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Life of Ted Conklin, Longtime American Hotel Owner, Celebrated at Bay Street Theater Memorial
After Blizzard Hernando blanketed the East End, Sag Harbor filled every seat at Bay Street to honor the beloved proprietor who shaped the village for more than 50 years.
A Post-Blizzard Gathering in Sag Harbor for a Local Legend
A day after Blizzard Hernando walloped the East End, enveloping the island in a blanket of thick snow, the community in Sag Harbor emerged in full force to wrap its collective arms around the memory of Ted Conklin, beloved longtime proprietor of the historic The American Hotel.
The memorial and celebration of life for Theodore “Ted” Conklin III, held at Bay Street Theater on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026, was a gathering the way Conklin liked to gather — around a grand piano.
Every chair in the 299-seat theater was filled, while countless others livestreamed the service on YouTube.
Longtime American Hotel pianist Lee Glantz played some of Conklin’s favorite songs — “Sail Away,” “S’Wonderful” and “What a Wonderful World.”
Conklin — who died earlier this month, on Feb. 1, at his second home in Palm Beach at age 77 — would have been the first to raise a glass at the standing-room-only, post-blizzard crowd.
Family, friends, co-workers, hotel staff, community leaders, celebrities and longtime guests were there — despite the storm, despite the snow — a fact not lost on Conklin’s son, Theodore “Teddy” Conklin IV, who thanked everyone “for braving this historic blizzard,” calling their presence “a blessing my family and I couldn’t be more grateful for.”
“Seeing so many faces gathered from so far and so wide is the ultimate reminder of how much my father meant,” Teddy said.
The Man Who Revitalized a Village
Conklin was not only a fixture and dear friend on the East End of Long Island; he was nothing short of a local legend in Sag Harbor.
At 23, Conklin took a crumbling 19th-century building and transformed it into a world-class hotel and restaurant with a stellar reputation for first-class hospitality — and a legendary wine cellar — which he maintained for more than 50 years. In doing so, he helped reinvigorate the village.
The American Hotel he created became the heartbeat of Main Street. It remains so today.
After the Rev. Nancy Remkus, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Sag Harbor, asked Teddy and Conklin’s wife, Susie, to light a candle in his honor, Teddy reflected on how his father had “a lifetime of stories” yet often asked, “What have I done?”
The answer, Teddy said, was right in front of him.
“I see the answer in this town, in all of you, in Sag Harbor Village he put on his back more than 50 years ago, and the community he helped cultivate that bloomed like a garden he loved to see grow — that earned the title of ‘the center of the universe.’”
“What has he done?” Teddy continued. “He’s done the greatest things a man can do with the time he’s given. He fought hard for the people he loved — friends, family, employees who became family, and others he never knew but accepted. He led a great life. A real life. A wonderful life.”
‘The Patron Saint of Sag Harbor’
Julie Keyes, Conklin’s “forever friend” — and his longtime commercial tenant next door — drew laughter and tears in equal measure.
“If there is a heaven,” Keyes said, “the cafeteria has just gone upscale.”
She described Conklin as “the patron saint of Sag Harbor,” holding court on the porch of the American Hotel with the townspeople.
“He was the most opinionated in a town of professional opinionators, discussioners, arguers and lamenters,” she said, as the crowd laughed.
Keyes recalled meeting Conklin years ago while waitressing at Dockside, when he was her only customer one January. He went on to become her “dearest friend, treasured confidant and greatest champion.”
“Ted was two people,” she said. “He was the 12-year-old mischievous prankster and class disrupter, and the aristocratic blue blood, perfectly starched from head to toe. Therefore, at his five-star establishment, he was both the terrifying proprietor — and the guy who should be thrown out.”
A Place Where Everyone Belonged
Jeff Sander, former mayor of North Haven, spoke of Conklin’s “encyclopedic knowledge” and how the American Hotel “was the town’s go-to place.”
“Ted wasn’t just the host — he was one of us,” Sander said. “He created a place where connections happened naturally, with the hotel as the center of our Sag Harbor universe.”
“What stays with me is how he made you feel,” he added. “He made you feel like you belonged.”
References to Conklin’s love of golf, sailing and great wine surfaced throughout the afternoon. But the theme that echoed most strongly was how he made people feel — special, welcome, like family.
“Ted understood that curiosity isn’t only about what is offered, but about how people are made to feel welcomed and included — that is what is remembered,” the Rev. Remkus said. She read an excerpt from Pablo Neruda’s “Ode to Wine” and led the room in singing “Amazing Grace.”
She then asked for a moment “to pause for gratitude, for a life shaped by connection, open doors, shared conversation, and to give thanks for the ways Ted showed up in the lives of others.”
Carrying the Legacy Forward
The American Hotel’s longtime bartender, Vinnie Rom, described Conklin as “a great teacher, tough but fair, who gave employees the tools to be good. He was also great to his staff.”
Broadcaster Jane Hanson, part of what she fondly called “Ted’s Palm Beach harem,” said he “taught her about love, friendship, generosity and even facing death.”
“He had the quiet dignity of a man who lived deeply, fully and on his own magnificent terms,” Hanson said.
Renowned artist Dan Rizzie struggled, he admitted, with honoring Conklin “in just three minutes.”
“His empire is huge, massive,” Rizzie said. “I think Ted should have his own ZIP code.”
He described Conklin as “a loyal friend, devoted husband, loving and supportive father who never did anything small. He gave everything he had.”
Rizzie added that he watched Ted and Susie “fall madly in love — a sight to behold,” and noted, “There isn’t a person who isn’t thrilled to know Susie is taking the American Hotel into its next chapter.”
That sentiment carried through the closing remarks by Robert E. Dempsey.
“In a world that is changing quickly, places that hold memory and meaning matter more than ever,” Dempsey said. “The American Hotel has long been one of those places in Sag Harbor. Our hope is that it will continue to stand as a testament to that spirit — a place where love, kindness and connection remain at the center, along with one of the finest wine lists ever.”
Survived By
Ted Conklin is survived by his wife, Susie Conklin; his daughters, Samantha Brooks Conklin and Natasha Conklin James; his son, Theodore IV; a stepdaughter, Katy O’Donnell; his sisters, Susan Spurgeon, Natalie Jourdan Conklin, Louise Cox Conklin and Kimberley Burnett Conklin; and five grandchildren. His earlier marriages ended in divorce.
The family asks that memorial contributions in Conklin’s honor be sent to the Sag Harbor Food Pantry, P.O. Box 3191, Sag Harbor, NY 11963, or at sagharborfoodpantry.org.
