| My Grandparents Had a Hotel | |
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| Directed by | Karen Shopsowitz |
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Running time | 30 min. |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
My Grandparents Had a Hotel is a 1991 documentary film by Karen Shopsowitz that takes a nostalgic look at the Montieth Inn, a popular Jewish resort operated in the Canadian Catskills from 1935 to 1949. Although it is in Canada, the inn is similar to Grossinger's and the Concord Hotel in the Catskills of New York, which also saw their heyday in the mid-20th century.
With playful 16mm home video footage, interviews with people who once worked and vacationed at the family-run inn, and the filmmaker's father's own memories of the family's prized hotel, the film recreates the magic of this spot while telling the history of how the phenomenon came to be, how it flourished, and, finally, why it declined.
The documentary shows this unique time period through numerous vacationer's anecdotes. For example, one old man laughs at his young self, recalling the time he and his teenage friends once stirred up trouble by showing up to a formal dining hall wearing dress shirts, ties, and suit jackets — but no pants.