I grew up spending summers in the '60s and early '70s at the Paramount Hotel. I swam without help for the first time in that pool after my dad challenged me to "just jump in and swim." My first musical memory was "Twist Again" by Chubby Checker playing on the Jukebox in the Casino building (which I presume was lost to the fire). I spent endless summer days rowing on the lake (yes they had rowboats, I don't remember paddleboats but that could have been later on). Freddie Gasthalter (I think that was his last name), the owner, was a great guy, very lively. The dining room was huge and the food was good, traditional Kosher Catskills fare. The main building was Chateau style, with high ceilings and plenty of space. The building foundation that you panned to left of the main building was the Casino building. I returned to the Paramount when I was in college in the late 70s, when we had "Jewish Student Weekends" and took the place over. We had a "Gong Show" in the casino and a group of us formed "Veggie and the Paramounts," and performed the Do-Wop "Crazy Eddie" commercial. We were gonged :-). The place wasn't super-fancy (and therefore was more affordable than the big resorts) but was a nice place to go. I generally avoided the connecting halls, using the outside paths instead, because they were, indeed, confusing. As the place grew they added more connecting halls, I think as a convenience for people who stayed over during winter months. Thank you for posting this and bringing back some great memories!
I just watched the video for the first time. As the owner of the hotel I didn't appreciate the liability of you trespassing but I did enjoy the detailed walkthrough.
Watching alot of your videos, I can definitely see one more item you should add to your "It must be abandoned" list. Besides the toys and Christmas items you find is the Painted artwork on the walls and everywhere else. In fact you can see this before even going into alot of these places, You can say "If it is tagged It is abandoned!" I can't comprehend that this is their only form of entertainment .😢
I worked there from 1984-1989. This was emotional and touchingly personal for me to watch. I am also mesmerized by all of your other hotel videos in the surrounding area. Thank you for not letting these places fade into nothingness. FAN for life!
I throughly enjoyed this video. The length was fine as I like looking at everything. Some parts were really falling apart and some weren’t so bad but the vandals sure do a job on these places. I don’t get what they enjoy about doing all that damage. I totally enjoyed this, I am looking for more of these! Thanks Jay and Mike, it was fun
That was really strange when the phone in the closet started ringing, then no one was on the other end. Telephone systems have their own power source, it's that way for emergency communications. Did you "DIAL 9" FOR AN OUTSIDE LINE?
Its amazing how the older wooden sections of the property are much more intact and standing better than the more modern sections. Shows how older buildings and good craftmanship withstands the test of time and elements.
39:48 I heard that too. Was it the door you opened or did you have "something" there with you? I've heard that same thing before. Creepy! Love your videos...especially the longer ones.
I'd hate to be the guy who put up all that new drywall, only to see it go to waste. You explained why it happened, but it's still a sad situation. Great video, thumbs up!!
We also have Best Western Hotels in Australia as well, but ours are not as extensive in size as those in the USA. Can't say what they are like as we have never stayed in hotels or motels before, for our family it was always on-site cabin/caravan and tent site stays in caravan/tourist parks or camping down old fire and disused trails in forest areas (the best). Such a shame to see such a building sitting empty and deteriorating, to think it was once someone's pride and joy and once seen and enjoyed by those who stayed during its years of operation. Out of all of the places we have been over the years, (we have never been out of Australia), the hotels and motels we remember seeing as kids are still in operation today. To our knowledge, we don't have seasonal hotels/motels in Australia, all of the ones we have seen remain open all year round. Awesome video!!!
Wow. How many times have you had phones ring in abandoned structures? I can't recall the name of the other one, I think it was a hotel, but you got to the phone in time to tell the caller, "Sorry, we're closed." That one set me tripping!!
@@JPVideos81 I'm more worried about who would be on the other side. If I was exploring an abandoned place and the phone rang, I'd think a ghost would be on the other end.
thanks JP for another video and yes you are on point. I love every video that you put out keep doing what you doing. P.S can you tell Mike plumber job open ha ha 😂 but I do like him and you and everything that you two and the family put out also cool sound effects try more I lkie
We just explored this two weeks ago, while still massive, the building is now in extreme ruins. People have destroyed anything that was not destroyed. Its funny you mentioned that the one section was colder than the rest. We thought the same thing in one section. Maybe that wing is haunted? It is a noticable difference from the rest of the building. Even in 100 degree heat. Oh and the indoor poor also has Hydrochloric Acid dumped into it. No swimming!
Great work, we almost visited this in march but skipped it for a house up the street. Apparently someone dumped hydrochloric acid in the swimming pool here.
No wonder you got lost...sure is a maze of decay with very few areas intact. Amazing how preserved the one bathroom was (purple colored flowered wallpaper). Huge outdoor pool! Too bad it met its demise. Someone sure was trying to renovate it. Beautiful area for hunters to stay. Sad. The ringing phone? ..... creepy.
Worked as maintenance man here in 1987-88.Remember all the guests arriving on buses every Sunday,Big dining room and lake in the front.My bosses name was Bella.Very nice woman.Used to drive the shuttle bus to Monticello shortline terminal.Lot of memories there.
Some people should form an organisation to check for usable items in abandoned homes after ofc getting permissions from the old owners and donate them to shelters. So many things can be easily fixed or reused in shelters.
I still enjoyed it. Especially the indoor and outdoor pool and the lake. Of course, the "Dramatic Pool Scene" was funny. 😂 Those before shots at the end. I didn't realize those burned down parts sat up like that. It would have been cool to see. Thanks for giving us a visual w the original photos. What was that small structure behind the pool? Was it an equipment shed? Also, the docks were they submerged because of rising lake levels or they rotted and just sunk slowly? Now I'm going to watch the Brown's video. And you've mentioned Grossinger's a couple of times in this video (which is what started it all for me with your channel), so I might rewatch that one if not today, maybe in the next few days. Thanks for all you do and for sharing with us. 😄👍
That air conditioner you got close to was one of G.E.'s best, roughly 78 to 88. I still have several in service at the apartment complex I work for. It's funny how those older units have outlived so many modern units. I insist on letting them live on, against my bosses wishes! So many of my tenants ask me to find an old one, and take out the new one!
Another Great Explore And I Enjoyed your long video, very informative Thank you, you guys made me laugh at the end trying to be David hasselholf from bay watch, I'm just Asking Do you have photos of before & After the Fire, please what caused the Fire in the kitchen please? Was it Arson or Accidental?
I watched the entire video while doing laundry and it was a very interesting watch and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The Baywatch ending alone was worth the wait 😄 I appreciate the massive EFFORT that you put into getting up there and then exploring such an enormous area! 👏🏾
This place is hard to imagine. I liked it very much (as usual). You got me with the phone!! Until I read the comments 🙄. I am somewhat (?) gullible. Thank you for sharing this.
Lol, y'all are funny, but enjoyed. Sad everything is rotting away and or being vandalized, along with vagrants and probably all kinds of critters, which probably scares off perspective buyers. May be better off to demo all of it and just sell property, but not sure how that would work either. Do you know how the fire started? Enjoyed video, glad you got I lost, lol, as always thx for sharing
Great video guys. My only question is why does it look like they were not finished building this hotel. The walls have plaster spots and no carpet. Was this going to be remodeled. What a waste. Homeless would have taken better care of this place than being vandalized.
I just want to say, not only do I love your videos, but I enjoy your laid back personality and you always look at all the little objects I would want to see if I were exploring myself. Just obsessed with your channel. Thanks for the awesome content!
As a former Upstate New Yorker, I'm ashamed to admit I did not know the Catskills had such a dominant Jewish population! What happened? Why did all these fantastic old resorts close down? Can you recommend any books that may cover this historical phenomenon? The Catskills, especially as your videos present them, are so very fascinating to me! I really never knew about these places, even though my great grandfather and his wife played in some of these resorts when they were in their younger years! Thank you for your presentations! You are a very thorough documentarist without being stuffy or dry. You manage to create excitement and curiosity for these places!
There are PLENTY of Jews there now. Especially in the summer. They have their own hotels and properties. Eventually they will probably buy these properties and use them for retreats.
I just love how you research somewhere and place it on screen about what happened in the past and how a property thrived at that time. Also i love it when you put old photos on screen too. It makes the video so much more interesting .. thank you another amazing video ... x
Hey JP, that's a royal mess. Please be careful and safe. I hope that you don't come across a body.🤔🙄 it's so amaze me how many can be so destructive, the place is torn up, I know that there was A fire, but I feel A lot of it was done by vandalism.
I was sort of disappointed that you didn't show checking the strange room out that had the blue blanket outside over the window ( timestamps 29:00) but wow overall, huge buildings
I love how peaceful and quiet the whole property seems to be...that's one of my favorite things about abandoned places...it's like being alone in the world.
I never thought I would get hooked on watching these kind of video's But thanks to you I am :P also it's kind of creepy how in 3 video's I have watched now. A random phone rings. Crazy lol
Just my 2 cents, If they would have a law passed that states you must show a contractors license to scrap copper this kind of destruction to property would stop
@@JPVideos81 they could hold the scrap yards accountable for documentation of contractors license numbers, just a thought. But you are right, thieves don't follow laws
I love the long videos. As far as the outside pool goes, yes it's not fancy, but as far as the kids go they probably thought it was awesome. Thx again for an awesome video.
To see all these materials being wasted when these things should be saved and repurposed. So many people go without. This could provide furniture and other materials that are still good.
Interesting but a bit long, I know you tried to show all and that's good. I wonder what happens to these abandoned houses/ buildings. I am sure at some date in the future they are cleaned up and hauled away. How old was this hotel? I always feel sad seeing what is left behind, house/building and contents. The farm houses really get me, hate to see them gone. Keep up your good work!
So sad that people have to steal and destroy abandoned buildings here in America. Thanks for braving the trashed and dangerous conditions to share this place with us. That creepy phone ringing almost gave me a heart attack! And as always, love the montage!! Thanks again, and stay safe!
People who vandalize abandoned places really suck. If caught, I think instead of jail or a fine they should have to restore part of the abandoned place. If you think about it, without the vandalism to this hotel, it could be a great place to set up for veteran housing. So much potential made unaffordable by idiots.
I love your videos and you're very informative. I believe the Paramount Hotel was part of the so called Borscht Belt back in the day. If walls could talk.
EXCELLENT EXPLORE ///KEEP EM COMING FELLAS.....CATSKILLS IS AWESOME....HAVE YOU GONE TO THE PINES YET IN SOUTH FALLSBURGH WHERE THR WALKWAY BRIDGE GOES OVER LITTLE POOL.....THEY KNOCKED MOST OF THOSE BUILDINGS DOWN WITH FIRE.....WONDER IF POOL IS STILL THERE.....SAD STUFF
Swan lake is no longer abandoned. Its taken over and reopened by a jewish organization. We went there to film it and the place was packed. Btw, still waiting for you to message me on fb lol.
Deb from Idaho~~~~~ Do people ever come forward that say they stayed in these abondoned hotels when they were young? Or have you ever asked your viewers to come forward if they stayed there? I am at a loss as to why another Corporation would not come in and if not renovate, tear down and rebuild with the beautiful woods and the lake~ seems like they could make a fortune even today in 2019
I subscribed! Hit the like, clanged the bell. I used to go out like you guys do sometimes. Health reasons stop and slow me down. I do enjoy your videos , they are slow going so you can actually see what’s there , thank you❤️ I’m a new lurker now following. Love it... well, except for the . creepy music at the beginning.
Wow! That place looked gorgeous when it was still operational! Sad to see these beautiful sites go but the cool thing about exploring abandoned places is you get to see the aftermath and see the memories that were made there. Amazing video! Really captured everything!
