Five Years Waldorf Bellhop Jimmy Elidrissi Dies At 74

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“He loved acting and music, but as an immigrant in the 60s he knew it would be difficult for him to make a career in this field,” Rajaa Elidrissi said of his father. “He also had to send a referral to his family in Morocco. He sought help from a Catholic Charity and they helped him find Waldorf.

He was hired at the hotel at $1.23 an hour (about $10.50 in today’s money) on April 21, 1966, returning to work at a variety of jobs. He asked for a try as a bellman. “I’m staying there after almost 50 years” aforementioned in 2015.

He was such a fixture at Waldorf that he played a bellboy as an extra—no rehearsal needed—in several movies, including “The Out-of-Towns” (1970) with Jack Lemmon, his daughter says; “Scent of a Woman” (1992) with Al Pacino; and “Analyze This” (1999), starring Robert De Niro.

After his retirement, Mr. Elidrissi intended to write a narrative book. She said she should include her thoughts on every president she meets, from Lyndon B. Johnson to Barack Obama, no matter how brief. “She started writing stories and I was going to write them down, but we couldn’t finish them,” said her daughter, Rajaa. He had a lot to tell.

Whether it’s Lucille Ball requesting breakfast at 5am or Eddie Fisher ordering 40 sandwiches for friends after a late night dinner club performance, or Jerry Lewis checking in at 3am and walking down a hallway ringing the rooms. like rolling down. passed.

He remembered encountering Ronald Reagan during the 1980 presidential campaign against Jimmy Carter.

As he greeted the nominee, he remembered saying, “‘Here, Mr. President,” and ‘No, no, don’t call me that yet!’ And I say, ‘Look, Mr. President, you will win, and when you win, send me something for my son’. Later that year he sent us a signed painting of my son.”

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