text stringlengths 0 4.03k |
|---|
Site |
The Paramount Building is on 1501 Broadway, between 43rd and 44th Streets, at Times Square in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City.[2][3] While the building carries a Broadway address, it is actually on the west side of Seventh Avenue.[3] The section of Broadway and Seventh Avenue between 43rd and 45th S... |
The surrounding area is part of Manhattan's Theater District and contains many Broadway theatres.[2] 1501 Broadway shares the block with 229 West 43rd Street, the Hayes Theater, and the St. James Theatre to the west. Other nearby buildings include the Majestic Theatre, the Broadhurst Theatre, and the Shubert Theatre to... |
Prior to the development of the Paramount Building, the eastern portion of the site had been occupied by the Putnam Building, a six-story commercial structure.[9][10][11] It was named after American Revolutionary War general Israel Putnam, who had passed through the site in 1776 during the war.[9][10] The Putnam Buildi... |
Architecture |
1501 Broadway was designed by brothers Cornelius Ward Rapp and George Leslie Rapp, of the firm Rapp and Rapp, in the Beaux-Arts and Art Deco styles.[2][16][17] It was constructed from 1925 to 1927 as the headquarters of Paramount Pictures, one of the major American motion picture companies in the 1920s.[2][16] R. E. Ha... |
Form |
1501 Broadway was designed in two parts: the 33-story office section in the front, along Broadway, and a shorter wing in the rear, which formerly housed the Paramount Theatre.[7][8] This was typical of New York City theater buildings, where the theater was relegated to cheaper lots on side streets, while the office spa... |
1501 Broadway contains eight setbacks,[21][23] seven of which are above the theater wing.[24] The setbacks are placed on all sides as mandated under the 1916 Zoning Resolution.[9][21] On 43rd Street, the theater wing is twelve stories tall.[8][25] On 44th Street, the theater wing is nine stories tall, except for the we... |
Facade |
Base |
The first five stories of both wings are clad in limestone and constitute the building's base.[7][8] The ground story contains storefronts.[7] The main entrance since 2018 is on 43rd Street, with bronze doors and a bronze marquee sign.[27] The 2nd through 4th stories are divided into bays, containing three-story window... |
The theater entrance was near the south end of the eastern elevation, facing Broadway. Originally, it had a five-story archway and an elaborate curved marquee.[15][18] The original archway was removed in the late 1960s and replaced with windows and rusticated piers, which were taken from the 43rd Street elevation.[29] ... |
Prior to 2018,[33] the main office entrance was just north of the center bay along Broadway; the opening still exists but leads to a retail space. It contains a double-height limestone frame with a lintel above the second floor. The doorway is divided vertically into a large center section flanked by two narrower secti... |
Office stories |
Starting on the 6th story of the office tower, the window openings generally contain one-over-one windows, which are grouped into bays. The bays are divided by alternating narrow and wide piers. The narrow piers are plain, while the wide piers are either rusticated or plain. The rusticated piers project slightly from t... |
The setbacks of the office tower contain parapets.[25] Below the parapets were floodlights that originally illuminated the setbacks at night to emphasize the jagged massing.[9][21][26] Over one thousand lights were used in the setbacks' lighting system.[23] Trapezoidal finials, designed to resemble obelisks, are placed... |
Clock and globe |
The Paramount Building has a large four-faced clock above its 30th story.[20][37] The clock faces on the west and east are made of limestone, with metal minute and hour hands.[25] The west and east clock faces measure about 25 feet (7.6 m) wide.[38][39][b] Inset within the stone are twelve circular glass panels, which ... |
Above the clock faces is a stone frieze and trapezoidal corner obelisks.[25] The top of the building contains a copper pedestal with an ornamental glass and copper sphere measuring 19 feet (5.8 m) across.[25][41][42] The sphere is made of 90 square panels, originally decorated with a map of the world. A smokestack is p... |
In November 1927, a rooftop observation deck opened above the clock[43][44] at a height of 450 feet (140 m).[45] It included glass-enclosed rooms on either side of the clock.[39][43] Adults were charged 50 cents for admission, while children paid 25 cents.[43] The observation deck has since been closed.[44] The observa... |
Interior |
The central entrance on Broadway led to the offices, while the ornate arched entrance on the south end of the Broadway elevation led to the Paramount Theatre.[45][47] At ground level, a large amount of space was occupied by the theater's entrance, and other space was taken up by seven storefronts. There was also store ... |
Lobby and elevators |
The original Broadway lobby was relatively small; no one had to travel more than 35 feet (11 m) between the street and any elevator. The space had a travertine floor and polished black-veined marble walls. There was a tenant directory facing the main entrance, as well as a mail chute on the wall between the directory a... |
On one side of the lobby was a broad travertine staircase, which led to a second-story banking room occupied by the Chemical National Bank. This banking room was finished with a terrazzo floor and marble base, while all the trim and the counter screens were made of wood. The lower part of the counter screen, and the wa... |
In 2018, a third-story sky lobby was completed. The sky lobby includes a two-story escalator atrium and an additional elevator from the entrance on 43rd Street.[33] The offices were originally served by twelve elevators that could travel at up to 700 feet per minute (210 m/min).[45] As of 2021[update], there are 22 ele... |
Former theater space |
The interior of the theater was decorated with French detailing.[37] The arch connected to a domed rotunda measuring 50 feet (15 m) tall, supported by veined-marble columns on black-and-gold bases.[8][50][51] A "Hall of Nations" was just past the rotunda.[45] The Hall of Nations had rocks from 37 countries, accompanied... |
The 3,664-seat auditorium was at the rear of the building.[53] It was 10 stories tall, with three levels of balcony seats, as well as a promenade for visitors to look down at the theater from overhead.[30][52] The orchestra was at the south end, while the stage was at the north end.[47] The theater was decorated in ros... |
The theater space was converted to offices in 1967, requiring the installation of 64 steel columns within the auditorium shell.[56] The former auditorium is spanned by eight trusses, each measuring 122 feet (37 m) and weighing 144 short tons (129 long tons; 131 t).[7][8][57] The former theater lobby's space is occupied... |
Offices |
The offices were decorated with similar French motifs as the rest of the building.[37] The fourth through twelfth stories, originally occupied by Famous Players–Lasky, included 65 executive offices that were finished in walnut, and some rooms contained veneers of burled walnut, The veneers contained carvings of figures... |
The stories below the 18th floor each contained 16,000 square feet (1,500 m2), while the upper stories were smaller because of the setbacks,[48] tapering to 2,100 square feet (200 m2) at the top.[24] As a result of the setbacks, the floors were also built in eleven different sizes.[8] The smaller upper stories were adv... |
History |
Times Square became the epicenter for large-scale theater productions between 1900 and the Great Depression.[63] Famous Players–Lasky, the predecessor to the Paramount Corporation, had been formed in 1916.[64] The company formed a subsidiary, the 1493 Broadway Corporation, to buy the Putnam Building and Westover Court ... |
Development |
Planning |
In June 1922, Famous Players–Lasky received a $5.5 million loan from the Prudence Bonds Corporation, and it planned to spend $2.5 million on a 4,000-seat movie theater behind the Putnam Building.[10][67] Rapp and Rapp were hired to design the new theater.[68] Shortly afterward, Famous Players–Lasky signed a 21-year lea... |
Early in 1925, Zukor appointed a special committee to oversee the development of the office tower and the as-yet-unnamed theater.[71] That April, Famous Players–Lasky announced that it would erect the 29-story Paramount Building and an adjoining theater for $13.5 million,[73][74][75] and Rapp and Rapp filed building pl... |
Construction |
Demolition contracts were awarded in May 1925.[18][79][80] Famous Players–Lasky kept a film record of the work,[81] starting with the demolition of Westover Court.[79] To celebrate the project, Famous Players–Lasky held a barbecue in the nearby Hotel Astor that August, serving oxen and lamb that had been roasted over W... |
The excavations descended about 53 feet (16 m) into the underlying layer of bedrock.[45] During excavations in February 1926, a water main and a gas main broke, flooding the site.[89][90] Later that month, the Thompson-Starrett Company began erecting the steel trusses above the auditorium. Traveling derricks were used ... |
Mayor Jimmy Walker laid the ceremonial cornerstone on May 19, 1926, at a ceremony attended by Paramount's cofounders (Zukor and Jesse L. Lasky), as well as various producers and actors.[36][91] One of the building's architects, C. W. Rapp, died the following month during the construction.[92] The office tower topped ou... |
Early and mid-20th century |
Opening and 1920s |
The Paramount Theatre opened on November 19, 1926,[99] with a ceremony including thousands of guests.[100][101] This was part of a three-day celebration of Broadway's 300th anniversary,[102] which included an event in which thousands of balloons were released from the roof of the office tower.[103][104] To date, $17 mi... |
By January 1927, the building was 35 percent rented;[112] the office structure was completed early that year.[9] Some of the storefronts began opening that May, including a barber shop[113] and the Chemical Bank branch.[106] Rapp and Rapp filed plans in July 1927 to convert the basement to a restaurant,[114] and the ob... |
1930s to 1950s |
The office tower received several new tenants in the 1930s, including Fusion Party campaign offices,[119] advertisers Donahue & Coe,[120] and Prudential Insurance.[121] By February 1933, Publix was in receivership and seeking to reduce its rent payments;[122][123] in so doing, the firm moved to downsize its space.[124]... |
Paramount Broadway continued to post losses in the years after the reorganization.[134] Conversely, the Paramount Theatre at the building's base became highly popular, especially for live musical performances, hosting performers such as Buddy Holly and Frank Sinatra.[62][135] William A. White & Son prepared the buildin... |
In 1949, Paramount Pictures' board of directors voted to split the theater unit to a separate company, United Paramount Theatres (UPT).[144][145] The building became the UPT's headquarters, and UPT leased the theater from Paramount Pictures.[99] In addition, Paramount received a $9 million loan from Prudential Insuranc... |
Late 20th century to present |
Sale and annex conversion |
William Zeckendorf Jr. of the firm Webb & Knapp offered to buy 1501 Broadway in June 1964, with plans to replace the Paramount Theatre with an exhibit hall and office space.[153][154] A Webb & Knapp subsidiary had made a $150,000 down payment, with a promise to pay $350,000 before the sale's closing and $10 million at ... |
Paramount Building Associates contracted to resell 1501 Broadway in May 1965 to Evelyn Sharp, who paid $9 million and planned to renovate the building.[167][168] Mortimer M. Caplin had been appointed as trustee for Webb & Knapp's operations, and he sought to delay the sale of the building to Sharp.[169][170] The proper... |
The owners planned to build a garage at ground level with offices above.[48][182] The group began renovating the Paramount Building in January 1967.[183][62] As part of the renovation, the Paramount Theatre was dismantled and turned into office space, and the archway leading to the theater was removed.[184] That March,... |
1970s to 1990s |
Newmark & Company managed the building on behalf of Arlen, signing ten-year leases for the expanded office stories.[61] Major tenants in the newly converted offices included The New York Times,[61] the Offtrack Betting Corporation,[188] Lane Bryant,[189] and the Metropolitan Diagnostic Institute.[190] The newly convert... |
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) designated the Paramount Building as a city landmark in November 1988.[193][194] The building was designated for its historical importance to the motion-picture industry and for its architectural importance as an Art Deco skyscraper.[194] In 1996, Newmark receiv... |
Planet Hollywood spent $13 million on renovating 1501 Broadway's ground-floor space into a venue for live music.[198] Tobin Parnes was the restoration architect.[31][199] The project entailed lowering the basement by 7 feet (2.1 m), removing three support columns, and lengthening nine more columns.[200] Following Plane... |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.