to the hotel by President Calvin Coolidge and his wife in 1925. Other visitors came as convention guests. However, all this history ended with a disastrous fire (see below) in the hotel on June 5, 1946, which was compounded by the fact that the hotel did not live up to its professed "safest hotel" claim, as there was lack of basic fire prevention, warning and firefighting facilities. At the time of the fire, guests occupied 886 rooms of the hotel, with 103 employees at work. After the fire, the hotel was rebuilt and renamed, at a cost of US $2 million, reopening in July 1947 and flourishing for 29 more years until it was razed in 1976 to construct office towers. The famous Silver Grill Cocktail Lounge in the hotel was renamed "The Hour Glass" after renovation. Among other events that took place at the hotel, include the 1928 Prohibition Party's National Convention July 10–12, 1928. William F. Varney was made the party's Presidential nominee. Hollywood actor and dancer, Gene Kelly, said the only time he fell during an actual performance was on the dance floor at the La Salle Hotel in 1933. He slipped on a grease spot on the dance floor and broke his arm. He got up, took a bow and walked off the floor. Architecture The architects of this skyscraper building developed their own innovative architectural style within the "Chicago School". A special feature of this style is the "Chicago window" with a large pane of plate glass for each window flanked by constricted windows which could be opened. This created an illusion that the entire building was made up of glass. La Salle billed itself as "Chicago's Finest Hotel" and was a symbol of upper class extravagance in Chicago in the early twentieth century, with its grand ballrooms and luxury restaurants exuding a grandeur of the fine palace hotels of Europe. The hotel was 22 stories high and claimed 1000 rooms. It was one of Chicago's leading hotels until North Michigan Avenue became host to the Drake Hotel (1918–20) and the Allerton Hotel (1923–4). Resembling hotels of New York City, it had a particular similarity to the 1904 Hotel Astor. Exterior The above ground level, 22 story building was built on rock caissons and had two basements. The hotel frontage on La Salle Street was while the Madison Street frontage was . Its architectural style