room in the basement was converted into a closet, while the Rose Room became an automobile showroom. The furnishings of the hotel fell into disrepair; and during some months management was unable to pay staff. By the mid-1930s, the old tea room was officially known as the Palm Court, having been frequently referred to as the "Palm Room" during the previous decade. The back room was reopened as the Oak Room restaurant in 1934, although it was still referred to as the "back room" by its frequent visitors, which included bankers and brokers. The same year, the Fifth Avenue lobby received display windows and a doorway on the southern wall; and the southeastern corner of the ground floor was remodeled into the Persian Room. Mid-20th century Hilton operation U.S. Realty continued to lose money through the 1930s, and started selling off its properties, including the Plaza Hotel. In October 1943, Atlas Corporation, collaborating with hotelier Conrad Hilton, bought the Plaza Hotel for $7.4 million. At the time, the Plaza was 61 percent occupied, and many public areas were closed due to supply shortages caused by World War II. Hilton subsequently spent $6 million refurbishing the hotel. During mid-1944, the lobby on Fifth Avenue was renovated and its mezzanine was enclosed. The Palm Court skylight, having fallen into disrepair, was removed for the installation of air conditioning equipment. A mezzanine was also built above the hotel's former courtyard, and the room itself became the Court Lounge. The brokerage office at the ground level's northwestern corner was turned into the Oak Bar, which opened in January 1945; and EF Hutton was relegated to the Fifth Avenue lobby's mezzanine. The contractor for the renovations may have been Frederick P. Platt & Brother, which was the Plaza Hotel's primary contractor in the 1940s. The Plaza Hotel Corporation, the hotel's operator, was merged with the Hilton Hotels Corporation in 1946. The following year, the Plaza Rendez-Vous opened within the old grill room space. By the early 1950s, women were allowed inside the Oak Room and Bar during evenings and in the summer. The Oak Room and Bar was still a men-only space before 3 p.m., while the stock exchanges were open. Hilton sold the hotel in 1953 to Boston industrialist A.M. "Sonny" Sonnabend for $15 million, and immediately leased it back for 2.5 years. Sonnabend became president of national restaurant chain Childs Company in 1955,