A new Japanese magazine charges that anti-Semitism in Japanese Government circles is delaying the construction of a long-planned Tokyo Hilton Hotel.
The hotel has been in the works since February 1956, when financial tycoon Keita Goto signed a contract with the Hilton interests to build a Tokyo branch of the famous international chain. Since that time plans have been drawn up for a 750-room, $15,000,000 hotel, but a suitable site has never been found. At present, Goto’s Tokyo Hilton Hotel Co. Is trying to purchase a Palace Heights, a choice location near the Imperial Palace and Moat recently released by the U. S. Army.
There are strong indications that Goto will have to look elsewhere. An article in the quarterly, “Who’s Who in Japan,” declares: “One of the problems delaying, if not preventing, the realization of this project is the rumor being spread that Conrad H. Hilton is a Jew. There are forces both within the Japanese Government and other circles that are manipulating strings behind the scenes in an anti-Semitic campaign.”
The publication quotes Goto as saying: “I don’t know whether or not Conrad N. Hilton is a Jew. That makes no difference to me. But I do want our countrymen to reflect what would have happened in 1905 if Jacob Schiff, or Kuhn, Loeb and Company did not extend a helping hand to Japan by taking the lead in raising a loan for us in the midst of the Russo-Japanese War.”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
