When J.W. “Bill” Marriott, Jr. and his wife Donna realized they were underutilizing their indoor lap pool, they decided to put the space to better use. They converted it into a state-of-the-art classic home theatre with the ambiance of a real movie house. Guests, who range from their grandchildren to world leaders, get the red carpet treatment as they enter the lobby that includes a “Marriott Cinema” marquee, a “Now Showing” illuminated poster case, and an enclosed wooden ticket booth.
Beyond the theatre entrance doors, which have large oval glass windows, and the usher-style doors, which have smaller oval windows, the 800-square-foot theatre with its pillars, arches, and domed ceiling beckons. Ten big, comfortable, custom-made red leather reclining chairs, a hand-carved arched birch and poplar proscenium, a custom painting of a scene from Casablanca, vintage movie posters, and a fiber-optic ceiling that simulates twinkling stars sets a grand mood for viewing favorite movies and television.
“We needed a place to watch the Super Bowl and have all the kids over and have popcorn. We watch the Super Bowl and all the big events here,” Bill Marriott, chairman and chief executive officer of Marriott International Inc., says. He and his wife have four children and 13 grandchildren.
What’s his favorite feature of the new theatre? “I like the big screen and I think the seating is wonderful and you’ve got to focus on what’s on the screen. When you watch television normally you’re doing other things – like my wife does needlepoint, she even does that in the theatre. But here with the mood of the room, I can (fully) concentrate on what’s on the screen. I don’t do that normally. I usually have one eye on the screen and I do other things. Our grandsons particularly enjoy it.”
Big Screen and Great Sound
Donna relishes the new room, too. “What do I like the best? The big screen!” she says of the 106” Stewart screen. “When you watch the important golf tournaments you really feel like you’re almost there. When you get older, your eyesight isn’t so good, so anything you can do to help is good. And the sound system is tremendous,” she adds, referring to the VR-M90 Boston Acoustics 7.2 Surround Sound System.
Credit Kasey Kumaran and her brother David Kumaran, owners of Absolute Custom, who designed, integrated, and oversaw the pool-to-cinema conversion.
“This was a fast-track job,” says Charles Packan, estate manager. “They had to get it done while the Marriotts were in New Hampshire on summer vacation.”
David says, “Once the walls were up, we had literally 30 days to get it done.”
Before the walls went up, natural light streamed in from several arched windows to the indoor lap pool. The Marriotts wanted to preserve the look of the exterior of their Bethesda house so David Knight, owner of Knight Construction Ventures, put a film over the arched glass windows and closed off an entry to the former pool – from the outside it still looks like a door – before framing the theatre.
Surprisingly, he did not fill in the pool after it was drained. “There was no need to fill it in. It made more sense to kill the sound with insulation and build a deck in there to bridge the opening,” Knight says. “We had to insulate it so it wouldn’t sound like a drum.” As he was framing the theatre, he recessed the speakers into the walls, plastered the ceiling and contoured it into coving on the sides. In the center of the beamed ceiling, a circular soffit holds fiber optics that twinkle like starlight.
Since Donna wanted part of her extensive Hummel collection to be displayed in the theatre, Kasey designed shelves with extra thick (1/2”) glass to support the weight. “It’s not a standard practice to have glass shelving with precious Hummel figurines near speakers and subwoofers in a theatre, because at higher volume and higher bass, the thin glass shelves can create a lot of noise from trembling and the vibrations could possibly shatter the figurines,” Kasey says. “The Marriotts haven’t had any problems because they rarely turn the system up to its maximum capacity.”
Luxurious Features
Unlike in commercial theatres, the custom-made reclining seats in this private screening space can be adjusted in any position between a full upright and a full tilt, says Fred Akers, president of Feature Presentation, the Florida-based company that constructed the interior of the theatre. The chairs also have built-in drink holders, mahogany trim, and are covered in what the Marriotts call “Ferrari Red” leather. Bill owns a stunning classic car collection including 10 red Ferraris, thus the close association. The names “Bill” and “Donna” are custom embroidered in yellow on their respective front row seats. The second row is raised seven inches above the first for easy viewing. The six sconces around the room, which feature a custom bronze finish, have been nicknamed “angel lamps” because they project shadows that look like angel wings.
“The Marriotts’ No. 1 priority was simplicity, so we went with a touch screen remote control,” Kasey says, mentioning the user-friendly “All On” and “All Off” switches that can dim or brighten the lights, open or close the burgundy velvet curtains, and operate satellite TV, cable TV, or movies.
Bill enjoys action films, especially those with Clint Eastwood and Bruce Willis. His all-time favorite movie, however, is Casablanca.
Bill says, “That’s the whole world’s favorite movie, isn’t it?”
