Fun Fact: A “Feud” at the Old SeaPort Marina Hotel

The 1964 thriller “Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte” is well-known for its behind-the-scenes drama between actresses Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. This drama was reenacted in the Ryan Murphy-created television series “Feud,” which used Long Beach’s now-defunct SeaPort Marina Hotel to film part of an episode. In the show, the SeaPort Marina Hotel is meant to resemble a Louisiana hotel that the “Hush Hush” film crew stayed in during filming.

“We were one of the last people to film at the SeaPort Marina Hotel before it got torn down,” said “Feud” location manager Robert Foulkes.

Foulkes, who was also interviewed for the movie issue of Long Beach 908 Magazine (dropping on doorsteps now,) says that the SeaPort Marina hotel was a great location to film “Feud” because it had the required vintage look production was looking for.

“Long Beach does a great job when substituting things when it needs to,” Foulkes says. “The lobby at SeaPort Marina Hotel was stuck in time with that great stonework, next to the front desk, and the terrazzo floor. [The hotel] could double perfectly as the Louisiana courtyard hotel where the stars stayed while filming the movie [‘Hush Hush’].”

The Seaport Marina Hotel, originally known as the Hyatt Edgewater Hotel, opened in 1963. Many celebrities visited the hotel during its lifespan, including Elvis Presley. In 1996, it was renamed “SeaPort Marina.” The hotel played host to several television sets throughout the decades, including “Dexter,” “CSI: Miami,” and “The O.C.” SeaPort Marina Hotel once stood on the corner of Second Street and Pacific Coast Highway. It was torn down last year to build a new shopping center.