Having created the monster that is boutique hotel culture, Ian Schrager has now revived Chicago's storied Ambassador East hotel in a decisively anti-glamour manner. The debut of his new Public Chicago actually seems to take a cue from the Ace, with an atmosphere that encourages hanging about more than posing.

Anyone who’s ever danced at the Gramercy Park Hotel’s Rose Bar or partied by the pool at the Shore Club knows there’s a lot to love about Ian Schrager’s hotels. His current project, called Public, just launched its first hotel in Chicago yesterday, taking over the historic Ambassador East and installing Jean-Georges Vongerichten in the Pump Room restaurant.

Back in 2006, when Ian Schrager reopened New York's Gramercy Park Hotel to much acclaim and a parade of celebrity guests, he left behind the specters of the former owners, the Weissberg family, whose string of tragedies culminated in scion David jumping from the roof to his death. Now Schrager, who still casts an apparitional shadow over his many previous ventures, has moved on, leaving the hotel to find a way forward on its own considerable merits. Hoping to get an inside take on the future of the Gramercy, I caught up with GM Scott Koster on a recent afternoon in the Rose Bar, which, it must be said, looks startlingly different at 3pm than it does at 3am.

When I first started writing this column, one of my primary goals was to give my readers an insider look at some of the industry’s leaders, and how they approach the business. Some of these people are relatively unknown, as they allow the successful properties and brands they’ve created and promoted do all the talking. Most appear occasionally as a bold-faced name in a newspaper or magazine. Peter Chase is a player. He's the founder of BPC, which develops and manages creative hospitality concepts. His concepts have included: Skybar in Miami Beach, Wunderbar at the W Montreal, MGM Grand Casinos (MGM, Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Borgata) in Las Vegas, Detroit, and Atlantic City, as well as Caesars Palace, Planet Hollywood, and the W San Diego.

"I’m motivated by doing something that blows people away."

Ben Pundole received an unorthodox education at The Groucho Club, London’s infamous members-only haunt. The entertainment honcho for Morgans Hotel Group opted out of a traditional university education, becoming instead the general manager of the Met Bar at the pioneering Metropolitan Hotel in London. It was there that he befriended Madonna, who later introduced him to hotel and design icon Ian Schrager. He also worked with Amy Sacco at Lot 61 in New York, then moved to Morgans to open Skybar in South Beach and the neighboring Florida Room at the Delano with Lenny Kravitz. In total, he balances his time between 14 properties. Most recently, he partnered with GoldBar mastermind Rob McKinley to construct Good Units, a raw events space under the Hudson Hotel in a former YWCA gym.

You don't usually mentally link Marriott hotels with Ian Schrager or high style. But, the reliable hotel chain is hoping to change that with a new brand of "lifestyle" hotels called EDITION. The first EDITION hotel is set to open on Waikiki Beach this fall, and the brand itself is part of a partnership between Marriott and Schrager—he of Studio 54 and boutique hotel fame, from the Delano in Miami to the Mondrian in Los Angeles. According to the EDITION press release, "The Brand will be about an attitude and the way it makes you feel rather than the way it looks. Sophisticated public spaces, finishes, design, and details will serve the experience, not drive it." Yes, the world is turning upside down. What else does the Waikiki EDITION have in store?

Amy Gunther of the Williamsburg North skateboard mecca KCDC asked me to do the door at the Art Mosh opening in West Chelsea last night. The event, promoted by PAPER magazine and uber-trendy watch company Nixon, attracted a Jane-worthy hipster crowd. It was pretty much a no-brainer until the space hit its legal capacity and a large crowd of equally important folks got stuck outside. Then it was 3 out, let 3 in, and I had to actually work ... it's been a long time since I had to work a door. Four PAPER interns were on hand to help, as was PAPER's director of events Nicky Balestrieri. A hundred people were in the street and very few were leaving, as free booze and great music from cinematographer, filmmaker, and actor Shawn Regruto kept everybody happy. Oh yes, there was a great photography show as well. I controlled the crowd, whisked the super VIPs in as fast as allowed, and I thought of the problems over at the Jane and other hotspots where only a chosen few will ever get in.

Word comes to me that despite rumors offering every A-list promoter/owner in town the undeniably delicious Boom Boom Room at the Standard Hotel, that hotelier André Balazs and his crew will handle it in-house. A source tells me they were planning to close until mid-October now that Fashion Week is over. That date has been moved up to September 29. As for who is going to run the place, "Kamil Parchomienko will handle the room." My insider says "Kamil used to live in Miami and LA ... he's worked for Andre for like 13 years. They want to do two seatings, 4-9 for small plates and 10-2/3 for late night. Super high-end Rainbow Room/Rose Bar/Windows on the World style $18-25 drinks and DP by the glass. They're still working on the menu. They've got 4 managers, but no promoters. They're going to rely heavily on Andre, the brand, and the space to keep it busy. $18-25 drinks will eventually wear people down, but the room is pretty nice."

Sandra Ardito heads sales, marketing and special events for KO Hospitality Management (Cooper Square Hotel, Empire Hotel, Hotel on Rivington, and Chelsea Hotel in Atlantic City). We met the hospitality connoisseur at the Cooper Square Hotel to get the scoop on the Hamptons Memorial Day hotspot, the Reform Club Inn (suites and private cottages in Amagansett), working for Ian Schrager, and why we should stay at Cooper Square (besides the fact that it's the location of the Bjork's afterparty tonight).