Hotel Teito, Tokyo, c. 1950. The building was constructed and first opened ca. 1920 for the Forestry Department of the Imperial Household. During the Occupation (1945-1952) it would be repurposed as hotel, a function which continued until the site was razed in 1960 for construction of the Palace Hotel.

See also:
Palace Hotel

“I Love Lucy (Nov. 27, 1959)

“The gang is headed to Japan for Ricky’s two-week tour of Tokyo, and stay at the Hotel Teito. Lucy’s one wish is for a string of real pearls, and when she meets actor Bob Cummings she convinces him to help her acquire some. She steals money from Fred, and then is forced to give it – and the pearls – back. In the end, big-hearted Ricky buys her the pearls.”

– I Love Lucy: Celebrating 50 Years of Love and Laughter, Elisabeth Edwards, 2010

Hotel Teito, across from the Imperial Palace, near Otemachi Gate, with Mount Fuji on the horizon. The building had originally housed the Forestry Office of the Imperial Household when constructed c. 1910-1920. During the early years of the Occupation, it was refurbished and reopened in 1947 as a hotel. Although nationally-owned, the hotel was operated by Occupation forces until 1952. The site would be razed in 1960 and replaced with the Palace Hotel (1961-2009).

The Teito Hotel figured in an episode of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, in 1959, “The Ricardos Go To Japan,” when it became the hotel the Ricardos stayed at. Show description for Episode 12 from the wiki: “Lucy wants real pearls while in Tokyo, Japan, and finds herself dressing up as a geisha to see that she gets them. Bob Cummings guest stars.”

Aerial view, Marunouchi business district, Tokyo, c. 1960, from a postcard jacket cover. Tokyo Station is at bottom; Hotel Teito is at the upper-center, across from the Imperial Palace moats.