Merv Griffin Buys Beverly Hilton

Entertainer-businessman Merv Griffin has agreed to buy the Beverly Hilton, just a month after saying he had been outbid for the hotel by Japanese investors, it was announced today.

Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, but sources put the price at more than $200 million. The 578-room Beverly Hilton, built in 1955, is the flagship of Beverly Hills-based Hilton Hotels Corp., which owns, manages or franchises 275 hotels nationwide. The property being sold is owned jointly by Hilton Hotels and New York-based Prudential Insurance Co. through the Beverly Hilton Joint Venture. Hilton will continue to manage the hotel for Griffin.