Chanin Building
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Chanin Building | |
Close-up image of the Chanin Building's crenellated top |
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Building Information | |
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Name | Chanin Building |
Location | New York City |
Country | United States |
Architect | Sloan & Robertson |
Client | Irwin S. Chanin |
Completion Date | 1929 |
Style | Art Deco |
The Chanin Building is a skyscraper located at 122 East 42nd Street in New York City. Built by Irwin S. Chanin in 1929, it is 56 stories high, reaching 197.8 metres (649 ft) excluding the spire and 207.3 metres (680 ft) including it. It was designed by Sloan & Robertson in the Art Deco style,[1] and incorporates architectural sculpture by Rene Paul Chambellan. When originally completed, the 50th floor had a silver-and-black high-brow movie theater. This floor and the 51st are now offices joined by a stairwell instead. Initially a dominant landmark in the midtown skyline, the building had an open air observatory on the 54th floor.[2] Having been surpassed in height by a number of buildings, most notably the Chrysler Building located across the street, the observatory has been long closed. The self-supporting tower atop the building is the original transmission site for WQXR-FM from 1941 to the 1960s (when they moved to the Empire State Building). WQXR maintains a current backup antenna next to the original tower on a smaller pole.