Simone

She's not cheap, but we hear that she's worth every penny. Simone knows what's what because she's seen it all; she was born with nothing, has lost everything, goes down swinging with grace and always comes back for more with style. There's no heart of gold in this gem; she's an angel whose bell never rings for those wings. She's a porn film star (among other things) who's all business and while there's nothing she won't do--or hasn't done--for a fast buck, she's fiercely loyal to her friends. And that's more than you can say about a lot of people. After everything is said and done, we'd like to believe that Simone secretly believes in love, but we know better.

Angel

After studying philosophy and religion at the city university where he was a star basketball player (and where he now occasionally teaches a popular course on the history of theosophy) Angel remains the Troubador's most popular bartender. He strives to maintain a sense of harmony at work, attending with purposeful compassion to the lounge's guests and counting several colleagues and former students among his regulars. Angel has survived everything life has thrown at him, except the failure of his second marriage. Fortunately, his sense of humor and irony remain intact, and he is fond of quoting Camus: "Real generosity towards the future lies in giving all to the present."
(Translation: Don't forget to tip!)

Mary Megan

An uncommon beauty for whom heartbreak has become second nature, Mary Megan is a passionate writer whose articles and fiction examine the social, sexual, political and economic subtexts of working women and champion the rights of minorities in the hospitality industry. She is a bright and volatile spirit with a keen eye and a sharp tongue, assets she puts to good use as the chair of the local chapter of her union. Of course, in addition to all of this, Mary is the hardest working waitress in the entire city, but if she heard us say so, we'd never hear the end of it.

The Baroness Josephine DuMonde

Beatrice Elizabeth Bonner was born into a prosperous Midwestern family who built their fortune in the early days of the oil industry boom. She studied dance at the best schools in Europe, making frequent academic trips to examine the dance customs of Asia and Micronesia, and while visiting Sydney, she fell in love with a young Australian anthropologist. In a strange twist of fate, he abandoned her during an excursion to Pitcairn's Island--where she was subsequently introduced to the Baron DuMonde.
At 23, Beatrice was a wealthy socialite and a serious student of dance, and the Baron was 50, an erudite, educated man of the world, a generous patron of the arts (and a covert financier of the American Communist Party) who had owned the original Troubador and later opened the Troubador Hotel, which eventually became the Hotel Ticonderoga. Beatrice sailed with the Baron to South America and they were married in Buenos Aires (where she was familiar to President and Mrs. Peron as "Josephine".) The DuMondes returned to the US and the Baroness (who was infertile) became involved with several children's charities. After the Baron's assassination by the CIA in 1957, the bereaved Baroness found solace in the arms of her deceased husband's younger half-brother, and a minor media frenzy ensued when they were married. Their union was brief and tragic; Michel St. Gerard was a womanizing, gambling drunkard and a reckless pilot who crashed his small airplane into a mountainside after squandering most of his wife's fortune away on the tables at Monte Carlo. In a state of shock (and mourning both husbands) the Baroness moved into the top floor of the Ticonderoga (one of her few remaining assets) to acquaint herself with the spirit and history the Baron had embraced there. She divested the family petroleum business, established an arts charity league for underpriveleged youth, and is today recognized as one of our city's most beloved patrons.

Bolivia Muse

from publicity still, dated 1935

Gabriel Muse

from publicity still, dated 1935

Juniper Muse

age 12, 1936

Oliver Muse

age 12, 1936

Jim Battery

Wild, mean streets pulsing with adrenaline, amphetamines and pounding hearts. The dark alleyway shadows of crooked cops, switchblade thugs, thieving junkies and murderous bombshells. Hot city nights punctuated by the angry staccato of stuttering gunfire. The desperate grip of blood money clenched in bloodier fists. The petty lives, lusty motives and big nowhere dreams of stupid women and stupider men. The dark world of Jim Battery's relentlessly hard-boiled fiction is fueled by his own nightmares, drunken binges, broken limbs, broken promises and broken heart. What can we say? Jim Battery writes the life he leads.
But probably not for long.

Francis Blum

Francis Blum has been the general manager of the Hotel Ticonderoga for several years. He worked as a doorman while studying ethnobotany at the local city college, but accepted the management position when he was diagnosed with a rare allergy to the flora his thesis work focused upon. He resides at the hotel, remains constantly on-call and despite his intimidating appearance, is a reserved and practical presence. His loyalty, wit and tact are often lauded by the Baroness DuMonde and he is, for all intents and purposes, her right-hand man.

Circa 1944

The Hotel Ticonderoga's current location, circa 1944, prior to renovation, restoration and "new" Troubador addition.