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                                                                    EXHIBIT 10.8
 
                           EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT    


     EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT between John Q. Hammons Hotels, Inc., a Delaware
Corporation (the "Company"), and Debra M. Shantz (the "Executive"), dated as of
the 1st day of May, 1995.

     WHEREAS, the Company desires to employ the Executive, and the Executive
desires to be employed by the Company.

     NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and conditions set
forth herein and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and
sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the Company and the Executive
hereby agree as follows:

     1. Offer and Acceptance of Employment. Commencing on May 10, 1995 (the
"Effective Date"), the Company agrees to and hereby does, employ the Executive
as its in-house legal counsel. The Executive hereby accepts such employment in
such capacity and agrees to discharge faithfully, diligently, and to the best of
her ability the responsibilities of that position.

     2. Term. This Agreement shall commence on the Effective Date for an initial
period of three (3) years (the "Employment Term") and continuing thereafter from
year to year (a "Renewal Term") provided that either the Company or the
Executive may terminate such employment at the end of the Employment Term or any
Renewal Term by giving the other not less than six (6) months prior written
notice of such termination. The foregoing notwithstanding either the Executive
or the Company may terminate such employment ninety (90) days after the
Effective Date (the "Option Period") with two (2) weeks written notice to the
other of such termination.

     3. Duties and Responsibilities.

     (a) During the Employment Term, the Executive (i) shall be in charge of
  overseeing on going litigation in which the Company is involved, (ii) shall be
  in charge of
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     coordinating the Company's legal matters with outside counsel, (iii) shall
     report to the Chairman and President and (iv) shall assume and perform such
     further reasonable responsibilities and duties assigned to her by the
     President or Chairman of the Board of Directors. If elected or appointed,
     the Executive shall serve as a director of the Company without any
     additional compensation.

          (b) Excluding periods of vacation and sick leave to which the
     Executive is entitled, the Executive agrees to devote her working time and
     energy to the business and affairs of the Company and to use her best
     efforts to perform the responsibilities assigned to her hereunder
     faithfully and efficiently. Executive will work thirty-five (35) hours per
     week on the Company's affairs and the Company agrees to allow the Executive
     flexibility in her work schedule, specifically to include permitting
     Executive to depart at 3:00 p.m. each day.

     3. Compensation. The following provisions apply during the time the
Executive is employed by the Company:

          (a) Base Salary. During the Employment Term, the Executive shall
     receive a base salary of Ninety Thousand Dollars ($90,000.00) (the "Base
     Salary") payable in accordance with the Company's normal payroll practices
     for salaried employees. The Base Salary shall be reviewed annually and may
     be increased (but not decreased) in the course of each such review. Under
     no circumstances shall any increase in the Base Salary (i) limit or reduce
     any other obligation to the Executive under this Agreement or (ii) be later
     reduced or eliminated, once effective.

          (b) Annual Bonus. In addition to the Base Salary, the Executive shall
     be entitled, for each year of the Employment Term or any Renewal Term, to
     an annual bonus ("Annual Bonus") in an amount determined by the Chairman of
     the Board and President of
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     the Company. Each Annual Bonus shall be determined and accrued as of the
     end of the fiscal year for which the Annual Bonus is awarded and paid no
     later than April 1 of the following year, unless the Executive shall
     otherwise timely elect to defer the receipt of the Annual Bonus under any
     deferred compensation plan of the Company then in effect.

          (c) Savings and Retirement Plans. In addition to the Base Salary and
     Annual Bonus payable as hereinabove provided, the Executive shall be
     entitled to participate, during the Employment Term and any Renewal Term,
     in all savings and retirement plans or programs applicable to other key
     executives of the Company.

          (d) Welfare Benefit Plans. During the Employment Term and any Renewal
     Term, the Executive, and the Executive's dependents as to medical and
     dental benefits, shall be eligible to participate in and shall receive all
     benefits under each welfare benefit plan of the Company, including, without
     limitation, all medical, dental, disability (at least $250,000), group life
     (at least $75,000), accidental death and travel accident (at least
     $250,000) insurance plans and programs of the Company.

          (e) Expenses. During the Employment Term and any Renewal Term, the
     Executive shall be entitled, upon submission of proper substantiation, to
     receive reimbursement for all reasonable business-related expenses actually
     paid or incurred by the Executive in connection with the discharge of her
     duties hereunder and in the promotion of the business of the Company.

          (f) Fringe Benefits. During the Employment Term and any Renewal Term,
     the Executive shall be entitled to fringe benefits in accordance with the
     policies of the Company.
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          (g) Vacation. The Executive shall be entitled to five (5) days of paid
     vacation in 1995 and ten (10) days of paid vacation during 1996, and
     fifteen (15) days of paid vacation per year thereafter, excluding weekends
     or days which the Company is not open for business, which are the following
     holidays: Christmas, New Year's Day, Thanksgiving and the day after,
     Memorial Day, Labor Day and July 4th.

          (h) Bar Dues. During the Employment Term and any Renewal Term, the
     Company shall pay the Executive's Bar Association Dues to allow the
     Executive to maintain her membership in the American, Missouri and
     Springfield Metropolitan Bar Associations.

          (i) Continuing Legal Education. During the Employment Term and any
     Renewal Term, the Company shall pay for the Executive to attend the
     requisite continuing legal education programs to maintain her license to
     practice law.

          (j) Malpractice Insurance Premium. During the Employment Term and any
     Renewal Term, the Company shall pay for the Executive's Malpractice Premium
     to provide the Executive with legal malpractice coverage for errors and
     omissions.

          (k) Stock Options. The Executive shall receive the option to purchase
     shares of the Class A Common Stock of the Company as options are awarded to
     the other executives of the Company.

          (l) Executive's Assistant. The Company shall hire as the Executive's
     Assistant, Micca L. Braden to be paid Twenty-Five Thousand Dollars
     ($25,000.00) per year. Ms. Braden shall be entitled to paid vacation of
     five (5) days during 1995, and ten (10) days per year for each year
     thereafter, and health and disability insurance fully paid for by the
     Company.
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          (m)  Legal Resources. The Company shall provide the Executive with
     legal publications and resources at the Executive's request, including
     subscriptions to legal publications, purchase of software and books
     necessary for the Executive to perform her job for the Company.

          (n)  Highland Springs Country Club Membership. Company shall provide
     Executive, during the Employment Term and any Renewal Term, a Social
     Membership to Highland Springs Country Club; however, Executive shall pay
     all monthly dues and other costs associated with such membership.

     5.   Termination. The following provisions relate solely to termination of
the Executive's employment during the Employment Term or any Renewal Term:

          (a)  Death or Disability.
             
               (i)  Subject to Section 7 below, this Agreement shall terminate
          automatically upon the Executive's death.
          
               (ii) Subject to Section 7 below, the Company shall at all times
          have the right to terminate the Executive's employment hereunder at
          any time after the Employee shall be absent from her employment, for
          whatever cause, including but not limited to mental or physical
          incapacity, illness or disability, (collectively "Disability") for a
          continuous period of more than twenty-six (26) weeks.

          (b) Cause. The Company may terminate the Executive's employment for
     "Cause" by a majority vote of the Company's Board of Directors at a meeting
     where the Executive has had an opportunity to be present and express her
     response. For purposes of this Agreement, "Cause" means (i) the conviction
     of the Executive by a court of competent jurisdiction of crime involving
     moral turpitude, (ii) the commission by the Executive of an
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     act of fraud on the Company; (iii) the misappropriation or attempted
     misappropriation by the Executive of any funds or property of the Company,
     or (iv) the continuing failure of the Executive to perform her obligations
     under Section 2 of this Agreement thirty (30) days after having received a
     written notice specifying the manner in which she is failing to perform
     those obligations.

     6.   Notice of Termination. Any termination by the Company for Cause shall
be communicated in writing to the Executive in accordance with Section 13(b) of
this Agreement and if the termination date is other than the date of receipt,
the notice shall specify the termination date.

     7.   Obligations of the Company Upon Termination. The following provisions
apply only in the event the Executive is terminated during the Employment Term
or any Renewal Term:

          (a) Death. If the Executive's employment is terminated by reason of
     the Executive's death, this Agreement shall terminate without further
     obligation to the Executive's legal representatives under this Agreement
     other than those salary, bonus and fringe benefit amounts accrued and
     payable hereunder at the date of the Executive's death. Anything in this
     Agreement to the contrary notwithstanding, the Executive's family shall be
     entitled to receive benefits at least equal to those provided by the
     Company generally to surviving families of key executives of the Company
     under its plans, programs and policies relating to family death benefits,
     if any.

          (b) Disability. If the Executive's employment is terminated by reason
     of the Executive's Disability, the Executive shall be entitled to receive
     the amount specified in Section 7(d)(i) and (ii) hereof and to receive
     disability and other benefits at least equal to those provided by the
     Company to disabled employees and/or their families in accordance with such
     plans, programs, and policies relating to disability, if any.
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         (c)   Cause. If the Executive's employment shall be terminated for
     Cause, the Company shall pay the Executive her Base Salary through the date
     of termination at the rate in effect at the time notice of termination is
     given and shall have no further obligation to the Executive under this
     Agreement except as to vested employee benefits.

          (d)  Termination or Failure to Renew Without Cause. If the Company
     shall terminate or fail to renew the Executive's employment with the
     Company without cause:
     
               (i)   the Company shall pay to the Executive at the time of
          termination, an amount equal to two (2) year's current Base Salary;
          and, in the case of vested compensation previously deferred by the
          Executive, all amounts of such compensation previously deferred and
          not yet paid by the Company;
          
               (ii)  the Company shall, promptly upon submission by the
          Executive of supporting documentation, pay or reimburse, or cause to
          be paid or reimbursed, to the Executive any business related costs and
          expenses paid or incurred by the Executive on or before the date of
          termination which would have been payable under Section 3(e) if the
          Executive's employment had not terminated; and

               (iii) until the six-month anniversary of the Executive's
          termination, the Company shall continue benefits (or equivalent
          coverage) to the Executive and/or the Executive's family at least
          equal to those which would have been provided to them in accordance
          with the plans, programs and policies described in Sections 3(d) and
          3(f) of this Agreement if the Executive's employment had not been
          terminated.

     8.   Non-Competition. At all times during the Executive's employment with
the Company and for a period of two (2) years after the Executive is no longer
employed by the Company, the Executive shall not anywhere in the United States,
directly or indirectly, engage in
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any business, enterprise or employment whether as owner, operator, shareholder,
director, partner, financial backer, creditor, consultant, agent, executive or
any capacity whatsoever that is directly or indirectly competitive with the
business of the Company; provided, however, that the foregoing shall not be
deemed to prohibit the Executive from (i) acquiring, solely as an investment and
through market purchases, securities of any issuer that are registered under
Section 12(b) or 12(g) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and
that are listed or admitted for trading on any United States national securities
exchange or that are quoted on the NASDAQ National Market System or any similar
system of automated dissemination of quotations of securities prices in common
use, so long as the Executive is not a member of any control group (within the
meaning of the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission)
of any such issuer, and (ii) practicing law at the location of her choice.

     9.   Non-Solicitation of Employees and Customers. The Executive shall not
at any time during her employment hereunder and for a period of two (2) years
after the date her employment is terminated for any reason, directly or
indirectly, for herself or for any other person, firm, corporation, partnership,
association or other entity, (i) attempt to employ, employ or enter into any
contractual arrangement with any employee or former employee of the Company, its
affiliates, or predecessors-in-interest, unless such employee or former employee
has not been employed by the Company, its affiliates, or predecessors-in-
interest for a period in excess of six (6) months; and/or (ii) call on or
solicit any of the actual or targeted prospective customers or suppliers of the
Company with respect to any matters, related to or competitive with the business
of the Company, nor shall the Executive make known the names or addresses of
such customers or suppliers or any information relating in any manner to the
Company's trade or business relationships with such customers or suppliers.
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     10.  Non-Disclosure. Except as expressly permitted by the Company, or in
connection with the performance of her duties hereunder, the Executive shall not
at any time during or subsequent to her employment by the Company, disclose,
directly or indirectly, to any person, firm, corporation, partnership,
association or other entity any proprietary or confidential information relating
to the Company or any information concerning the Company's financial condition
or prospects, the Company's customers or suppliers, the Company's sources of
leads and methods of obtaining new business, the design, development, or
construction of the Company's properties or the Company's methods of doing and
operating its business (collectively, "Confidential Information"). Confidential
Information shall not include information which, at the time of disclosure, is
known or available to the general public by publication or otherwise through no
act or failure to act on the part of the Executive. The Executive acknowledges
and agrees that the Confidential Information is a valuable, special and unique
asset of the Company's business.

     11.  Books and Records. All books, records and accounts relating in any
manner to the Company's customer, suppliers, or methods of conducting business
whether prepared by the Executive or otherwise coming into the Executive's
possession, and all copies thereof in the Executive's possession, shall be the
exclusive property of the Company and shall be returned immediately to the
Company upon termination of the Executive's employment hereunder or upon the
Company's request at any time.

     12.  Injunction. The Executive acknowledges that if she were to breach any
of the provisions of Sections 8, 9, 10, or 11 it would result in immediate and
irreparable injury to the Company which cannot be adequately or reasonably
compensated at law. Therefore, the Executive agrees that the Company shall be
entitled, if any such breach shall occur or be threatened or attempted, if it so
elects, to a temporary and permanent injunction, without being required to post
a
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bond, enjoining and restraining a breach by the Executive, her associates, her
partners or agents, either directly or indirectly, and that right to injunction
shall be cumulative to whatever remedies or actual damages the Company may
possess.

     13.  Successors.

          (a) This Agreement is personal to the Executive and without the prior
     written consent of the Company the benefits accrued and payable hereunder
     shall not be assignable by the Executive otherwise than by will or the laws
     of descent and distribution. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of
     and be enforceable by the Executive's legal representatives.

          (b) This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon
     the Company and its successors.
     
          (c) In the event that another corporation or unincorporated entity
     becomes a Successor (as such term is defined below) of the Company, then
     the Successor shall, by an agreement in form and substance reasonably
     satisfactory to the Executive, expressly assume and agree to perform this
     Agreement in the same manner and to the same extent as the Company would be
     required to perform if there had been no Successor. As used herein, the
     term "Successor" means another corporation or unincorporated entity or
     group of corporations or unincorporated entities which (i) acquires all or
     substantially all of the assets of the Company, or (ii) is the surviving
     entity as a result of the merger of the Company into that entity.

     14.  Miscellaneous.

          (a) This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance
     with the laws of the State of Missouri. The captions of this Agreement are
     not part of the provisions
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     hereof and shall have no force or effect. This Agreement may not be amended
     or modified otherwise than by a written agreement executed by the parties
     hereto or their respective successor and legal representatives.

          (b)  All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in
     writing and shall be given by hand delivery to the other party or by
     registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid,
     addressed as follows:
  
     <TABLE> 
     <CAPTION> 
     <S>                                           <C> 
     If to the Executive:                          Debra M. Shantz
     -------------------                           3760 E. Meadowmere Place
                                                   Springfield, Missouri 65809
                                                   

     If to the Company:                            John Q. Hammons Hotels, Inc.
     -----------------                             300 John Q. Hammons Parkway
                                                   Springfield, Missouri 65802
                                                   Attention: John Q. Hammons


     with a copy to:                               William J. Hart
     --------------                                Farrington & Curtis, P.C.
                                                   750 No. Jefferson
                                                   Springfield, Missouri 65802
     </TABLE> 

     or to such other address as either party shall have furnished to the other
     in writing on accordance herewith. Notice and communications shall be
     effective when actually received by the addressee.

          (c)  If any term or provision of the Agreement or the application
     hereof to any person or circumstances shall, to any extent, be invalid or
     unenforceable, the remainder of this Agreement, or the application of that
     term or provision to persons or circumstances other than those to which it
     is held invalid or unenforceable, shall not be affected thereby, and each
     term and provision of this Agreement shall be valid and enforceable to the
     fullest extent permitted by law. Moreover, if a court of competent
     jurisdiction deems any
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     provisions hereof to be too broad in time, scope or area, it is expressly
     agreed that provision shall be enforced to a lesser degree which the court
     of competent jurisdiction finds enforceable.

          (d)  The Company may withhold from any amounts payable under this
     Agreement such federal, state and local taxes as shall be required to be
     withheld pursuant to any applicable law or regulation.

          (e)  This Agreement contains the entire understanding of the Company
     and the Executive with respect to the subject matter hereof.

          (f)  Any waiver of any breach of this Agreement shall not be construed
     to be a continuing waiver of consent to any subsequent breach by either
     party hereto.

          (g)  In the event that either party hereto brings suit for the
     collection of any damages resulting from, or the injunction of any action
     constituting, a breach of any of the terms or provisions of this Agreement,
     then the party found to be at fault shall pay all reasonable court costs
     and attorneys' fees of the other.

          (h)  The Executive shall not delegate the employment obligations
     pursuant to this Agreement to any other person.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Executive has hereunto set her hand, and the
Company has caused these presents to be executed in its name on its behalf, all
as of the day and year first above written.

                                     JOHN Q. HAMMONS HOTELS, INC.



                                     By 
---------------------------------       --------------------------------------
Debra M. Shantz                         John Q. Hammons, Chairman of the Board

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                                                                    EXHIBIT 10.8



                    FIRST AMENDMENT TO EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

          THIS AMENDMENT is made and entered into as of the 31st day of October,
1997, by and between John Q. Hammons Hotels, Inc. (the "Company") and Debra 
Mallonee Shantz (the "Executive").

          WHEREAS, the Company and Executive previously entered into an 
Employment Agreement dated as of May 1, 1995, (the "Agreement") and Company and 
Executive now desire to amend the terms of the Agreement as set forth herein.

          NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and 
provisions set forth herein and for other good and valuable consideration the 
receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, the Company and 
Executive hereby agree to amend the Agreement as follows:

          1.   Paragraph 2 - Term shall be amended in its entirety as follows:

                    "This Agreement shall continue for a renewal term of three
               (3) years (the "Renewal Term"), commencing May 1, 1998, and
               continuing thereafter from year to year, provided that either the
               Company or the Executive may terminate such employment at the end
               of the Renewal Term by giving the other not less than six months'
               prior written notice of such termination."

          2.   Paragraph 3(a) - Compensation shall be amended in its entirety as
               follows:

                    "Base salary. During the Renewal Term, the Executive shall
               receive a base salary of One Hundred Thirty-five Thousand Dollars
               (135,000.00) (the "Base Salary"), payable in accordance with the
               Company's normal payroll practices for salaried employees. The
               Base Salary shall be reviewed annually and may be increased (but
               not decreased) in the course of each such review. Under no
               circumstances shall any


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               increase in the Base Salary (i) limit or reduce any other
               obligation to the Executive under this Agreement or (ii) be later
               reduced or eliminated once effective."

          3.   Continuing Validity. Except as expressly modified herein, all
               remaining terms and conditions of the Agreement shall remain in
               full force and effect.



                                           COMPANY

                                           John O. Hammons Hotels, Inc.




                                           -------------------------------------
                                           JOHN Q. HAMMONS
                                                Chairman of the Board and
                                                      Chief Executive Officer




                                           EXECUTIVE




                                           -------------------------------------
                                           Debra Mallonee Shantz