The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is a large Christmas tree placed annually in Rockefeller Center, in Midtown Manhattan. The tree is erected in early to mid November and lit in late November or early December. In recent years, the lighting has been broadcast live, nationwide, on NBC's Christmas in Rockefeller Center show and scheduled for the Wednesday after Thanksgiving with the tree lighting ceremony held at the end of every broadcast. The tree, usually a Norway spruce 69to tall, has been put up every year since 1933. The 2015 Christmas Tree Lighting took place on December 2 and remained on display through January 6, 2016.Selection and decorationMany Rockefeller trees were donated to Rockefeller Center. The late David Murbach, Manager of the Gardens Division of Rockefeller Center, scouted in a helicopter for the desired tree in areas including Connecticut, New Jersey, upstate New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and even Ottawa, Canada. The trees are now scouted by the Head Gardener at Rockefeller Center, Erik Pauzé. Once a suitable tree is located, a crane supports it while it is cut and moves it to a custom telescoping trailer that can transport trees up to tall, although the width of New York City streets passing through Rockefeller Center limits the height of the trees to. Local, family-owned business, Christmas Tree Brooklyn provides logistics support for delivering the tree safely into the city.
Grand Central–42nd Street is a major station complex of the New York City Subway. Located in Midtown Manhattan at the intersection of Park Avenue and 42nd Street, with parts of the station extending east to Lexington Avenue, it is the second busiest station in the -station system, with 46,737,564 passengers in 2015; only the Times Square station complex has more riders. It serves trains on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line, the IRT Flushing Line and the 42nd Street Shuttle, making it an all-IRT transfer point. The stations of the complex lie next to and beneath Grand Central Terminal, which serves all Metro-North Railroad lines east of the Hudson River.The complex is signed as 42nd Street–Grand Central and is served by the: ', , and trains at all times and 42nd Street Shuttle (S) trains at all times except late nights trains during weekdays in the peak direction ' trains during rush hours and early evenings in the peak direction
The Princeton Club of New York is a private club located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York. Its membership is composed almost entirely of alumni and faculty of Princeton University, which is located 40mi outside New York City in Princeton, New Jersey.It was founded in 1866 as the Princeton Alumni Association of New York. It was re-organized in 1886 as the Princeton Club of New York, and later incorporated as a Club on December 12, 1899. The club had four homes before settling into its current clubhouse at 15 West 43rd Street in Manhattan in March 1963. During these years the club saw a steady expansion in the diversity of its membership. Cultural and ethnic diversity found steady growth, and as women joined the undergraduate body in increasing numbers, they also found a home at The Princeton Club. The Club is the largest organized body of Princetonians in the world and is truly the “Heart of Princeton in New York City.”In addition to overnight accommodation and dining facilities, the club features a 10,000-volume library, a squash and fitness center, business center, and Wi-Fi access.
The Helmsley Building is a 35-story building located at 230 Park Avenue between East 45th and East 46th Streets in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, which was built in 1929 as the New York Central Building, and was designed by Warren & Wetmore, the architects of Grand Central Terminal, in the Beaux-Arts style. Before the erection of the Pan Am Building - now the MetLife Building - this building stood out over the city's second most prestigious avenue as the tallest structure in the great "Terminal City" complex around Grand Central.Traffic exits and enters the Park Avenue Viaduct through the building, through two portals, one for uptown traffic and one for downtown. They connect to Park Avenue proper at East 46th Street.The building was designated a New York City Landmark in 1987.HistoryNew York Central BuildingBefore the electrification of the New York Central Railroad in 1912–1913, the neighborhood north of Grand Central Terminal was one of open-air railway yards and tracks used by steam locomotives. The electrification and subsequent covering of the yards enabled the continuation of Park Avenue to the north and the construction of new buildings (with curious foundations). Among them was the New York Central Building.
432 Park Avenue is a supertall residential skyscraper in Manhattan, New York City. Originally proposed to be 1300ft in 2011, the structure topped out at 1396ft. It was developed by CIM Group and features 104 condominium apartments. Construction began in 2012 and was completed on December 23, 2015. The building has been much maligned by many city residents who find it an eyesore and believe it represents New York's increasing cost of living and ostentatious wealth.The building required the demolition of the 495-room Drake Hotel. Built in 1926, it was purchased for $440 million in 2006 by developer Harry Macklowe and razed the next year. Its footprint became one of New York's most valuable development sites due to its location, between East 56th and 57th Streets on the west side of Park Avenue.As completed, 432 Park Avenue is the third tallest building in the United States, and the tallest residential building in the world. It is the second tallest building in New York City, behind One World Trade Center, and ahead of the Empire State Building. It is also the tallest building in the world known only by its street address, replacing Chicago's 311 South Wacker Drive.
La Grenouille is a historic and award-winning French restaurant located at 3 East 52nd Street (between Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue) in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Founded in 1962 by former Henri Soulé apprentice Charles Masson, Sr. and his wife Gisèle, later with sons Philippe and Charles, La Grenouille (Fr., "The Frog") became a location of choice among New York, U.S., and eventually international diners, including designers from the nearby New York fashion district. It is the last operating New York French haute cuisine restaurant from the 1960s, and remains, into the new millennium, a highly rated restaurant.LocationLa Grenouille is located at 3 East 52nd Street, between Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue, in Midtown Manhattan in New York City.HistoryThe restaurant was founded in 1962 by Charles Masson, Sr., a former Henri Soulé apprentice, and his wife Gisèle. After the passing of Charles Sr. in 1975, Gisele continued to manage the restaurant until 2010. Charles Jr. assisted Gisele with her management duties from 1975 until 1994, when Charles Jr. left the restaurant. At that time, Gisele’s younger son Philippe took over Charles Jr.’s duties until 2000, whereupon Charles Jr. returned and assisted Gisele until 2014. La Grenouille is currently operated by Philippe Masson, and has been since 2014. It is the last operating New York French haute cuisine restaurant from the 1960s, having outlasted other well-known French restaurants like Lutèce, which closed in 2004.
The Friars Club is a private club in New York City, founded in 1904 and famous for its risqué celebrity roasts. The club's membership is composed mostly of comedians and other celebrities. It is located at 57 East 55th Street, between Park Avenue and Madison Avenue, in a building known as the Monastery.HistoryEarly yearsThe organization traces its roots to 1904, when representatives of the Broadway theatres working with New York publicists organized the Press Agents' Association to exchange lists of people who were fraudulently receiving complimentary passes to shows. The group regularly met at Browne's Chop House. Shortly thereafter it began its tribute dinners to theatrical celebrities, the first being Clyde Fitch. The impresario Oscar Hammerstein was toasted in 1908, the year in which the Friars moved into a clubhouse at 107 West 47th Street.The first Friars Frolics were held in 1911, with Abbott George M. Cohan working with Will Rogers, Irving Berlin (who wrote "Alexander's Ragtime Band" for the event), and Victor Herbert; the money generated by the Frolics enabled them to purchase 106-108-110 West 48th Street. Under Abbott Cohan it laid a cornerstone on the building in 1915. In 1924 Walter Donaldson wrote the music for "My Blue Heaven" one afternoon while waiting in the club for his turn at the billiard table. In 1950 Sam Levenson and fellow comedian Joe E. Lewis were the first members of the New York Friars Club to be roasted. The club has roasted a member every year since the inaugural roasting.
One Dag Hammarskjold Plaza is located at 885 2nd Avenue, New York City, New York. It is a 628 ft (191m) tall skyscraper in New York City, New York. It was completed in 1972 and has 49 floors. It has 69,675 m² of floor area and is the 65th tallest building in New York. Its main usage is office space. Canada, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Spain, Chile, Sweden, Belgium, Ireland, Austria, Turkey and Denmark have their permanent missions to the United Nations located in this building.Tenants Avrett Dunce Goonsberg Dell PublishingIn fiction In Stephen King's Dark Tower series, 2 Dag Hammarskjold Plaza was built on the site of the Rose, our world's version of the Dark Tower, in order to protect it.
The New York Yacht Club is a private social club and yacht club based in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1844 by nine prominent sportsmen. The members have contributed to the sport of yachting and yacht design. As of 2001, the organization was reported to have about 3,000 members. Membership in the club is by invitation only. Its officers include a Commodore, vice-commodore, rear-commodore, secretary and treasurer.ClubhousesIn 1845, the club’s first clubhouse was established — a modest, Gothic-revival building in Hoboken, New Jersey, on land donated by Commodore John Cox Stevens. After outgrowing its cramped quarters, the club moved to several other locations, including Staten Island, Glen Cove, New York and Mystic, Connecticut.Its primary clubhouse is a six-storied Beaux-Arts landmark with a nautical-themed limestone facade, located at 37 West 44th Street in midtown Manhattan. Opened in 1901, it was designed by Warren and Wetmore (1898), architects of the exterior of Grand Central Terminal. The centerpiece of the clubhouse is the "Model Room", which contains a notable collection of full and half hull models including a scale model history of all New York Yacht Club America's Cup challenges. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987.
The Lipstick Building is a 453-foot tall skyscraper located at 885 Third Avenue, between East 53rd Street and 54th Street, across from the Citigroup Center in Manhattan, New York City, United States. It was completed in 1986 and has 34 floors. The building was designed by John Burgee Architects with Philip Johnson. The building receives its name from its shape and color, which resemble a tube of lipstick.The company that owned the building, Metropolitan 885 Third Avenue LLC, filed for bankruptcy in 2010 after overpaying for the property.DescriptionAt three levels the Lipstick Building's wall is set back in response to Manhattan's zoning regulation, which requires the building to recede from the street within its spatial envelope, to increase the availability of light at street level. The result is a form that looks as though it could retract telescopically. The shape, which is unusual in comparison to surrounding buildings, uses less space at the base than a regular skyscraper of quadrilateral footprint would use. This provides more room for the heavy pedestrian traffic along Third Avenue.At the base, the building stands on columns which act as an entrance for a vast post-modern hall. They are two stories high and separate the street from the nine-meter (30 ft) high lobby. Because the elevators and emergency staircases are located to the rear of the building, this area appears hollow.
The General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen of the City of New York, was founded on November 17, 1785, by 22 men who gathered in Walter Heyer's public-house on Pine Street in Lower Manhattan. The aims of the General Society were to provide cultural, educational and social services to families of skilled craftsmen. The General Society during this early period celebrated the mutuality and centrality of the craft community. Besides its charitable activities, the society played a prominent part in the festivities that marked patriotic holidays, carrying banners emblazoned with its slogan 'By hammer and hand all arts do stand', echoing the motto of the Worshipful Company of Blacksmiths.The city of New York and the Society both benefited from the decision to make New York the seat of the Federal Government. In 1789, legislators and their assistants and families began to pour into the city. Business prospects brightened considerably. In 1792, the Society attained a membership of 413, and received a charter of incorporation. Old documents reveal that the Society was quite active in the last years of the 18th century, corresponding with other business related associations, and petitioning the state legislature in the interests of industrial progress.Educational ProgramingIn 1820, The General Society opened one of the city's first free schools. During the early 1800s, New York had no public school system. Only two free schools were to be found in the whole city - one in the almshouse, and the other open only to the children of freed slaves. The school opened with 70 students. Children of members were admitted free of charge, and a small fee was required from all others. Later that same year the Society added a separate school for girls. The school, which became the Mechanics Institute in 1858, continues to provide tuition-free evening instruction in trades-related education. Currently, it is the oldest privately endowed tuition-free technical school in the city of New York, with more than 180,000 alumni.
666 Fifth Avenue is a 41-story office building on Fifth Avenue between 52nd and 53rd Streets in Midtown Manhattan, New York City.Ownership and historyThe Tishman family via Tishman Realty and Construction built the 1500000sqft tower in 1957. It was designed by Carson & Lundin and the building was called the Tishman Building. One of its most famous exterior features was the prominent 666 address emblazoned on the top of the building. The other distinctive exterior features are embossed aluminum panels. The original design included lobby sculptures by Isamu Noguchi including the "Landscape of the Cloud" which consists of sinuously cut thin railings in the ceiling to create a cloud effect. The cloud is also carried into a ceiling to floor waterfall. The penthouse was occupied by the Top of the Six's restaurant, operated by Stouffer's. For many years the building had a distinctive feature of a T-shaped atrium walk-through open to the sidewalks on 52nd Street, 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue with glass storefronts inside the walk-through. This included a bookstore and another area used for years by Alitalia Airlines. The entrance to 666 Fifth Avenue was inside this walk-through.
The Philippine Center is a building that houses the Consulate-General of the Republic of the Philippines in New York City, United States. It is located at 556 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan, three blocks south of Rockefeller Plaza and north of the New York Public Library Main Branch in Bryant Park. The Philippine Center has since its early days been a venue for the Filipino-American community as well as hosting business meetings, forums, receptions and weekly art exhibits featuring Filipino art.HistoryThe Philippine Center was established by Presidential Decree No. 188 on May 10, 1973. It was purchased by the Philippine Government from the Knights of Columbus on October 29, 1973 at the cost of $2,250,000.00, with an additional $1,500,000.00 to buy out an existing lease on the building.The building's legal owner is the Republic of the Philippines; offices of its national government housed within regularly began paying rentals to the Philippine Center in 1993, including nominal fees for the use of its function rooms.On September 15, 2005, President of the Philippines HE Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo made a historic official visit to the Philippine Center, the first by a ruling Filipino head of state.
The General Electric Building, also known as 570 Lexington Avenue, is a historic 50-floor, 640ft-tall, skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States, at the southwest corner of Lexington Avenue and 51st Street). Originally known as the RCA Victor Building when designed in 1931 by John W. Cross of Cross & Cross, it is sometimes known by its address to avoid confusion with the much later renaming, in 1988, of the RCA Building at 30 Rockefeller Plaza as the 'GE Building', itself later renamed 'Comcast Building'.The building backs up to the low Byzantine dome of St. Bartholomew's Church on Park Avenue and shares the same brick color. It is a 50-floor stylized Gothic tower, with elaborate Art Deco decoration of lightning bolts showing the power of electricity. The base contains elaboratem masonry, architectural figural sculpture, and on the corner above the main entrance, a corner clock with the cursive GE logo and a pair of silver disembodied forearms. The crown of the building is an example of Gothic tracery, which is intended to represent electricity and radio waves, and is lit from within at night.
The Waldorf Astoria New York is a luxury hotel in Manhattan, New York City. The hotel has been housed in two historic landmark buildings in New York. The first, bearing the same name, was built in two stages, which accounts for its dual name. The original hotel, situated on Astor properties along Fifth Avenue, was completed in 1893 and designed by Henry J. Hardenbergh. It was demolished in 1929 to make way for the construction of the Empire State Building. The present building, at 301 Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, is a 47-story 190.5 m Art Deco landmark designed by architects Schultze and Weaver, which was completed in 1931. The current hotel was the world's tallest hotel from 1931 until 1963, when it was surpassed by Moscow's Hotel Ukraina by 7 metres. An icon of glamour and luxury, the current Waldorf Astoria is one of the world's most prestigious and best known hotels. From its inception, the Waldorf Astoria gained international renown for its lavish dinner parties and galas, often at the center of political and business conferences and fundraising schemes involving the rich and famous.
The Waldorf Astoria New York is a luxury hotel in Manhattan, New York City. The hotel has been housed in two historic landmark buildings in New York. The first, bearing the same name, was built in two stages, which accounts for its dual name. The original hotel, situated on Astor properties along Fifth Avenue, was completed in 1893 and designed by Henry J. Hardenbergh. It was demolished in 1929 to make way for the construction of the Empire State Building. The present building, at 301 Park Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets in Midtown Manhattan, is a 47-story 190.5m Art Deco landmark designed by architects Schultze and Weaver, which was completed in 1931. The current hotel was the world's tallest hotel from 1931 until 1963, when it was surpassed by Moscow's Hotel Ukraina by. An icon of glamour and luxury, the current Waldorf Astoria is one of the world's most prestigious and best known hotels.From its inception, the Waldorf Astoria gained international renown for its lavish dinner parties and galas, often at the center of political and business conferences and fundraising schemes involving the rich and famous. Particularly after World War II it played a significant role in world politics and the Cold War, culminating in the controversial World Peace Conference of March 1949 at the hotel, in which Stalinism was widely denounced. Conrad Hilton acquired management rights to the hotel on October 12, 1949, and the Hilton Hotels Corporation finally bought the hotel outright in 1972. It underwent a $150 million renovation by Lee Jablin in the 1980s and early 1990s, and in October 2014 it was announced that the Anbang Insurance Group of China had purchased the Waldorf Astoria New York for US$1.95 billion, making it the most expensive hotel ever sold.