The Shocking Story of New York’s Strangest Tower

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  • Опубліковано 2 тра 2023
  • New York's iconic triangular building faces an uncertain future.
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КОМЕНТАРІ • 2,1 тис.

  • @TheB1M
    @TheB1M  Рік тому +124

    Get Surfshark VPN at surfshark.deals/B1M - Enter promo code B1M for an extra 3 months for free!

    • @freetolook3727
      @freetolook3727 Рік тому +12

      STOP the annoying distracting audio clicking supposedly to be a camera taking pictures.
      It's outdated as well.

    • @IlDiavolo2515
      @IlDiavolo2515 Рік тому +11

      ​@@freetolook3727 Triggered are ya...

    • @adamwest4981
      @adamwest4981 Рік тому +16

      Finally... not M a s t e r w o r k s! Thank you!

    • @n0ah.s_
      @n0ah.s_ Рік тому +11

      @@freetolook3727 didnt know someone could get so pissed from a sound effect 💀

    • @jigsaw2281
      @jigsaw2281 Рік тому +2

      Is this building in John wick too ??

  • @andremaines
    @andremaines Рік тому +1343

    To me one of the greatest sins New York ever committed was destroying the original Penn Station. It’s actually one of the reasons why they started declaring places as historic landmarks to protect them

    • @joeyharper4976
      @joeyharper4976 Рік тому +139

      Same with the Singer building. The Singer building was considered one of the most beautiful buildings in the world due to its intricate/handcraft designs put into it... Then they dismantled it to make a metal box (Which was dismantled within a few years of the original Penn station).

    • @pandakicker1
      @pandakicker1 11 місяців тому +72

      They destroyed their gorgeous buildings so much over the years that it is a totally different city now.

    • @Momo_Kawashima
      @Momo_Kawashima 11 місяців тому +80

      ​@@pandakicker1welcome to America. Destroying historical buildings because "let's build something new instead"

    • @OPGrimmz
      @OPGrimmz 11 місяців тому

      @@Momo_Kawashimatime to upgrade baby , fuck that old shit

    • @Dhips.
      @Dhips. 11 місяців тому

      432 Park Ave is the greatest sin they committed. Ugly ass building. It looks like what a child draws when they draw a building. It looks like some ones first attempt at building a building in Minecraft. It looks like a stick in the ground. Ruined the skyline.

  • @skiena
    @skiena Рік тому +648

    I worked there in the early 90s. The views from the "bow" of the building were straight down the middle of 5th avenue from one window and straight down the middle of broadway from another. Truly remarkable.

    • @camillecali22
      @camillecali22 11 місяців тому +4

      Me too in 1985

    • @thespookybuilding
      @thespookybuilding 11 місяців тому +7

      When I worked there in the 80's we called that "The Point" and yes from that view it was amazing to see!

    • @savage.4.24
      @savage.4.24 10 місяців тому +20

      I dreamed of having an apartment in the bow as a child! As an adult i wouldnt want to live in new york 😂

    • @LuxuFoo
      @LuxuFoo 9 місяців тому +3

      Wow, you could see one concrete slab to the next. Truly a sight to behold...

    • @toomanyjstoomanyrs1705
      @toomanyjstoomanyrs1705 9 місяців тому

      Second only to Moses letting the Dodgers go west and thus making Baseball truly America's pastime? As an Angelino I don't mind. 😂😂😂😂😂

  • @horsepanther
    @horsepanther Рік тому +497

    My first job out of college was at publisher Springer-Verlag in the Flatiron. I had just moved to NYC and it was such an exciting experience; I felt proud to work in that unique, iconic building. Even my dad was proud to tell people that I worked there. :-) Thanks for this interesting video. It's amazing to me that it sold for only $100k during the depression.

    • @LindaC616
      @LindaC616 Рік тому +41

      That was a ridiculous amount of money in the Depression

    • @AEMoreira81
      @AEMoreira81 Рік тому +10

      Indeed, MacMillan/Springer was the tenant that occupied all of the office building. But when they moved downtown to the Equitable Building in 2019, that left the office space vacant and then the pandemic hit. The plan now appears to be to convert the building to residential.

    • @EmelyPhan
      @EmelyPhan Рік тому +1

      Out of curiosity, what year(s) was this?

    • @ultraranger1286
      @ultraranger1286 Рік тому +11

      The building was sold in 1933 for 100k which is about 2.3 million in today's money. Like, I know some about to collapse apartment complex in NYC asking for twice this amount right now.

    • @ultraranger1286
      @ultraranger1286 Рік тому +6

      @@LindaC616 100k in 1933 worth about 2.2-3m USD in today's money which really isn't much with how crazy NYC real estate is right now.

  • @thespookybuilding
    @thespookybuilding Рік тому +283

    I worked in the Flatiron building in the 80's. One day when me, and a coworker were going down in the elevator to grab lunch and a delivery guy was in there with us too. If I remember correctly our office was on the 14th floor. The elevator started to drop rapidly and it was really scary. I don't know much about elevators but there was some kind of catch mechanism at the bottom and thankfully it slowed down just as we were reaching the lobby level. All 3 of us were fine.

    • @deltajohnny
      @deltajohnny Рік тому +7

      Oops... 😅😅😅

    • @stopstalkingyouspookybastard
      @stopstalkingyouspookybastard Рік тому +2

      80s? damn u old

    • @dr-rexmangrca113
      @dr-rexmangrca113 11 місяців тому +11

      there are brakes that are to stop it if goes over a speed..

    • @bbeen40
      @bbeen40 11 місяців тому +51

      You owe your life to Elisha Otis, the inventor of the elevator safety brake.

    • @deltajohnny
      @deltajohnny 11 місяців тому +5

      @@bbeen40 thank you very much for the information, and I have just read about it 👍👍

  • @42bill
    @42bill Рік тому +473

    My grandmother was a dancer in the famous modern dance troupe, Martha Graham Dancers, during the Great Depression years. Her photo along with her fellow dancers was blown up to a large poster and hung in the lobby of the Flat Iron building in the 1920s for a while. She was very proud of that. (She was also broadcast live on an RCA television demonstration in one of the first ever live tv broadcasts)

    • @Time4Technology
      @Time4Technology Рік тому +14

      That's amazing! :)

    • @suzanneflowers2230
      @suzanneflowers2230 Рік тому +13

      That's great history! Thanks for sharing.

    • @gloriahufnagel5556
      @gloriahufnagel5556 Рік тому +10

      I’ll bet nana has some stories!

    • @RodCalidge
      @RodCalidge Рік тому +7

      That's cool, thx for sharing that.

    • @otmargreb6110
      @otmargreb6110 Рік тому +8

      Oh, I love history, Bill. Thanks for your input. Lovely post. May your Nana dance forever in Starlight! ❤️❤️❤️

  • @flashflame4952
    @flashflame4952 Рік тому +843

    This building has always been great to see and hard to forget. With all of the most ugly, steel and glass ice cubes tray style buildings in NYC, keeping the well built and architectural beautiful older buildings is a must. It has so much character and style.

    • @darrellgrant7615
      @darrellgrant7615 Рік тому

      I can tell you didn’t actually watch the video. 43 other morons didn’t either.

    • @mehmetemincicek3266
      @mehmetemincicek3266 Рік тому +1

      hi

    • @emthegem8141
      @emthegem8141 Рік тому +1

      @@mehmetemincicek3266 hey

    • @rosajimenez7777
      @rosajimenez7777 Рік тому +1

      Yes

    • @jgunther3398
      @jgunther3398 Рік тому +27

      there probably hasn't been a beautiful building built anywhere in the u.s.a. since the 1940s. I'd love to work in the flatiron building. i'd love to just go in and look around...

  • @ronmackinnon9374
    @ronmackinnon9374 10 місяців тому +16

    Update: On May 23, 2023 (just a few weeks after this video dropped), a new auction was held, and a consortium headed by Jeff Gural (one of the previous owners) won the Flatiron Building with a bid of $161 million.

  • @tildessmoo
    @tildessmoo Рік тому +60

    I'd been thinking lately that the Flatiron Building would make a good candidate for a museum of the city. It's old enough to be part of the history it's showcasing, the quirky shape that makes offices difficult would be a plus from an artistic perspective, and if the city itself is funding it, no one needs to worry about whether the next buyer will be able to afford the upkeep on an historic building.
    Although, from my own perspective, the main reason I love the Flatiron Building is that when I pass it, it means I'm almost at The Strand, one of the biggest bookstores in the world.

    • @fatihhh2719
      @fatihhh2719 8 місяців тому

      Same thoughts

    • @HowIsThatHot
      @HowIsThatHot 6 місяців тому

      There is already a Museum of the City of New York.

    • @tildessmoo
      @tildessmoo 6 місяців тому +1

      @@HowIsThatHot It's got a lot of history. A second building/annex/whatever isn't a bad idea.

    • @HowIsThatHot
      @HowIsThatHot 6 місяців тому +1

      @@tildessmoo It is unlikely to happen. The way museums work in the US, the building upkeep would be a responsibility of the museum and not the city its self. The upkeep is way too expensive for them to consider making an annex.

  • @Stephan1988
    @Stephan1988 Рік тому +1431

    New York has a history of destroying past iconic and beautiful buildings. Hopefully they will preserve this one.
    edit: I read at the comments why not destroy it. Because it’s one of NY’s most iconic buildings. Tourists want to go see it. The Flatiron, The Empire State Building, The Chrysler, the GE building (570 Lexington Avenue), 30 Rockefeller Plaza, The Woolworth among others are historic and should always be preserved.

    • @roderickcampbell2105
      @roderickcampbell2105 Рік тому +28

      True Stephan. Of course others have helped in destroying some NYC landmarks. Certainly this building must be preserved.

    • @luigiperrone8169
      @luigiperrone8169 Рік тому +23

      So does Chicago and it sucks! Save the buildings!!!

    • @MrRezRising
      @MrRezRising Рік тому +43

      Easy there, or the ghost of Jackie Onassis will rise.
      The LPC, The Landmark Preservation protects buildings now. RIP Penn Station.

    • @penskepc2374
      @penskepc2374 Рік тому +8

      The one plus of Detroit not having any real booms in the last 50 is that their tons of cool buildings left, but now they're tearing them down anyway.

    • @ayindestevens6152
      @ayindestevens6152 Рік тому +48

      Guys RELAX it’s landmarked.

  • @charlesclager6808
    @charlesclager6808 Рік тому +272

    Back in the 1950;s when I was a kid my dad took me to NYC and showed me the Flat
    Iron building. I remember he was fascinated by it as I was. It was so different that any other building in the city. That was 60 years ago and my dad has passed but this building still stands, for a long time I hope. Good video.

    • @simmadownow
      @simmadownow Рік тому +9

      Thanks for sharing.

    • @peggypasson8794
      @peggypasson8794 Рік тому +4

      So well built back in those days .it's unfortunate that a apartment can't be made out of it or penthouses .it's beautiful an worth the effort

    • @eileennovak1656
      @eileennovak1656 Рік тому +1

      🫂

    • @carywest9256
      @carywest9256 11 місяців тому

      You must have flunked math. 2023 minus 60 =1963 not the 1950s. Point being,JFK hasn't been dead 60 years yet.

    • @charlesclager6808
      @charlesclager6808 11 місяців тому +1

      @@carywest9256 Cary, What has JFK got to do with it ? I did't mention him in my comment.
      But you are right about one thing though. After grade school I never passed another math test, algebra or whatever they tried to teach me in college. Take care.

  • @lynetteheath-brown7350
    @lynetteheath-brown7350 11 місяців тому +25

    My husband used to work for Macmillan Publishers in the UK. We went in to the office when we were on holidays in NY. I remember how exciting it was to actually go inside such an iconic building with beautiful Art Nouveau designs.

  • @whichgodofthousandsmeansno5306
    @whichgodofthousandsmeansno5306 Рік тому +70

    I used to go past that building every day walking to school. And I always enjoyed looking at it. The design is so unique you really could look at it for hours an it not get old. I hope they don't ever tear it down. It really is such an iconic landmark. There is also a little park across from it where you could by pot from street dealers but this is going back many years.

  • @Butter_Warrior99
    @Butter_Warrior99 Рік тому +359

    The thickest and tallest piece of pizza in all of NYC.

    • @theofficialczex1708
      @theofficialczex1708 Рік тому +18

      Seems like it should belong in Chicago if it's that thick a slice.

    • @jkardez4794
      @jkardez4794 Рік тому +2

      It got it's topping too much later...

    • @Loyal2TheFoil1
      @Loyal2TheFoil1 Рік тому +2

      Now that’s Italian

    • @verifiedhp
      @verifiedhp Рік тому +4

      With Garlic as the highest bidder

    • @adriansalter9358
      @adriansalter9358 Рік тому +2

      Imagine if Papa Johns was rich enough to use this building as their corporate HQ 😜

  • @brettmorton7365
    @brettmorton7365 Рік тому +634

    I live on the opposite side of the world but this is one of those buildings that you instantly recognise.
    I never realised how old it is... If only Burnham (and all his naysayers) could see it now!

    • @puzzzl
      @puzzzl Рік тому +18

      Plot twist: Burnham is Jacob Garlick

    • @brettmorton7365
      @brettmorton7365 Рік тому +2

      @@puzzzl a direct descendant of...

    • @twistoffate4791
      @twistoffate4791 Рік тому +14

      Indeed. I have only been to NYC three times in my life. I am now retired. But I only cared to put one image of NYC up on my wall in my home: The Flatiron. Despite all that glitters in the Big Apple, that's my favorite piece of it.

    • @ChefmusicianNervo-ht3jl
      @ChefmusicianNervo-ht3jl Рік тому +3

      Cool that spider man and green goblin included it

    • @repentandbelieveinJesusChrist3
      @repentandbelieveinJesusChrist3 Рік тому +2

      Repent to Jesus Christ “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
      ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4‬:‭23‬ ‭NIV‬‬
      G

  • @jaylewis8789
    @jaylewis8789 Рік тому +86

    I was born in Queens Flushing hospital and lived in NY until I was 37 and 30 years later I don't even recognize the city. The Flatiron Building was always one of my favorite landmarks. Too bad The original Pennsylvania Station didn't survive the wrecking ball. I still cannot believe it was destroyed. It was criminal.

    • @MikeBites
      @MikeBites Рік тому

      You would barely recognize the city coming in from the LIE today.

    • @IAmAnEvilTaco
      @IAmAnEvilTaco Рік тому +12

      I thought they were going to do it to Grand Central, too, when they got rid of intercity services in the early 90s. There was this entire "save the terminal" movement headed by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis of all people that saved it, which is good because it has already been torn down and replaced once in the early 1900s.
      NYC has a terrible habit of that, we tear our history down after a few decades because it's not new and shiny enough.

    • @jaylewis8789
      @jaylewis8789 Рік тому +4

      @@IAmAnEvilTaco I had already left NY when they tried to tear down GCS. I saw a documentary about the old GSC and bringing it underground. I had no idea they got rid of inner city services. Are the underground shops still there?

    • @abhijoshi2328
      @abhijoshi2328 Рік тому +1

      Just curious. Where did you move to? What possibly could compare to NYC?

    • @jaylewis8789
      @jaylewis8789 Рік тому

      @@abhijoshi2328
      To the great State of South Carolina. I haven't been out of the south for 20 years. I hate NY. NYer's are among the most brainwashed of our nation and they think everyone else is stupid. I'd say living in crime, traffic, cold, filth and liberal insanity needs questioning. If you live there, why?

  • @TheNotSure
    @TheNotSure 11 місяців тому +2

    The Daily Bugle was how I recognized it on a trip to NY. I hope the restoration goes well.

  • @reijek990
    @reijek990 Рік тому +223

    New type of content? I initially subscribed to B1M because they covered new and upcoming projects but videos about unique or historical buildings and structures are also interesting to me.

  • @jeff__w
    @jeff__w Рік тому +341

    The building next door 9:59 with the stunning cupola is the *Sohmer Piano Building* at 170 Fifth Avenue, designed by Robert Maynicke in 1897 for developer Henry Corn, built 1897-1898, and originally occupied by Sohmer & Co., the piano company that -invented- marketed the modern baby grand piano. The building consists of 12 stories-there are 11 full-floor apartments and a penthouse duplex in the cupola. The two-story octagonal cupola is topped with a dome clad in copper and hand-applied 24K gold leaf gilding and, on top of _that,_ a flagpole.

    • @BuzzSargent
      @BuzzSargent Рік тому +23

      Thanks for your comment. This would make an interesting story all by itself. I saw a Sohmer piano in an old show the other day and did not realize it was a real name of a piano.

    • @jeff__w
      @jeff__w Рік тому +17

      @@BuzzSargent You're welcome! I saw that building in the shot with its resplendent gold dome (restored in 2005) and thought, “What building is that?” and decided to share what I found out in the comments.
      There were actually at least four different “Sohmer buildings”: this one, one at 315 Fifth Avenue that the company moved into in 1909 (and which later became known as the “Rock Building”), the one that the company moved to in 1919 at 31 West 57th Street (demolished amid protest in 2014), starting what became known as “Piano Row,” and its still-standing factory, now a designated landmark, in Astoria, Queens. Each has its own fascinating history. So there’s a bit of architectural legacy in New York City attached to this one piano company.

    • @bluetopaz1228
      @bluetopaz1228 Рік тому +7

      Hello, no one!

    • @lookissjaxin
      @lookissjaxin Рік тому +11

      Thanks for sharing this with us 😮. It’s a beautiful 🤩 building.

    • @monochromedout
      @monochromedout Рік тому +14

      ​@I'm afraid your comment doesn't take into account that architecture and cool (old) structures is literally the theme of this channel/community.
      It's ok, don't feel bad. All of us are striving to be a little less uninformed.

  • @arthurgwg
    @arthurgwg Рік тому +2

    My First VFX job in NY was near the Flatiron building and every lunch break i would try to escape to the plaza in front of the building to have my lunch with a view. An amazing structure!

  • @2wheels1guy25
    @2wheels1guy25 Рік тому +4

    In my hometown (The Hague, in the Netherlands) we’ve build a hommage to this building in 2007, called ‘Het Strijkijzer’ (translated: the flat iron). It has 42 stories and houses a restaurant on the top floor, which is accessible via a dedicated panorama elevator!🚀😍

  • @mzungusi
    @mzungusi Рік тому +323

    I used to have a publisher in the Flatiron. It was certainly the best publisher office experience I've ever had. The building has a certain delicacy and elegance that's very rare. Modernism brought a lot of brutal weight to building design. The Flatiron exists in that time that allowed the Neo-Classical Beaux Art grace , but with modern construction methods ( ish ). Having said that it had ladies and gentlemen's toilets on alternate floors!

    • @wdwerker
      @wdwerker Рік тому +17

      Imagine racing to the slow water powered elevator to go to the bathroom ! Screw this I’ll take the stairs…….

    • @rosajimenez7777
      @rosajimenez7777 Рік тому +5

      That’s so cool

    • @Croz89
      @Croz89 Рік тому +33

      That's not uncommon in older buildings. Back in the day they would have been nearly all men's toilets, since there weren't a lot of women in the building's workforce, perhaps a couple of secretaries and receptionists. Later on as more women entered the workforce and building codes were updated, there was a need for both genders to have roughly equal access to toilets, and instead of creating two tiny washrooms on each floor, it's cheaper and more accessible, if slightly less convenient, to alternate genders between floors.

    • @FreekHoekstra
      @FreekHoekstra Рік тому +17

      Well lets just make them toilets. Just like everyone has at home. Problem solved ^^

    • @Croz89
      @Croz89 Рік тому +5

      @@FreekHoekstra That tends to have a lower capacity than properly fitted washrooms.

  • @NaqimProductions
    @NaqimProductions Рік тому +37

    I will always remember this building as Daily Bugle office

  • @ohhshitimhere5162
    @ohhshitimhere5162 Рік тому +15

    Interesting. This whole time I’ve seen this building in tv and movies I always thought it was full of apartments with people in them. I never thought of it as a business building. And for the most part it’s been empty, that’s crazy. I think it’s a beautiful building and it’s definitely on my list of what to see when I do go to NYC.

  • @RockandRollWoman
    @RockandRollWoman Рік тому +7

    I lived nearby the summer I clerked on Wall Street, and was fascinated by this iconic building. I hate to see it in limbo.

  • @ChaosDeary
    @ChaosDeary Рік тому +85

    -Shows up to auction
    -Outbids everyone with $190 million
    -Refuses to pay
    -Disappears
    What a legend

    • @seanseoltoir
      @seanseoltoir Рік тому

      Just another crooked NYer... It's in the "culture"...

    • @DetroitMicroSound
      @DetroitMicroSound Рік тому +11

      Sounds like something Trump would do.

    • @FAMEROB
      @FAMEROB Рік тому +15

      @@DetroitMicroSound lol rent free

    • @bimmersbbws6863
      @bimmersbbws6863 Рік тому +1

      Tomfoolery

    • @sirrathersplendid4825
      @sirrathersplendid4825 Рік тому +4

      You’d expect the auctioneers to require a substantial deposit from bidders. But maybe that would dissuade some who wish to stay anonymous.

  • @Squeph
    @Squeph Рік тому +411

    I have such a fascination for triangle-shaped buildings.

  • @mritzs5142
    @mritzs5142 Рік тому +10

    My father had an office at 565 Fifth Ave. It was by going with him there even as a 4 year old that I felt a sense of intense reverence for the buildings of NYC.. 1950s ..The Flat Iron so majestic , not nearly the height of others But as the car drove toward it,It commanded your attention .I never have found any place that speaks to me like NY, and this slice of it’s history reaffirms that. Thank you and to all for the interesting comments. I ❤️ NY

  • @stevencolatrella3257
    @stevencolatrella3257 Рік тому +5

    Thank you for this video. It makes me sad to think of the Flatiron Building empty. I worked there through much of the 1980s for The National Emergency Civil Liberties Committee, headed by Edith Tiger, one of the greatest Americans most Americans have never heard of. The elevators were slow as molasses, but we loved them for that somehow, taking pride in the only water powered elevators in New York.

  • @tristandunn4628
    @tristandunn4628 Рік тому +46

    Love the Flatiron building. Was on my list of "must sees" when I went to NYC about 10 years ago. Have got the iconic shot of it from the top of the Empire State. Really hope that this weird situation can get sorted out and it remains for another century and beyond

  • @kentslocum
    @kentslocum Рік тому +71

    Thanks for the deep dive into the past and present of such an iconic building! I find it fascinating that buildings like the old World Trade Center are hated when they are first built, but become iconic and beloved over time.

    • @VinceHere98
      @VinceHere98 Рік тому +3

      Same here.
      I do wish the original WTC was still here today. As much as I love the new One WTC, I really wish 9/11 never happened, not just because of how it changed the world in a really horrible way, but because New York didn’t deserve to lose its tallest buildings like that. NO city deserves to go through such a tragic misfortune like NYC did on that horrible day in 2001, and I pray that it’ll be the only time that happens.

    • @christinatweet6580
      @christinatweet6580 Рік тому +1

      😭😭

  • @69Muscle
    @69Muscle Рік тому +6

    It is an absolutely priceless and timeless iconic architectural masterpiece.

  • @tonyparker5743
    @tonyparker5743 Рік тому +4

    I worked on a building in Brisbane Australia and the architects used this building as inspiration for the design. it's built on a simillar shaped block

  • @Alexclermontwrites
    @Alexclermontwrites Рік тому +42

    Used to work inside flatiron as part of Macmillan publishing. Amazing architecture outside. Standard office inside. Was always proud to walk to work.

    • @MrRezRising
      @MrRezRising Рік тому +2

      Wasn't St. Martin's in there too?

    • @sirrathersplendid4825
      @sirrathersplendid4825 Рік тому +2

      Used to work in a publishing house in a similar (slightly less) iconic building in London. Also loved every minute of it: especially walking through the foyer.

    • @jackgrimaldi8685
      @jackgrimaldi8685 Рік тому +2

      Lucky bastard! This and the Chrysler Building are my absolute favorites in NYC. All the newer buildings that have gone up in the city in recent years are dull, postmodern eyesores imo.

    • @itakedamage
      @itakedamage Рік тому +5

      I’m doing the infrastructure work there now. I love being there and upgrading it. Love the original wood floors and the original mosaic in the elevator lobbies, trying to restore as much as possible once the new infrastructure is installed.

    • @MrRezRising
      @MrRezRising Рік тому +1

      @@itakedamage Otis elevators?

  • @zandrasbrown
    @zandrasbrown Рік тому +47

    I once bid on a bottle of wine by accident - luckily it was only a $40 bid…I felt so stupid…but feel so much better now…for some reason😂.

  • @papel_pe
    @papel_pe 10 місяців тому +3

    Before i started studying architecturer this was one of the first buildings that I actively wanted to visit and managed it when I went to NYC.
    I really enjoy history videos about interesting buildings.
    One interpretation to me is that architecture is never over, it's just abandoned.
    This building has always had life flowing, coming and going in an ever changing city. Fascinating.

  • @user-ds5sn1qp3u
    @user-ds5sn1qp3u Рік тому +2

    My great grandmother was a Fuller. She passed in 1976. She was very kind if I recall correctly. She left her interest in this building to my mother, her granddaughter, a Sibley, on my mother's side if I recall correctly.

  • @AbbreviatedReviews
    @AbbreviatedReviews Рік тому +146

    That Jacob Garlick part is pretty interesting, especially because of how recent it is. Some sources are saying he was still trying to get the building while others say 'no one has seen or heard from him' which is odd, but the one clear fact is that he hasn't paid anything. But apparently as of a week ago, they're set to auction it again on May 23rd with only a required deposit of $100,000 - which I guess is better than none. I'm still pretty curious about this guy's story though and I imagine it will come to light at some point.

    • @JerryFisher
      @JerryFisher Рік тому +18

      I am reminded of how con man Victor Lustig sold the Eiffel Tower twice. Not exactly the same thing, but it shares echoes of the same scheme.

    • @BuzzSargent
      @BuzzSargent Рік тому +24

      I wonder if Garlick was fronting for people with the money. But, after he won the bid, the backers failed to deliver him the funds to complete the sale. I wonder what is: "The Rest of the Story" as Paul Harvey would have said.

    • @IWillSayMyPeace
      @IWillSayMyPeace Рік тому +6

      Sounds like "murder she wrote" to me... Poor thing.

    • @johnnycab8986
      @johnnycab8986 Рік тому

      Jewish tricks.

    • @smartysmarty1714
      @smartysmarty1714 Рік тому +19

      It would be funny if he plunked down his 100K and bid on it again, and then disappeared again.

  • @dvampofo
    @dvampofo Рік тому +132

    The production of this channel never ceases to amaze me. Well done Fred and team.

    • @TheB1M
      @TheB1M  Рік тому +13

      Thank you so much!

  • @seanpfodera
    @seanpfodera 10 місяців тому +2

    I worked in Flatiron for Macmillan from 2005 to 2016. Incredible experience. The superintendent is a friend of mine (we coached in the same youth baseball league). He took me to every location in the building from the lowest sublevel to the roof. I love that building. Wish I still had the small bit of terra cotta that used to be displayed in my office. Lost it when we moved out.
    Trivia: Tony Sarg designed and constructed the first balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in his studio in Flatiron.

  • @circesgrandmainomaha580
    @circesgrandmainomaha580 Рік тому +12

    There is also a Flatiron building in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. It sits on an equally odd shaped lot, and has many of the same design elements of the original one in NYC, although the one in Omaha is not quite as tall. It's currently an apartment building and retail complex.

    • @OsloNoWay
      @OsloNoWay 9 місяців тому +2

      And many in Portugal...

  • @mysteriousme4101
    @mysteriousme4101 Рік тому +70

    Good to see your channel growing to the point where you're getting to experience the architectural wonders of the world in the flesh, keep up the awesome quality videos!

  • @jokerace8227
    @jokerace8227 Рік тому +39

    One of NY's most iconic early skyscrapers, so hopefully it ends up with an owner who actually cares about renovating it properly.

  • @aWomanFreed
    @aWomanFreed Рік тому +19

    My senior project in design school in Chicago was to redesign the interior of this building’s retail space. We got actual blueprints of the first 3 floors…there are huge vaults on the lower level that we had to incorporate into our designs.

    • @TehSWEED
      @TehSWEED 10 місяців тому +2

      same

    • @aWomanFreed
      @aWomanFreed 10 місяців тому +2

      @@TehSWEED did u go to HIID

  • @Travelinran
    @Travelinran 10 місяців тому

    Great story, well done. In 1985 I interviewed for a job in the Flatiron Building, really wanted and that I had the job, and a big bonus would have been to work in the iconic building. I didn’t get the job but before and after, it always warms my heart when visiting NYC after years of living there.

  • @fredianacci8283
    @fredianacci8283 Рік тому +45

    Great job Fred. Once again you hit all of the right notes. We love it when you cover historic NY architecture and historic architecture in general!

  • @Vitruvius123
    @Vitruvius123 Рік тому +35

    I walk past this building every day and have wondered why the scaffolding remains up and a significant number of terra cotta cladding sections are missing, yet i never see any workers. I fear for the structural integrity with so much of the budding envelope open to the elements. I hope this real estate developer stunt does not destroy this icon of New York. Mr. Silverstein’s greed is notorious. Thank you for a gear summary of this icons status.

  • @kqschwarz
    @kqschwarz Рік тому +4

    Super nice video, but I am surprised you didn’t mention “23 skidoo” when you were describing the windy nature of the area around the building. Thank you for telling this story so well.

  • @b3ckiv
    @b3ckiv 4 місяці тому

    I remember photographing this building in New York when I was there to visit friends in 2002. It's so stunning a use of fusion. I really hope it is protected to be maintained well, that is a good way to respect ideals the architect intended.
    The energic balance this building provides adds a beautiful cohesion to the timeline of growth in the city.
    Nice doc dude.

  • @Snowboundless
    @Snowboundless Рік тому +27

    Thank you for covering my favorite NYC skyscraper! While furnishing it for offices is a little weird, those point offices have to be some of the best in the city. The view is straight at the Empire State Building.

  • @williamstringer6519
    @williamstringer6519 Рік тому +14

    Another fascinating offering from the B1M, which is my "must see" UA-cam channel.

  • @jimnel7284
    @jimnel7284 Рік тому +1

    I was also a employee of the building (4 winds travel agency ) and thank for the the mention for the aerodynamics of the building. Thoes winds can really knock you off your feet. Also i remember the sound of the monster trucks (first time i heard and saw them) across the street. It was a feature the toy building. they had them on display outside one day. They were so loud when they revved their engines it echoed off the building for miles. I was young then but i still enjoy architecture and monster trucks.

  • @Joley74216
    @Joley74216 Рік тому +3

    Update: The majority stake ultimately and successfully bid $161 million for the Flatiron building at a second auction on the steps of the courthouse on 23rd May 2023. Mr Garlick didn’t show up this time around and so the majority, represented by Jeffrey Gural, were finally successful in owning the full 100% of the building.

  • @wheely90
    @wheely90 Рік тому +12

    can only hope someone takes care of this building and brings it back to glory

  • @christianwestling2019
    @christianwestling2019 Рік тому +36

    How this hasn't been converted into a hotel is beyond me.
    Rooms with great views on every floor, a ballroom, restaurant & bar in the grandiose double floor penthouse.
    A Spa/gym etc in the attic floor before the roof top and an terrace with a rooftop pool at the top.
    Had I more millions, I'd get in on the bidding. Strange that no other hotel chain hasn't.

    • @TsarNick1995
      @TsarNick1995 Рік тому +3

      Agreed!

    • @kagisocalvinramz3826
      @kagisocalvinramz3826 Рік тому +4

      Is this the same building of john wick continental Hotel,?

    • @JeffDeWitt
      @JeffDeWitt Рік тому +8

      It would be a cool hotel, but that would be an expensive conversion, the plumbing would have to be drastically changed.

    • @DoubleMonoLR
      @DoubleMonoLR Рік тому +5

      @@JeffDeWitt I'd imagine plumbing costs would be relatively minor in the grand scheme of immense overall costs.
      $190 million + $100 million renovation works out to about $12,000 per square metre of floor area.

    • @jamesrawlins735
      @jamesrawlins735 11 місяців тому +4

      The most recent plans I read about the Flatiron are that it is going to be converted into all or mainly apartments. It sold at another auction on May 23 for $161 million (Jeffrey Gural said he got it cheaper than what he originally bid at the first auction - and he intends to spend $100 million to renovate.)

  • @grahamcombs4752
    @grahamcombs4752 Рік тому +3

    The "unusual triangular shape" is common in the city in various iterations. These corners that split off streets pre-date mass automobile traffic.

  • @alfoncesmithe
    @alfoncesmithe Рік тому

    I have been fascinated with the Flatiron building for many years so much so I had to go to Manhattan to see it in person and photograph it from as many different angels and lighting form the sun as possible and all my work as payed off, The B1M channel is priceless with its content✌👍 thank you for making This video

  • @lorenzodicapo6305
    @lorenzodicapo6305 Рік тому +9

    I remember the first time I saw the Flatiron building, I couldn't stop staring, had to walk around it, see it from all angles. Not many things left in the world that command that kind of attention.
    May we be smart enough to preserve this one

  • @bluntman8107
    @bluntman8107 Рік тому +13

    I have a huge picture of this building in my office.. Majestic

    • @TheB1M
      @TheB1M  Рік тому +6

      It photographs so well!

  • @vickyschnorbus4166
    @vickyschnorbus4166 4 місяці тому

    Even though I grew up in Houston, Texas, with lots of skyscrapers, this building absolute fascinated me. I hope New York keeps it.

  • @FelixRocco
    @FelixRocco 8 місяців тому +1

    I was lucky to have a friend who worked in the Flatiron. Can’t remember what floor exactly but the view out the front window was amazing and to be able to see the architecture up close from inside was cool.

  • @Eggmancan
    @Eggmancan Рік тому +25

    More on the history and stories behind important buildings would be much appreciated.

  • @TheNoerdy
    @TheNoerdy Рік тому +27

    As someone who lives in NYC, it’s been nuts to watch this happen lol. So glad you are back in the big apple making a video about it :)

  • @janethuppi6041
    @janethuppi6041 5 місяців тому

    My grandfather worked in the Flatiron building after returning from World War l. I’ve always loved it, as well as Grand Central Station.

  • @MrFas4wd
    @MrFas4wd 8 місяців тому +1

    This is the first I’ve seen or heard of this building in my life and love it. I’m not someone who is actually inclined to do that but there’s something about it which makes me appreciate its magnificence and………basically, I want it.

  • @notpurple
    @notpurple Рік тому +17

    That's crazy, your videos don't usually end on a cliffhanger

    • @GLJosh
      @GLJosh Рік тому

      Tune in next time for the exciting conclusion, same B1M time, same B1M channel!

  • @emilholmsten8600
    @emilholmsten8600 Рік тому +83

    Truly an amazing building! It needs to be protected at all cost❤

    • @scottross5495
      @scottross5495 Рік тому +3

      I disagree. They need to weigh the benefits of keeping old buildings verses the benefit of replacing them.
      I think progress is better than retaining outdated buildings. It's not even being used.
      It's a triangular odd shaped unused building at the end of a street. The location is really poor and shows poor planning. You can't retain old buildings in a city forever.

    • @aaqilian5.085
      @aaqilian5.085 Рік тому

      At all costs, huh? What about the cost of your life? Would you forfeit your insignificant life to preserve it? Think before you speak, dummy 👎🏿

    • @geoh7777
      @geoh7777 Рік тому

      @Emil Holmsten "Truly an amazing building! It needs to be protected at all cost"
      Including you cashing out all of your net worth and you donating it to protect it? You did say "all cost."

    • @emilholmsten8600
      @emilholmsten8600 Рік тому

      @@geoh7777 With my limited net worth I would gladly "support" conservation efforts regarding this building! I realize my previous statement is borderline idealism. But one would think that it would be in the Citys best interest to keep historic, and in this case, Beautiful infrastructure fully functioning. Looking at New Yorks History... Most Likely it will be demolished and replaced by some terrible Hadid look-alike design... (My opinion of course)

    • @emilholmsten8600
      @emilholmsten8600 Рік тому

      ​@@scottross5495 I live in Stockholm Sweden! and we butchered our city in the 1960s, in the name of form and function...
      Leaving big parts of the city aesthetically looking like a modernistic fewer dream... New York is not really lacking new radical buildings as it is!
      One would think, that to preserve one of the worlds most famous buildings,
      is in the Citys best interest?
      Why it is unused has nothing to do with public opinion! It has to do with a inefficient profit driven market. As in all big Citys all over the world...
      More old "triangular odd shaped" buildings please

  • @grimtales7131
    @grimtales7131 9 місяців тому

    I just turned 25 and when I worked at the FlatIron back in the 80s it was such a remarkable place to work and sleep in. Amazing.

  • @RLeeVanCamps
    @RLeeVanCamps Рік тому

    Great tour. Luv how you let the owner showcase their rig. Al has it all thought out. Luv the guitar. Great idea about the oversize robe for outside warmth

  • @dorkknight8846
    @dorkknight8846 Рік тому +10

    When I visited New York from the UK I went looking for this building and I loved the architecture. it felt like a boat was coming down the street .

    • @marknewton6984
      @marknewton6984 Рік тому +1

      Saw it as a kid in the 60's. Never forgot it. Also Washington Square.-- Greenwich Village.

  • @blueneptune146
    @blueneptune146 Рік тому +57

    I absolutely love the Flatiron building. It's just so beautiful and refreshing to see beaux arts architecture in such a modern city like New York. I'd love it if they could make it an apartment building, even though I know i could never afford to live in it (or anywhere in NYC for that matter).

    • @word42069
      @word42069 Рік тому +3

      There are myriads of beaux-arts buildings in NYC!

    • @janeclayton151
      @janeclayton151 Рік тому +2

      I love it too, it's so beautiful, unique and iconic.

    • @rustyneuron
      @rustyneuron Рік тому +1

      Yes, an apartment right at the front with that curved window would be awesome!

    • @hagestad
      @hagestad 9 місяців тому

      Why would you want to live there? EM pollution must be of the charts there. Basically guaranteed cancer.

  • @BagoPorkRinds
    @BagoPorkRinds Рік тому

    2:34 I'm mesmerized by the ironworker climbing up the steel column with just hand grip strength and feet pressed against the flanges in shoes with just smooth leather soles.

  • @matthewbittenbender9191
    @matthewbittenbender9191 Рік тому +1

    Grew up in Allentown, PA and there was also a triangle shaped building called there in the Allentown-Bethlem boarder which was locally called the Flatiron Bldg. It was no where near the size of this one but it was a oddity on a weird plot of land too.

  • @brianthesnail3815
    @brianthesnail3815 Рік тому +21

    The Batterses Power station was a similarly iconic building that stood empty and derelict in London for all the time I lived there. Thankfully it has now been saved and it once again has a useful purpose. I am sure the Flat Iron building will one day be rescued the same way. Sadly, an economic downturn could mean that takes 20 years.

  • @BradThePitts
    @BradThePitts Рік тому +4

    6:55 It called "The Flatiron District" only since the 80s. It used to be the Toy District, named after the toy & chocolate factories in the area.

  • @Triatharob
    @Triatharob Рік тому +9

    I had the privilege of working in this beautiful building in the 1990’s. A wonderful experience I’ll never forget ❤️

  • @juliocesarpereira4325
    @juliocesarpereira4325 Рік тому +1

    I'm from Brasil and one of the favorite pictures I took from my visit to Manhattan is of the Flatiron as seen from the top of the Empire State Building. My former hometown has a much smaller building that is known as its own Flatiron building built in the 1950s. Unfortunately, its future is also uncertain.

  • @Matityahu755
    @Matityahu755 Рік тому +2

    One of the best reasons to visit New York City is seeing the old buildings and the stunning architecture. All you've to do is look up. Same for any old city really, even London.

  • @BiggaTigga
    @BiggaTigga Рік тому +7

    Great video! I worked in Manhattan for 20 years and I was always a block or two from this building. It is one of my favorites.

  • @jaiishmael3186
    @jaiishmael3186 Рік тому

    Live in one of my boughs, always wondered the history of building, when in Manhattan, the narrator really gave though research of building, very appreciated 😊

  • @mwmheps
    @mwmheps Рік тому +1

    Interesting! I was happy to see that it's at least somewhat visible under the scaffolding last time I was in New York last month as opposed to when I went last year, would be gutted if it was ever destroyed! It's one of my favourite buildings!

  • @lvthud
    @lvthud Рік тому +42

    Just a small correction, it is not sitting empty, it has been cleared so the New York Continental can take over as a replacement for the at 1 Wall Street Court that was accidentally demolished. :)
    It's best to not dig to deeply into why Jacob Garlick was, but nobody double crosses the high table.

    • @MizTheDonGargon
      @MizTheDonGargon Рік тому

      1 wall street court was not accidentally demolished wtf

    • @jasonfu6169
      @jasonfu6169 Рік тому +7

      @@MizTheDonGargon he’s referring to John wick…

    • @simonfernandes6809
      @simonfernandes6809 Рік тому +4

      ​@@jasonfu6169 It helps to be culturally aware.

    • @jwvandegronden
      @jwvandegronden Рік тому +1

      I just saw that movie today!! What a great reference and what a great movie too BTW!!!

    • @ozzie-sk9dh
      @ozzie-sk9dh Рік тому +2

      How do you accidentally demolish a building 😂

  • @freetolook3727
    @freetolook3727 Рік тому +7

    @5:55 There's a couple of offices in the bottom middle of the blueprint layout the look like it would be pretty hard to sit at a desk.
    They look more like closets with a surplus desk stuffed in them. Maybe that was a punishment office where you were assigned when you screwed up.

  • @voldlifilm
    @voldlifilm 10 місяців тому

    Yeah, that whole auction thing is for sure a tactical move. Such an interesting video on a very cool building. Thank you for your content.

  • @kslinaz5668
    @kslinaz5668 Рік тому +1

    Please keep us posted on anything that happens in the owner/legal arena.
    It's such a cool building.

  • @crazybeartimba
    @crazybeartimba Рік тому +3

    My first time visiting New York, i made sure the flat iron was my first visit. My gf at the time was confused but it was amazing and loved seeing it for it’s beauty.

  • @erfquake1
    @erfquake1 Рік тому +5

    May I recommend a show on the Bradbury building in Los Angeles. As with the Flatiron, it's not a particularly large building on the skyline but it's one of the most beautiful & ingenius.

  • @torolf007
    @torolf007 Рік тому

    Omg yes, I love this new B1M style video! Keep them coming!

  • @NeverlandSystemZor
    @NeverlandSystemZor Рік тому +1

    That building is such an icon. I hope that it remains for a century more to come.

  • @williamjulien5858
    @williamjulien5858 Рік тому +9

    Fun Fact, Atlanta has a Flatiron that was built 5 years before NY (1897).

    • @stopmakingsense9915
      @stopmakingsense9915 Рік тому +3

      And it’s about half the size of the building in NY.

    • @METALFACEDOOMXXXX
      @METALFACEDOOMXXXX Рік тому +1

      Nobody cares about Atlanta that city sucks with a terrible skyline with no interesting buildings or skyscrapers. Even the guy that built Atlanta said it sucks! Lol

    • @jsphillip60
      @jsphillip60 Рік тому

      ​@@stopmakingsense9915 True. Only 11 stories tall. Still cool, though! 😎

  • @billh03903
    @billh03903 Рік тому +3

    For several years I worked close by the building and once had an interview in a pointy corner office. I often used the subway entrance across the street to get back home to Queens each night. Happy to hear it's being renovated. Sad to hear how that's going.

  • @darleneschneck
    @darleneschneck 11 місяців тому +3

    Back in the early 2000s, I traveled to this building for publishing meetings. I was afraid to use the old elevators that sometimes got stuck, and so I would walk up the stairs to the second-highest floor. Now that was a hike! Looking up at the staircase was a geometric marvel.

  • @ianalyzeeverysecondiexist
    @ianalyzeeverysecondiexist 5 місяців тому

    This building is absolutely gorgeous, and I'm so happy I got to see it the year before the scaffold was built.

  • @eattherich9215
    @eattherich9215 Рік тому +17

    The Flatiron building was a must see when I visited NYC back in 2018. On another visit to the city a year later, I went again in the hope of getting better pictures. Incidentally, the much smaller Toronto flatiron building, aka The Gooderham Building, pre-dates New York's by 10 years having been completed in 1892.

    • @celiagraungaard1253
      @celiagraungaard1253 Рік тому

      It has a great mural on the "blunt" end too!

    • @jparker59able
      @jparker59able 9 місяців тому

      I pulled up images of the Gooderham Building online. It's a beautiful building also.

    • @jaygray7102
      @jaygray7102 9 місяців тому

      Vancouver also has a Flatiron Building that looks a lot like the building in NY, and is sometimes used in movies instead of NY.

  • @SMX815
    @SMX815 Рік тому +4

    This has always been one most iconic building in NYC & be interesting to see what happens.. great video 👏🙏👍

  • @jamesl9371
    @jamesl9371 11 місяців тому +1

    I’ve seen similar buildings in Toronto and Milwaukee and there’s probably many others. A hundred years ago it seemed to be a popular design

  • @booradley0x0
    @booradley0x0 3 місяці тому

    Recent trip to NYC, the flatiron was something to behold.....aside from all the scaffolding.

  • @stevecooksley
    @stevecooksley Рік тому +4

    When I first visited New York this was the only building that stopped me in my tracks when I initially saw it. It's quirky and magnificent.

  • @jkardez4794
    @jkardez4794 Рік тому +5

    Eye-konic ! Beauty indeed lies in the eye of the beholder . Who'd have thought that a thin edge of a pie could kick up so much of a kerfuffle . Some icons achieve greatness with the passage of time . Don't throw that eyesore away so soon .

  • @otmargreb6110
    @otmargreb6110 Рік тому

    I always loved seeing this building in vids and photos. I know more now! Thank you! Its such a wonderful site, indeed! Cheers!