{{unreferenced, date=May 2008 ''Hospitality Suite'' is a 1992

stage play A play is a work of drama, usually consisting mostly of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and intended for theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Reading (process), reading. The writer of a play is called a playwright. Pla ...

written by Roger Rueff that centers on conflicting notions of character, salesmanship, honesty,

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

, and love that simmer until they boil over as two experienced salesmen and a young research engineer await a

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

whose visit to their modest hospitality suite could save their company from ruin.

Plot summary

In a small hotel room on the 26th floor of the

Holiday Inn Holiday Inn is an American chain of hotels based in Atlanta, Georgia. and a brand of IHG Hotels & Resorts. The chain was founded in 1952 by Kemmons Wilson, who opened the first location in Memphis, Tennessee that year. The chain was a division ...

in downtown

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had ...

, three representatives of an industrial

lubricants A lubricant (sometimes shortened to lube) is a substance that helps to reduce friction between surfaces in mutual contact, which ultimately reduces the heat generated when the surfaces move. It may also have the function of transmitting forces, t ...

firm prepare to host a convention hospitality suite. One is Phil, a recently divorced

account manager An account manager (AM) is a person who works for a company and is responsible for the management of sales and relationships with particular customers. An account manager maintains the company's existing relationships with a client or group of cl ...

in his mid-50s who's begun to question his purpose in life and work. Another is Larry, about 40 and energetic—the embodiment of confident salesmanship but far more than just another glad hand. The third is Bob, early 20s, a fresh recruit from the company research department—brought into the affair (and out of his element) to represent the company's technical expertise. He is fresh out of school, recently married, affable, inquisitive, and religious. Larry and Phil have a singular hope for the evening—to make the acquaintance of Dick Fuller --

of one of the largest manufacturing firms in the

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

and, as such, a potential savior of their ailing company... a man whom they invited but have never met or seen. As the three prepare the room and themselves to host the evening's festivities, the conversation tacks into delicate issues not often discussed in a business environment—including

, where the stark differences between Larry and Bob come to light and subtle battle lines are drawn below the surface. Late that night, when the last of the partygoers has downed his last drink and left the room, Phil and Larry are desolate because Dick Fuller didn't show. Larry had even left the room to search for him earlier in the night but was unable to hunt him down. All seems truly lost until, by a slip of the tongue, they realize that Dick Fuller did show up and that Bob unwittingly talked to him at length about a lot of issues unrelated to industrial lubricants, including religion—a fact that accentuates the battle lines and brings Larry's blood to a low boil. Bob is sent on a mission to find Dick Fuller at another party down the street and relay Larry and Phil's desire to speak to him about lubricants. Later still, as Phil and Larry wait for Bob, the questions bugging Phil about life and purpose make themselves known—cutting through the veneer of their relationship and exposing both to their true feelings about each other. When Bob returns and reveals that he found Dick Fuller but that he could only bring himself to talk to him about Jesus, the gloves come off, and no one is left unscathed.

Film adaptation

Director John Swanbeck created a 1999 motion picture version of the play titled '' The Big Kahuna''. Roger Rueff wrote the screenplay with

Kevin Spacey Kevin Spacey Fowler (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, obtaining supporting roles before gaining a leading man status in film and television. Spacey has received various accolades ...

(Larry),

Danny DeVito Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983), which won him a Gold ...

(Phil) and

Peter Facinelli Peter Facinelli (born November 26, 1973) is an American actor and film and television producer. He starred as Donovan "Van" Ray on the Fox series '' Fastlane'' from 2002 to 2003. He played Dr. Carlisle Cullen in the film adaptations of the ''Tw ...

(Bob) starring in the title roles. American plays adapted into films Plays set in Kansas 1992 plays