NEW YORK, March 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Morgans Hotel
Group Co. (NASDAQ: MHGC) (the "Company") today announced that it
has appointed veteran real estate investor, Howard M. Lorber, and hotel industry executive,
Kenneth E. Cruse, to the Company's
Board of Directors, effective immediately, to fill the two
vacancies on the Board. With the addition of Messrs. Lorber and
Cruse, Morgans Hotel Group's Board will have nine directors, seven
of whom are independent.
"We welcome Howard and Ken to Morgans Hotel Group's Board and
look forward to leveraging their respective experience in real
estate investing and the lodging industry," said Jason T. Kalisman, interim Chief Executive
Officer. "We are pleased to have the benefit of their
insights and contributions as we continue to take meaningful steps
to enhance stockholder value."
Howard M. Lorber is President and
Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board of Vector Group
Ltd. (NYSE: VGR) and Chairman of Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC, a
majority-owned subsidiary of Vector Group, which operates the
largest residential brokerage company in the New York City metropolitan area and the
fourth-largest in the United
States. Mr. Lorber has been with Vector Group and its
diversified interests since 1994. Mr. Lorber is also Chairman of
the Board of Directors of Nathan's Famous, Inc., a chain of fast
food restaurants, a director of United Capital Corp., a real estate
investment and diversified manufacturing company, and Vice Chairman
of the Board of Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services. Mr. Lorber
holds a Bachelor of Arts degree, a Master of Science degree in
Taxation and an Honorary Doctorate from Long
Island University, where he is also a trustee.
Kenneth E. Cruse served as the
Chief Executive Officer of Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. (NYSE:
SHO) from August 2011 to January 2015 and as its President from
December 17, 2010 to February 15, 2013. Mr. Cruse has over 20 years of
experience in hotel investment, operations and finance. Mr. Cruse
joined Sunstone in April 2005 as
Senior Vice President of Asset Management and Corporate
Transactions. In September 2006, he
was named Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance and in
January 2007, Mr. Cruse was named
Chief Financial Officer. For the eight years prior to joining
Sunstone, Mr. Cruse worked in a variety of roles for Host Marriott
Corporation, the predecessor of Host Hotels and Resorts, Inc., most
recently as Vice President of Corporate Finance. He is actively
involved in various industry and professional organizations. He
served as the Director of Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. from
August 2011 to January 2015. He is a member of The Real Estate
Roundtable and previously served on the Chief Executive Officer
Council for the American Hotel & Lodging Association. He is
also a member of the Southern California Chapter of Young President
Organization and the Dean's Advisory Council for Colorado State University Warner College of Natural
Resources. Mr. Cruse earned an MBA degree with distinction from
Georgetown University and a BS in
Tourism Management and Commercial Recreation from the Colorado State University.
About Morgans Hotel Group
Morgans Hotel Group Co.
(NASDAQ: MHGC) is widely credited as the creator of the first
"boutique" hotel and a continuing leader of the hotel industry's
boutique sector. Morgans Hotel Group operates Delano in South Beach, Mondrian in
Los Angeles, New York, South Beach and London, Hudson in New York, Morgans and Royalton in New York, Clift in San Francisco, Shore Club in South Beach and
Sanderson and St Martins Lane in London. Morgans Hotel Group
has ownership interests or owns several of these hotels. Morgans
Hotel Group also has expanded its brand through Delano in Las
Vegas, a licensed hotel, and 10 Karaköy in Istanbul, Turkey, a franchised hotel. Morgans
Hotel Group has other hotels in various stages of development to be
operated under management or franchise agreements, including a
Mondrian property in Doha, Qatar.
For more information please visit www.morganshotelgroup.com.
Investors
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Media
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Richard
Szymanski
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Daniel
Gagnier/
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Morgans Hotel Group
Co.
|
Nathaniel
Garnick
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212.277.4188
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Sard Verbinnen &
Co
|
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212.687.8080
|
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SOURCE Morgans Hotel Group Co.