MARFA, Texas — West Texas is home to several gems, including a historical spot that was once home to some Hollywood stars in the fifties.
The Hotel Paisano was one of the most significant hotels in the early days. The owner, Joe Duncan, bought it in 2001. It's located in downtown Marfa and was one of the few hotels built in 1930.
During that time, West Texas was gaining popularity thanks to the local national parks that were set to open up including Big Bend, Carlsbad Caverns and the Guadalupe Mountains.
"These hotels were situated at the crossroads to the national parks but developed by the Gateway Hotel Company for future tourism," said Duncan.
Tourism would boom shortly after three Hollywood heartthrobs would make their way to West Texas. Just outside Marfa, Giant, featuring Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson and James Dean was being filmed. The storyline revolved around oil, ranching, love, with elements targeting racism.
"Warner Bros. came to town in 1955 to film Giant, the 'National Movie of Texas,' some people call it," said Duncan. "They all stayed here. They moved into Paisano of June '55 and were filming for six weeks. They didn’t film here, but they all stayed here."
Stepping into the Hotel Paisano is like stepping into the past because everything is kept to look original. Duncan says he never wanted to change anything about the hotel and keep its historic charm of what it always looked like. What you see there is how it looked when the hotel first opened, and when the cast first walked in.
"This is a funny story from Giant," said Duncan. "James Dean blew into town and was one of the big stars. This was his third picture, he blew into town, fell on the couch [at the hotel] and took a nap. The desk clerk said, 'I think that's James Dean but I don't know."
The hotel has 42 rooms and each one has its own character. The 'James Dean' is the highly requested room because that was the room Dean stayed in during the ten days of filming before he moved a few blocks away at a home. Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Dennis Hopper and the staff also stayed in their own rooms which you can book.
The other side of the building holds spaces for art exhibits, souvenir shops, and if you want cool merch from the film, there's a little shop dedicated to all things Giant. You'll even see some pieces from the actual set, including the original wood that holds signed photographs of the stars.
The hotel also has a restaurant called Jett's Grill, named after Dean's character in the film. Inside the restaurant, holds plenty of photos that showed what life was like behind the scenes.
Because technology wasn't advanced as it is now, films took a process to be developed. Dailies, which were the raw and unedited footage shot during the film, were frequently sent out of West Texas at the end of the day. That's where the name "dailies" comes from.
"When Giant was here, George Stephens, the director, set up a projector in the ballroom," said Duncan. "He'd show his dailies in here, they'd fly the film to Los Angeles, have it developed, and the next day, they'd fly it back to Marfa. At night, they'd show it on the projector and critique their work."
Unfortunately, this would be James Dean's last and final film after he died in a car crash just weeks later and never had the chance to see the final film.
“They were young," said Duncan. "They were in their early 20s in 1955. She [Elizabeth Taylor] was the biggest movie star in the world, and it was a big deal for her to be in Marfa. Everyone in Marfa came to the Hotel Paisano to take pictures of them.”
If you're interested in booking a room at the Hotel Paisano, click here.