Hospitality Suite
Encyclopedia
Hospitality Suite is an award-winning stage play written by Roger Rueff
that centers around conflicting notions of character, salesmanship, honesty, religion
, and love that simmer until they boil over as two experienced salesmen and a young research engineer await a CEO whose visit to their modest hospitality suite could save their company from ruin.
in downtown Wichita, Kansas, three representatives of an industrial lubricants firm prepare to host a convention hospitality suite. One is Phil, a recently divorced account manager
in his mid-50s who's begun to question his purpose in life and work. Another is Larry, about 40 and energetic -- the embodiment of confident salesmanship but far more than just another glad hand. The third is Bob, early 20s, a fresh recruit from the company research department -- brought into the affair (and out of his element) to represent the company's technical expertise. He is fresh out of school, recently married, affable, inquisitive, and religious. Larry and Phil have a singular hope for the evening -- to make the acquaintance of Dick Fuller -- CEO of one of the largest manufacturing firms in the Midwest and, as such, a potential savior of their ailing company... a man whom they invited but have never met or seen.
As the three prepare the room and themselves to host the evening's festivities, the conversation tacks into delicate issues not often discussed in a business environment -- including religion
, where the stark differences between Larry and Bob come to light and subtle battle lines are drawn below the surface.
Late that night, when the last of the partygoers has downed his last drink and left the room, Phil and Larry are desolate because Dick Fuller didn't show. Larry had even left the room to search for him earlier in the night but was unable to hunt him down. All seems truly lost until, by a slip of the tongue, they realize that Dick Fuller did show up and that Bob unwittingly talked to him at length about a lot of issues unrelated to industrial lubricants, including religion -- a fact that accentuates the battle lines and brings Larry's blood to a low boil. Bob is sent on a mission to find Dick Fuller at another party down the street and relay Larry and Phil's desire to speak to him about lubricants.
Later still, as Phil and Larry wait for Bob, the questions bugging Phil about life and purpose make themselves known -- cutting through the veneer of their relationship and exposing both to their true feelings about each other. When Bob returns and reveals that he found Dick Fuller but that he could only bring himself to talk to him about Jesus, the gloves come off, and no one is left unscathed.
. Roger Rueff
wrote the screenplay with Kevin Spacey
(Larry), Danny DeVito
(Phil) and Peter Facinelli
(Bob) starring in the title roles.
Roger Rueff
Roger Rueff is an award-winning writer whose produced dramatic works include stage plays, teleplays, and screenplays. His stage play Hospitality Suite premiered at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, California in 1992 and has been subsequently produced internationally...
that centers around conflicting notions of character, salesmanship, honesty, religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, and love that simmer until they boil over as two experienced salesmen and a young research engineer await a CEO whose visit to their modest hospitality suite could save their company from ruin.
Plot summary
In a small hotel room on the 26th floor of the Holiday InnHoliday Inn
Holiday Inn is a brand of hotels, formally a economy motel chain, forming part of the British InterContinental Hotels Group . It is one of the world's largest hotel chains with 238,440 bedrooms and 1,301 hotels globally. There are currently 5 hotels in the pipeline...
in downtown Wichita, Kansas, three representatives of an industrial lubricants firm prepare to host a convention hospitality suite. One is Phil, a recently divorced account manager
Account manager
An account manager is a person in a business who is responsible for the management of the sales and relationship with particular customers. They are usually allocated particular customer accounts, especially key accounts that provide the most business....
in his mid-50s who's begun to question his purpose in life and work. Another is Larry, about 40 and energetic -- the embodiment of confident salesmanship but far more than just another glad hand. The third is Bob, early 20s, a fresh recruit from the company research department -- brought into the affair (and out of his element) to represent the company's technical expertise. He is fresh out of school, recently married, affable, inquisitive, and religious. Larry and Phil have a singular hope for the evening -- to make the acquaintance of Dick Fuller -- CEO of one of the largest manufacturing firms in the Midwest and, as such, a potential savior of their ailing company... a man whom they invited but have never met or seen.
As the three prepare the room and themselves to host the evening's festivities, the conversation tacks into delicate issues not often discussed in a business environment -- including religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, where the stark differences between Larry and Bob come to light and subtle battle lines are drawn below the surface.
Late that night, when the last of the partygoers has downed his last drink and left the room, Phil and Larry are desolate because Dick Fuller didn't show. Larry had even left the room to search for him earlier in the night but was unable to hunt him down. All seems truly lost until, by a slip of the tongue, they realize that Dick Fuller did show up and that Bob unwittingly talked to him at length about a lot of issues unrelated to industrial lubricants, including religion -- a fact that accentuates the battle lines and brings Larry's blood to a low boil. Bob is sent on a mission to find Dick Fuller at another party down the street and relay Larry and Phil's desire to speak to him about lubricants.
Later still, as Phil and Larry wait for Bob, the questions bugging Phil about life and purpose make themselves known -- cutting through the veneer of their relationship and exposing both to their true feelings about each other. When Bob returns and reveals that he found Dick Fuller but that he could only bring himself to talk to him about Jesus, the gloves come off, and no one is left unscathed.
Film adaptation
Director John Swanbeck created a motion picture version of the play titled The Big KahunaThe Big Kahuna (film)
The Big Kahuna is a 1999 American comedy-drama film adapted from a play entitled Hospitality Suite, written by Roger Rueff, who also wrote the screenplay...
. Roger Rueff
Roger Rueff
Roger Rueff is an award-winning writer whose produced dramatic works include stage plays, teleplays, and screenplays. His stage play Hospitality Suite premiered at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, California in 1992 and has been subsequently produced internationally...
wrote the screenplay with Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey, CBE is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television...
(Larry), Danny DeVito
Danny DeVito
Daniel Michael DeVito, Jr. , better known as Danny DeVito, is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC television series Taxi , for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman,...
(Phil) and Peter Facinelli
Peter Facinelli
Peter Facinelli is an American actor. He became known as the star of Fox's 2002 television series Fastlane. He plays Carlisle Cullen in the film adaptations of the Twilight series. He is also well known for his role as Mike Dexter in the film Can't Hardly Wait...
(Bob) starring in the title roles.