restaurants were not getting enough attention. Some customers complained about the food and high prices. In 1998, the company reported $244 million in losses.
The first Marvel Mania restaurant opened in January 1998 near Universal Studios Hollywood. Planet Hollywood also opened its first Sound Republic, a music-themed restaurant, in London in mid-1998. In July 1999, the company launched Planet Movies by AMC, which were movie theaters.
In March 1999, one of the founders, Keith Barish, left the company's board. By May 1999, Planet Hollywood was looking at closing some restaurants and making improvements to others.
In June 1999, the company's president resigned. By July 1999, Planet Hollywood sold its main office in Orlando for cash and then leased it back. On October 12, 1999, the company had to file for a type of bankruptcy called Chapter 11. This allowed them to reorganize their business. They closed or sold restaurants that were not doing well. The company decided to focus on its main movie-themed restaurants and stopped operating Planet Movies by AMC and Sound Republic.
Arnold Schwarzenegger ended his financial ties with the business in January 2000. Planet Hollywood successfully reorganized and came out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy on May 9, 2000. They looked for new celebrities to support their restaurants and reconnected with earlier stars. The plan included getting new money and improving the restaurants' look and menu. Planet Hollywood also launched its first website with entertainment news.
In September 2000, the Official All Star Cafe in Times Square closed. Planet Hollywood took over its large 600-seat location. Even though the All Star location was making money, Planet Hollywood believed its own brand would be even more successful there.
In October 2001, Planet Hollywood International faced financial problems again and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for a second time. The company said the economic slowdown after the September 11 attacks contributed to its $135 million debt.
In July 2010, David Crabtree became the CEO and president of Planet Hollywood. In September 2010, Planet Hollywood Resorts International teamed up with Wyndham Hotel Group to develop Planet Hollywood Resorts.
In April 2022, Planet Hollywood announced plans to sell over 60,000 pieces of its movie memorabilia, like photos and movie posters, as NFTs under the name MetaHollywood.
In May 2023, the Planet Hollywood Restaurant at the Forum Shops in Caesars Palace in Las Vegas closed permanently after 29 years. However, the Cafe Hollywood at the Planet Hollywood hotel-casino in Las Vegas is still open.
Buca di Beppo Restaurants
In September 2008, Planet Hollywood International Inc. bought Buca, Inc. This company owns the Buca di Beppo chain of Italian restaurants across the country.
Sad Event in South Africa
In August 1998, there was a sad event at the Planet Hollywood restaurant in Cape Town, South Africa. A bomb attack occurred, and two people were killed. The people responsible for the bombing said it was in response to American air-raids in Sudan and Afghanistan.
Planet Hollywood Locations
As of January 2024, Planet Hollywood has three restaurants and four hotels open around the world.
Restaurants Today
- Los Angeles International Airport - Tom Bradley International Terminal (opened November 2016)
- Orlando / Walt Disney World - Disney Springs (opened October 1994; updated to Planet Hollywood Observatory in 2017)
- New York City - Times Square (opening 2024)
- Doha Oasis, Msheireb - Doha, Qatar (opened September 2, 2021) [1]
Resorts and Hotels
- Las Vegas - Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, Las Vegas Strip (opened April 2007) - This hotel and casino was once the Aladdin Hotel & Casino and was remodeled. It was sold to Caesars Entertainment in 2010.
- Cancun - Planet Hollywood Resort Cancun (opened January 29, 2021)
- Costa Rica - Planet Hollywood Beach Resort Costa Rica, Peninsula Papagayo (opened October 2018)
- Goa - Planet Hollywood Goa, Utorda Beach (opened October 2014)
Past Restaurant Ideas
Planet Hollywood tried out several other themed restaurant ideas in the past:
- Official All Star Café (1995—2007) - A sports-themed restaurant.
- Chefs of the World - This idea was for a restaurant with famous chefs.
- Marvel Mania restaurant (1998—1999) - A restaurant based on Marvel Comics characters. The first one opened near Universal Studios Hollywood.
- Planet Movies by AMC (July 1999—) - Movie theaters that would be part of complexes with Planet Hollywood restaurants.
- Sound Republic - A music-themed restaurant chain created with MTV Networks. Some locations were planned to have concert halls.
Cool Planet Cafe Ice Cream Shops
| Division | |||||||
| Industry | Restaurant | ||||||
| Fate | Closed | ||||||
| Products | Cool Planet Ice Cream | ||||||
| Owner | Planet Hollywood International | ||||||
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Cool Planet Cafe was a chain of ice cream shops with a movie theme. It was a joint project by Planet Hollywood International. The ice cream itself, called Cool Planet Ice Cream, was made by Dreyer's. It was sold in grocery stores with fun flavors like Blue Berry-More.
Planet Hollywood International started Cool Planet Cafe in September 1997. Whoopi Goldberg was the spokesperson for the ice cream shops and the ice cream. They planned to open 10 locations in 1998.
The first Cool Planet Cafe opened in Santa Monica, California, in August 1998. Even though the separate shops closed, the Cool Planet brand is still used for desserts on the menus of Planet Hollywood restaurants today.
See also
- Bubba Gump Shrimp Company
- Buca di Beppo
- Rainforest Cafe
- Fashion Cafe
- Hard Rock Cafe
