Photo: Getty

I've always regarded Eloise (the fictional star of the successful children's book series) as the sassiest and most revered New York City hotel guest—running around The Plaza Hotel on Fifth Avenue like she owns the place. That is until I discovered Matilda, the fancy feline who has greeted guests from the lobby of yet another famous Manhattan hotel, the Algonquin, since 1930. Not only does she have her own email, Twitter and Facebook accounts, but she's got stories to rival those of Eloise. At one point her collar was stolen, as reported by the hotel, during which news of the "Algonquin Cat-Burglary" buzzed around town. Or in 2002 when celebrating her birthday (with 150 of her closest kitty friends), she jumped on to her cake and ran out of the room, leaving a trail of frosted paw prints.

There have been many similar-looking Matilda cats since the original made her debut, but last week the hotel celebrated its latest "Algonqueen," Matilda III [left] with a cat fashion show.

To see some of the best looks from the runway alongside witticisms from the hotel's cattiest human guests, keep reading.