Welcome to Lines On A Resume: A Hotelman’ Journey…
Frank Adam Rota was an enigma. By the time I came into being, my Dad had already lived a lifetime of adventures, had one marriage annulled, one divorce, served in the Korean War, worked in some of the hottest clubs and hotels in New York City, and brushed shoulders with a future president, movie stars, band leaders, and top performers.
After my birth, my dad continued his career at 13 hotels, with me in tow, sometimes we had company, sometimes it was just us. I never knew where we would be in the future, but I knew I would be by his side.
When my father passed in 2023, he had reduced his life’s records to fit in file box. Years prior, most of our family pictures, slides, records…were destroyed in a flood. I realized that any chance of filling in the blanks of his - our - lives were gone with him.
And then I found 22 copies of his resume, each with a recommendation letter.
Lines on a Resume will focus solely on the career of Frank Adam Rota. Using “found” resumes and informative letters of recommendation, odd keepsakes, and online research, we’ll get a glimpse of an amazing life and career that spanned the country.
Check out “Hotel Brat Revisited” an accompanying blog focuses on my father’s career but also our personal lives and the people who became families for the short time we were with them, places that we grew to love, and some that we couldn’t get away from fast enough.
Looking for some current Hospitality love? “Everyday Hospitality” features posts about the people who live to practice the art of hospitality, and what motivates them.
Missing Entry #1 - The Truth Is Out There
In 1973, my father stepped outside hotel life to manage a sprawling development in Marietta, Georgia. The project was chaotic, short-lived, and unforgettable…and it taught me something essential about hospitality, home, and the accents we pick up along the way.
All In: My Father’s Gamble on the Cherry Hill Inn
In 1971, my father, Frank Adam Rota, walked away from the New York Hilton and placed a bet on himself. His next stop was the Cherry Hill Inn in New Jersey, a property connected to the Garden State Racetrack, where the stakes were as high as the ambitions of the men who ran it. For my father, it was his first shot at the title he’d chased since his Hilton days, General Manager, and the odds were entirely his own.
The New York Hilton Rockefeller Center Years — A Foundation is Set (1962–1971)
The New York Hilton years marked the beginning of my father’s rise in hospitality, a whirlwind of ambition, mentorship, and mid-century Manhattan glamour. This is where the foundation was set, one banquet, one late night, and one hard-earned promotion at a time.
Buckle Up!
Introducing Lines on a Resume: A Hotelman’s Journey
Release Date: October 28, 2025
