08/17/99 - Planet Hollywood Inc., a troubled theme-restaurant group owned in part by Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Sylvester Stallone, has said today that it intends to file for U.S. bankruptcy court protection.

Analysts say the company's managers were too focused on expansion at the cost of overseeing operations.

That will leave the future of 100 restaurants, from Seattle to Singapore to Las Vegas, up in the air. Besides the 87 restaurants bearing the Planet Hollywood name, the chain has several outlets under the Official All Star Cafe name.

But where would all that Hollywood memorabilia go? The restaurants serve not only as purveyors of food and expensive trinkets bearing the Planet Hollywood logo, but as movie museums. The prop and costume collections on display include historic outfits worn by Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Schwarzenegger in Terminator, Woody Harrelson in Natural Born Killers, and even Orson Welles in Citizen Kane.

The chain, which was founded in 1991 and once boasted long entrance lines and a hectic opening schedule across the globe, is now a money-loser. It has been in default on debt payments since April. Sales at restaurants open a year or more were off 22 percent in the 13 weeks through June 27, notes Reuters. Only the New York and Orlando restaurants continue to be profitable.


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Mark
Talk Vegas Entertainment Moderator



[This message has been edited by Mark (edited August 17, 1999).]

A Planet Hollywood/Planet Movies combination just opened a few weeks ago in a new, very upscale, retail/office complex in Columbus Ohio. I think this is the first of these in the country. Sounds like maybe it will be the last. I haven't been inside either of these but I had lunch near there last week and looked into their lobby from a second story balcony. The entire lobby for the theatre is decorated like their restaurants.

jm

[This message has been edited by senatorjm (edited August 17, 1999).]

I wonder what they will do with that huge P/H ball that is used for advertising outside of Caesars/Forum Shops?
Gale

I wonder how soon they will start closing them up. I want to get a tee shirt for a friend
of mine. Hope there still open in Oct.

Read an article this morning saying thay don't plan to close, just reorganize. "The company said it will cancel it's common stock in exchange for warrants, pay of note holders and attempt to reorganize it's debt."
As part of the reorginazation, the company said it will use a $30 Million infusion from it's two largest shareholders and a trust for the children of it's chief executive to keep the restaurants afloat.

jm

I ate at PH once. Never went back.

It was kind of like, "Yea, we let ya in here, so eat the food, don't complain, and make room for the next sucker!"

Not too impressive!

I noticed, that Planet hollywood wasn't mentioned in anyones, best value or best meal topic here on TalkVegas!
Lee-PA