Why There’s An Empty Skyscraper In The Middle Of Times Square

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  • Опубліковано 14 чер 2024
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    Video written by Adam Chase
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КОМЕНТАРІ • 855

  • @cloudkitt
    @cloudkitt 2 роки тому +1059

    I think a writer came up with the "S&M to M&M" line and worked backwards to make an episode from there

    • @markmh835
      @markmh835 2 роки тому +67

      And the same writer came up with the line Mickey Mouse vs. Dickey Houses. Clever guy. (Definitely a dude.) 😁👍

    • @renderproductions1032
      @renderproductions1032 2 роки тому +4

      @@markmh835 the description says it was “Adam Chase”, so yes.

    • @maxpowr90
      @maxpowr90 2 роки тому +13

      Tucker Carlson still wishes M&Ms were into S&M.

    • @zes3813
      @zes3813 2 роки тому

      wrgg, nos cuht gina s cxu or not, say, can say any nmw and any s perfx

    • @fredricharllee2018
      @fredricharllee2018 2 роки тому

      @@maxpowr90 those cartoons would be hilarious....

  • @bluebird6039
    @bluebird6039 2 роки тому +951

    Worth noting that the original facade was stripped in the 60s by allied chemical so even if all the billboards were removed it would not look like it did in 1904.

    • @bluebird6039
      @bluebird6039 2 роки тому +69

      @Anel Zukic Times Square in particular has lost nearly everything within the square proper.

    • @EternalResonance
      @EternalResonance 2 роки тому +11

      this video didn't explain why its now mostly adorned😑 click baited. sooooooooooo annoyed.

    • @EternalResonance
      @EternalResonance 2 роки тому +7

      you dont have to have one or the other. you can rent out space and have signs. they haven't told us why they dont rent it out.

    • @bluebird6039
      @bluebird6039 2 роки тому +56

      @@EternalResonance Nobody wants an office with no windows and renting out the building with discounted rates because of the lack of windows is more trouble than it’s worth.

    • @rogan6947
      @rogan6947 2 роки тому +18

      @@bluebird6039 Not sure about US building codes but here in New Zealand you must allow a certain amount of natural lighting into an office space for it to be habitable. I assume the US has something similar and therefore having tenants in a building with covered windows would be illegal, and zoning wouldn't allow it to be used for anything else like manufacturing.

  • @JonathanFantasy
    @JonathanFantasy 2 роки тому +2814

    TLDW; the building is essentially just being used as a big billboard because it's more economical.

    • @theparagonal
      @theparagonal 2 роки тому +186

      Once again proving modern capitalism is the best way to divide scarce resources.

    • @chandlerdeslatte3148
      @chandlerdeslatte3148 2 роки тому +27

      @@theparagonal you are a very smart boy

    • @lindzeesouperocd7558
      @lindzeesouperocd7558 2 роки тому +80

      @@theparagonal I have poop stains in my underwear

    • @aintnoway686
      @aintnoway686 2 роки тому +21

      @@theparagonal Would you rather they demolish it and waste resources building a giant billboard from scratch

    • @mf--
      @mf-- 2 роки тому +28

      @@theparagonal it should have the lowest rent because it doesn't have windows.

  • @ericolsen7957
    @ericolsen7957 2 роки тому +1581

    One thing I learned about Times Square that I thought was interesting was that the billboards are possibly illegal because of the Highway Beautification Act of 1965, which limits billboards to 1,200 square feet along highways and while Broadway and 7th Ave are not highways, in 2012 the government passed a law to also include “urban principal arterial routes."

    • @andychow5509
      @andychow5509 2 роки тому +147

      They might be grandfathered in.

    • @SeedSnatcher
      @SeedSnatcher 2 роки тому +100

      @@andychow5509 In Austin, billboards are illegal but there's a bunch of grandfathered ones. This case probably works the same way

    • @lrdxgm
      @lrdxgm 2 роки тому +70

      If anyone thinks either Broadway or 7th ave classifies as "principal arterial", then they either never been at Times Square or never seen a principal arterial route anywhere, including the two urban freeways on the Hudson and the East river banks..

    • @youngscrappyhungry4570
      @youngscrappyhungry4570 2 роки тому +14

      Times Square a highway?? Nowadays it’s a suburban mall.

    • @Wallyworld30
      @Wallyworld30 2 роки тому +11

      The Highway Beautification Act was created by Lady Bird Johnson. First lady to Lyndon Johnson. Lyndon Johnson is one of America's most underrated Presidents.

  • @craigjensen6853
    @craigjensen6853 2 роки тому +482

    "I'd walk a mile for a Camel" -- my uncle does every day, it's about a half mile to the gas station from his trailer park and he lost his license years ago after his 6th DUI. Except I think he switched to Newports.

    • @ileutur6863
      @ileutur6863 2 роки тому +46

      Yea that does sound like something a newport smoker would do

    • @atimholt
      @atimholt 2 роки тому +25

      Kinda funny that walking a mile is supposed to be a big deal. Guess it would be for a smoker.

    • @EternalResonance
      @EternalResonance 2 роки тому +1

      this video didn't explain why its now mostly adorned😑 click baited. sooooooooooo annoyed.

    • @AndrewAMartin
      @AndrewAMartin 2 роки тому +7

      @@EternalResonance You need to learn some comprehension skills, and stop replying to everyone's comments with the same idiotic comment.

    • @WouldntULikeToKnow.
      @WouldntULikeToKnow. 2 роки тому +10

      @@EternalResonance stop spamming the comment section. Get a life

  • @diskoverio1020
    @diskoverio1020 2 роки тому +312

    When I see weird things in the corporate world of US, I know that Disney is always involved.

  • @rogan6947
    @rogan6947 2 роки тому +1042

    Not sure about US building codes but here in New Zealand you must allow a certain amount of natural lighting into an office space for it to be habitable. I assume the US has something similar and therefore having tenants in a building with covered windows would be illegal, and zoning wouldn't allow it to be used for anything else like manufacturing. For anyone claiming he didn't answer why it isn't rented out still.

    • @Sammie1053
      @Sammie1053 2 роки тому +183

      There's a chance NYC/the state of New York has a law like that, but I can almost guarantee that's not a law in the US.

    • @RabbitsInBlack
      @RabbitsInBlack 2 роки тому +80

      LOL. NYC has all kinds of laws. NYC also has all kinds of loop holes. Got to learn how to think outside that box.

    • @mysteryman7877
      @mysteryman7877 2 роки тому +44

      The city or state would make that law, not the federal government. NYC regulates how much sunlight has to hit the streets (skyscrapers have to buy air rights from neighboring properties and set their facades back as they rise), so they likely have something about the interior, too.

    • @Snowshowslow
      @Snowshowslow 2 роки тому +14

      Buuuut... Couldn't you put in something like a light shaft in the middle? And some shallow light sources on the corners or something? It shouldn't be hard to create apartments with not so great lightning that barely doesn't break code but enormous earning potential nonetheless, due to the location. I'm normally not an advocate of creating crappy housing, but in a city where housing is such an issue it seems such a waste...

    • @hyperspeed1313
      @hyperspeed1313 2 роки тому +27

      Definitely not in Texas. My office space doesn't even have a window on my floor

  • @vipahman
    @vipahman 2 роки тому +1476

    OMG, this episode is so full of innuendo that I'm blown away. Awesome script writing!

    • @wli2718
      @wli2718 2 роки тому +40

      i see what you did there.

    • @EternalResonance
      @EternalResonance 2 роки тому +18

      this video didn't explain why its now mostly adorned😑 click baited. sooooooooooo annoyed.

    • @EternalResonance
      @EternalResonance 2 роки тому +6

      you dont have to have one or the other. you can rent out space and have signs. they haven't told us why they dont rent it out.

    • @reuben3588
      @reuben3588 2 роки тому +19

      @@EternalResonance I assume he meant it was more profitable to have it empty

    • @steveg5122
      @steveg5122 2 роки тому +23

      @@EternalResonance Heat. all the wiring for the signs creates heat, and the building is not square footage heavy

  • @WezWesley
    @WezWesley 2 роки тому +148

    The people who named time square had no sense of geometry

    • @PickleRicksFATASSCOUSIN
      @PickleRicksFATASSCOUSIN 2 роки тому +18

      UA-cam will never get rid of these trashy ass comment bots...

    • @TheKewlPerson
      @TheKewlPerson 2 роки тому +10

      Times hourglass-shaped thing just doesn't ring as well

    • @nicholaslau3194
      @nicholaslau3194 2 роки тому +1

      Not if you curve spacetime

    • @jullit31
      @jullit31 2 роки тому +5

      @@TheKewlPerson Times Polygon would have been cool though...

    • @Nhatanh0475
      @Nhatanh0475 2 роки тому +1

      Well to be fair "Square" can meant a lot of thing not just about the shape.

  • @vishal111shah
    @vishal111shah 2 роки тому +290

    The puns, the innuendo, the punches!! what an awesome episode this one was!!

  • @TylerFurrison
    @TylerFurrison 2 роки тому +243

    What an intro to a semi-family friendly video

    • @tookay4ever
      @tookay4ever 2 роки тому

      That’s what I call EDP445s channel ☠️☠️☠️

    • @fortnite-kq7ok
      @fortnite-kq7ok 2 роки тому

      so not halal mode

    • @k1263
      @k1263 2 роки тому

      This is why it is "semi" family friendly channel!

    • @JZH10000
      @JZH10000 2 роки тому +1

      @@sosexyimsexy3210 ah yes semi family friendly
      I remember when spam bots posted links to other UA-cam videos and free in game coins for whatever was popular. But I guess we live in 2022 the year of sex normalization.
      Go sell them malware infested nudes bad bitch show the patriarchy who's boss

    • @adog3129
      @adog3129 Рік тому

      honestly i didnt see any of those puppets having sex. not sure how they're supposed to

  • @sterlinsilver
    @sterlinsilver 2 роки тому +95

    I do kind of miss old times square. Not the seedy bits, but more the animated neon signs. They were works of art

    • @worldcomicsreview354
      @worldcomicsreview354 2 роки тому +14

      Piccadilly Circus in London was the same. Once unique and interesting, now just a bunch of giant TV's

    • @ThSadomasohista
      @ThSadomasohista 2 роки тому +12

      I miss the seedy bits too though.

    • @AlphineWolf
      @AlphineWolf Рік тому +1

      @@ThSadomasohista it was what gave it its charm?

  • @donaloflynn
    @donaloflynn 2 роки тому +80

    I just realised that I've never given any thought to why Times Square is so named or the fact that it clearly isn't a square!

    • @the.abhiram.r
      @the.abhiram.r 2 роки тому +7

      any intersection between broadway and another avenue is named a square (south of upper west side)

    • @donaloflynn
      @donaloflynn 2 роки тому +6

      @@the.abhiram.r Really? That’s absurd! There are so many other words (like place for example) that can give the concept of an open space without wrongly defining its shape.

    • @thelazyrabbit4220
      @thelazyrabbit4220 2 роки тому +3

      @@donaloflynn i think it wants to convey that it will lead to four roads converging since square has 4 sides. in my mother tongue any crossroads between 2 roads is called a "charrasta" independent of the shape of road

    • @joao3547
      @joao3547 2 роки тому +4

      A square is also a plaza

    • @donaloflynn
      @donaloflynn 2 роки тому +10

      @@joao3547 A plaza is what Times Square actually is. Thanks for reminding me of the right word! Calling it a square is silly. I don’t agree that they’re the same thing.

  • @vampirehawkgirl
    @vampirehawkgirl 2 роки тому +49

    Times Square really is just the ad break of NYC huh

    • @sosexyimsexy3210
      @sosexyimsexy3210 2 роки тому

      Only for fans over 18 years old. girl in perfect BODY G BUNNYGIRLSS.SITE cup milk god & perfect erotic body constriction god Toro face transcendent beautiful sister like a famous model
      tricks I do not know
      Megan: "Hotter"
      Hopi: "Sweeter"
      Joonie: "Cooler"
      Yoongi: "Butter
      So with toy and his tricks, do not read it to him that he writes well mamon there are only to laugh for a while and not be sad and stressed because of the hard life that
      is lived today.
      Köz karaş: '' Taŋ kaldım ''
      Erinder: '' Sezimdüü ''
      Jılmayuu: '' Tattuuraak ''
      Dene: '' Muzdak ''
      Jizn, kak krasivaya melodiya, tolko pesni pereputalis.
      Aç köz arstan
      Bul ukmuştuuday ısık kün bolçu, jana arstan abdan açka bolgon.
      Uyunan çıgıp, tigi jer-jerdi izdedi. Al kiçinekey koyondu wins taba algan. Al bir az oylonboy koyondu karmadı. '' Bul koyon menin kursagımdı toyguza albayt '' dep oylodu arstan.
      Arstan koyondu öltüröyün dep jatkanda, bir kiyik tigi tarapka çurkadı. Arstan aç köz bolup kaldı. Kiçine koyondu emes, çoŋ kiyikti jegen jakşı dep oylodu. # 垃圾
      They are one of the best concerts, you can not go but just seeing them from the screen, I know it was surprising
      💗❤️💌💘

    • @randomplanenoob
      @randomplanenoob 21 день тому

      yes

  • @jahamesalome4877
    @jahamesalome4877 2 роки тому +18

    it actually has random shit in it. ive been up to the ball and stopped on a few floors. theyre all random shit like furnature or office supplies

  • @andychow5509
    @andychow5509 2 роки тому +118

    The "asbestos" warning may also explain it. If they had to renovate it, the cost may outstrip any discounted future cash flows. There are a lot of buildings like that actually, stuck in limbo. A building I used to work in had two levels of shopping malls underground. It flooded one year, and they condemned it and never reopened those levels. It's been more than a decade. Prime real-estate right in the center of the financial district. It's really strange.

    • @gizzmo952
      @gizzmo952 2 роки тому +3

      This would be happening to the twin towers right now if they hadn't been destroyed, they used asbestos in the entire buildings in both towers.

    • @patbak235
      @patbak235 2 роки тому +10

      There's a whole skyscraper abandoned in New orleans because of asbestos last I checked it was for sale for 440000$

    • @willofdodge1
      @willofdodge1 2 роки тому +3

      There's asbestos in every building from 1950 to 1980.

    • @HnvyCat
      @HnvyCat 2 роки тому +1

      @@patbak235 wait thats so cheap

    • @HnvyCat
      @HnvyCat 2 роки тому +2

      how bad of a financial decision would that be...
      but owning a skyscraper

  • @BrHck
    @BrHck 2 роки тому +4

    6 minutes video and I still don't know why the building is empty

  • @Likeomgitznich
    @Likeomgitznich 2 роки тому +76

    Fun fact: everywhere broadway intersects an avenue, there is a “square”

    • @this51man
      @this51man 2 роки тому +16

      Columbus Circle has entered the chat

    • @MitchellBPYao
      @MitchellBPYao 2 роки тому

      Now i know before I go

    • @the.abhiram.r
      @the.abhiram.r 2 роки тому

      street**

    • @Likeomgitznich
      @Likeomgitznich 2 роки тому +3

      @@the.abhiram.r nope. just the avenues.

    • @Likeomgitznich
      @Likeomgitznich 2 роки тому +6

      @@this51man technically broadway doesn't intersect an Avenue at Columbus Circle, since that's where 8th Ave ends and Central Park West begins. Even notice how on the other side of Central Park the road isn't "Central Park East", it's just a continuation of 5th Ave? Shits weird AF haha

  • @shingshongshamalama
    @shingshongshamalama 2 роки тому +27

    HAI: "Here's a video about bricks."
    Also HAI: "I got a bunch of famous youtube celebrities to pay me to break laws for chuckles."

  • @merrittn6397
    @merrittn6397 2 роки тому +9

    I worked for Warner Bros Studio Stores when Warner Bros built their Times Sq store. I, along with other managers helped to open that store. They held a Grand Opening, "Bugs on Broadway" and I got to meet Chuck Jones. We got to go up to the upper floors, they were basically used as stockroom space, most of the windows were covered by the billboards. It was great while it lasted!

  • @lukemiller539
    @lukemiller539 2 роки тому +11

    It was the local government that stopped the fireworks because it was so dangerously low - not because the idea of the ball was cooler.

  • @Goxilla
    @Goxilla 2 роки тому +15

    btw that building is owned by Jamestown L.P. a german (based) fonds management company. At some point the walls of One Time Square were the most expensive advertising space in the world. The building was part of many assets in a real estate fonds and the original plan was to sell it once the fonds was liquidated but prices for advertising on that building skyrocked and they kept that building within their company

    • @ALifeOfWine
      @ALifeOfWine 2 роки тому

      What are "fonds"?

    • @chattphotos
      @chattphotos 2 роки тому +1

      @@ALifeOfWine Probably the new lexicon for the Fonz cryptocurrency

    • @kevinschultz6091
      @kevinschultz6091 2 роки тому +2

      @@ALifeOfWine - in doing a brief internet search, it's not actually a typo (as I first thought), but seems to be a central European term for "fund". Looks like it generally refers to companies that invest and manager real estate - might be a close relative of a REIT, maybe?

    • @termitreter6545
      @termitreter6545 2 роки тому

      @@kevinschultz6091 There is no specific connection between "fund" and real estate. I think its basically just a german, and maybe french term for fonds.

    • @flp322
      @flp322 2 роки тому +2

      @@termitreter6545 Fonds is the German (among other languages) word for fund. I'm guessing the top commenter didn't know the correct translation and/or thought the word is the same in English.

  • @BriManeely
    @BriManeely 2 роки тому +68

    The "peep show" joke is maybe the low-key funniest joke I've ever heard

  • @WezWesley
    @WezWesley 2 роки тому +33

    Everyone loves the idea of pissing your pants while watching a giant wall

    • @attackofthelumbie9029
      @attackofthelumbie9029 2 роки тому +2

      Especially when surrounded by strangers

    • @sosexyimsexy3210
      @sosexyimsexy3210 2 роки тому

      Only for fans over 18 years old. girl in perfect BODY G BUNNYGIRLSS.SITE cup milk god & perfect erotic body constriction god Toro face transcendent beautiful sister like a famous model
      tricks I do not know
      Megan: "Hotter"
      Hopi: "Sweeter"
      Joonie: "Cooler"
      Yoongi: "Butter
      So with toy and his tricks, do not read it to him that he writes well mamon there are only to laugh for a while and not be sad and stressed because of the hard life that
      is lived today.
      Köz karaş: '' Taŋ kaldım ''
      Erinder: '' Sezimdüü ''
      Jılmayuu: '' Tattuuraak ''
      Dene: '' Muzdak ''
      Jizn, kak krasivaya melodiya, tolko pesni pereputalis.
      Aç köz arstan
      Bul ukmuştuuday ısık kün bolçu, jana arstan abdan açka bolgon.
      Uyunan çıgıp, tigi jer-jerdi izdedi. Al kiçinekey koyondu wins taba algan. Al bir az oylonboy koyondu karmadı. '' Bul koyon menin kursagımdı toyguza albayt '' dep oylodu arstan.
      Arstan koyondu öltüröyün dep jatkanda, bir kiyik tigi tarapka çurkadı. Arstan aç köz bolup kaldı. Kiçine koyondu emes, çoŋ kiyikti jegen jakşı dep oylodu. # 垃圾
      They are one of the best concerts, you can not go but just seeing them from the screen, I know it was surprising
      💗❤️💌💘

  • @andywagnac5255
    @andywagnac5255 2 роки тому +60

    I actually got the Nebula/Curiosity package in December because of this series! So happy to see you hard work really paying off !

  • @erictaylor5462
    @erictaylor5462 2 роки тому +5

    3:05 My grandmother smoked from the time she was 14 until she was in her 60's. In the end she couldn't walk 100 feet (.019 miles) from her bedroom to the kitchen.
    Watching her die of emphysema has kept me from smoking for my entire life.

  • @yamiangie
    @yamiangie 2 роки тому +15

    You know I had looked that the building last time I was in the city and wonder if who'd rent office space in a building covered in signs like that.

    • @donaloflynn
      @donaloflynn 2 роки тому +5

      I'd have thought it was perfect for a company looking for relatively cheap central NYC office space. It not having many (any?) windows must have made it cheaper than neighbouring buildings.

  • @xMegaVideos
    @xMegaVideos 2 роки тому +10

    I’m wondering what will end sooner; the Nebula discount or my WinRar 30-day trail period.

  • @ThisIsntmyrealnameGoogle
    @ThisIsntmyrealnameGoogle 2 роки тому +40

    Another banger, I love these history lessons, I always learn something new while it ties into my favorite topic of skyscrapers and New York City

  • @avace917
    @avace917 2 роки тому +9

    Sometimes I really miss 80s/90s Times Square. There was a weird charm to it. And of course the video game arcades were magical

  • @AcridDragoon
    @AcridDragoon 2 роки тому +23

    Petition for Sam to start twice as interesting

    • @flp322
      @flp322 2 роки тому

      Just watch four HAI videos in a row

    • @AcridDragoon
      @AcridDragoon 2 роки тому +1

      @@flp322 modern problems require modern solutions

    • @adog3129
      @adog3129 Рік тому

      that would be way too interesting

  • @MKNYC_
    @MKNYC_ 2 роки тому +11

    Absolutely brilliant episode, you have described times square perfectly

  • @jon_ass
    @jon_ass 2 роки тому +14

    Dude I love your Crime Spree show, I was literally on the edge of my seat when they were catching up to you! Also your two writers are genuinly hot

    • @jessehammer123
      @jessehammer123 2 роки тому +2

      Yeah, I also loved the show. If I had one wish, it would be that the actual running/sitting montage were slightly shorter, but it was overall pretty great. And seconded about Sam’s writers being more attractive than him. :)

  • @thehumblescience
    @thehumblescience 2 роки тому +22

    I watched your documentary The Colorado Problem on Curiosity Stream and it was awesome! Hope to see more feature length documentaries from you!

  • @DangNguyen-xx3zi
    @DangNguyen-xx3zi 2 роки тому +16

    So dumb question, can someone explains to me how the news ticker in 1928 work without computers?

    • @zanizone3617
      @zanizone3617 2 роки тому +7

      I second that. It had a conveyor belt so the light bulbs... Moved around? Still how did they "wrote" the message on it?

    • @skua675
      @skua675 2 роки тому +14

      I don't know how it actually works, but I can imagine how it might have with the tech of the time. Imagine every exterior light bulb has a switch on a panel indoors arranged to correspond to its position outdoors, so the top-left switch controls the top-left light for example. These switches must default to an off position whenever not actively being pressed. Next, you've got a big wooden pegboard. You stick pegs in the board to match the message you want to show. Lastly, you put the pegboard pegs-side-down and slide it across the switch panel.
      Like I said, no idea if this is how it actually worked, it's just a way that it could work with no computers or even diodes.

    • @CCLFan1
      @CCLFan1 2 роки тому +35

      I was curious too so I looked it up. They had big metal cutouts of letters that they placed on a conveyor belt. When the metal parts hit the light bulbs, the light bulbs would light up for a moment before being disconnected.
      Then since the conveyor belt ran around the whole top of the building, the lights were turning on and off fast enough that it looked like the text was scrolling across the zipper.

    • @Random3716
      @Random3716 2 роки тому

      Probably a lot of wire and relays

    • @donaloflynn
      @donaloflynn 2 роки тому +3

      That's not a dumb question. Nobody who writes a dumb question realises that it's dumb, so no question starting with "dumb question but" is ever dumb!

  • @jtridexter
    @jtridexter 2 роки тому +3

    3:15 🤣🤣🤣Sexual Assault, this made me crack up.

  • @mateoleon1796
    @mateoleon1796 2 роки тому +59

    how do you manage to make videos on such interesting topics all the time? I literally put all your videos on "watch later"

    • @Jehty_
      @Jehty_ 2 роки тому +7

      Wikipedia

    • @sirBrouwer
      @sirBrouwer 2 роки тому +1

      He pays Brian from Real Engineering for doing the thinking work.

    • @renderproductions1032
      @renderproductions1032 2 роки тому

      @@sirBrouwer |-o-| true

    • @adog3129
      @adog3129 Рік тому

      they take suggestions. someone out there knows a good factoid, and pretty much all the research in the videos is a wikipedia page.

  • @artofzehan9218
    @artofzehan9218 2 роки тому +6

    the "dickey house" gag made me scream audibly

  • @hawkeye5955
    @hawkeye5955 2 роки тому +5

    "Beloved by tourists and behated by locals"
    As a New Yorker, this is 100% accurate.

  • @cypriotmappers5342
    @cypriotmappers5342 2 роки тому +6

    I started watching the video next to my family on high volume. regretting it now .lol

    • @arc8218
      @arc8218 2 роки тому

      Oof 🤣🤣

  • @kaivoormolen1825
    @kaivoormolen1825 2 роки тому +4

    1:04 I love the spelling of Conittekock on the map and 'Hoeren Eylandt' around the same place, meaning 'Whore Island' in Dutch.

    • @warpnin3
      @warpnin3 2 роки тому

      Very interesting map; I studied it for a few minutes.😄
      Groeten uit Rotterdam!

  • @yass123
    @yass123 2 роки тому +8

    As a New Yorker, I can't remember the last time I went to Times Square. It might have been 20+ years ago to watch MTV's TRL.
    I remember reading about that Disney moved a building on 42nd street in the 90's. Might have been to build that movie theater.

    • @armadillolover99
      @armadillolover99 2 роки тому +1

      I work on Broadway and the last time I went to Times Square in 2017, I went to Nintendo World because it was the only place in the entire state that had the Nintendo Switch in stock at the time and I really wanted to play Zelda Breath of The Wild

  • @DigitalCasm
    @DigitalCasm 2 роки тому +10

    This is the funniest video by Half as Interesting / Wendover productions I've ever seen. I laughed out loud at least 2 times. And that's at least 4 more times than I usually laugh during his videos.

    • @User31129
      @User31129 2 роки тому +1

      It's been 6 days and no one has commented "Good joke!" So I will throw you a bone

  • @skypig
    @skypig 2 роки тому +1

    I'm so excited for the crime spree series, it looks so good

  • @ct6852
    @ct6852 2 роки тому +2

    They should use it for karaoke or something. Or hukkah. Or escape rooms. Should be something silly and fun.

  • @sebbes333
    @sebbes333 2 роки тому +3

    4:44 Why not use BOTH the interior AND exterior?

  • @olefella7561
    @olefella7561 2 роки тому +74

    The fact that we get free videos on UA-cam by Half as Interesting is truly a gift 👍👍

    • @abubeker1704
      @abubeker1704 2 роки тому +3

      Ehem Ehem, Documentary? 6 minute long Documentary?

    • @johndough5192
      @johndough5192 2 роки тому +1

      It’s content lol, that’s what youtubers do.They...................make.................content. That’s the entire purpose of this site lmfao.

  • @gtbkts
    @gtbkts 2 роки тому

    Wow. I missed this when it came out. Thanks for the awesome content!

  • @NickCBax
    @NickCBax 2 роки тому +1

    Seems like this’d make some ideal storage units.

    • @texaswunderkind
      @texaswunderkind 2 роки тому +2

      Unimproved storage space in Midtown Manhattan goes for $5 a sq. ft. per month, so it could easily be worth several million dollars a year. I can assure you the owners are doing exactly that, and that the content creator didn't bother to do any research.

  • @EduardoRubioLogan
    @EduardoRubioLogan 2 роки тому +2

    2:58 Eddie Murphy Beverly Hills COP!

  • @LarryFish3rman
    @LarryFish3rman 2 роки тому +2

    This was a great episode!

  • @MinecraftRespaw
    @MinecraftRespaw 2 роки тому +2

    i really don't understand what's the deal with times square, i never wanted to visit and i don't know why people wants to travel to see a street with builds and screens with ads on it

    • @ThSadomasohista
      @ThSadomasohista 2 роки тому

      I feel like the same applies to any tourism focused on cities? Like, even if they're actually more interesting than times square, it'd still be, at most, some mildly interesting oddity than you'd only really should look at in passing rather than visit for it.
      Like, let's take Amsterdam, as it's one of the more popular European destinations.
      Sure, you got the red light district, but so what? Prostitutes aren't that difficult to find, this place just has it more concentrated and presented better.
      Then there's all the weed-related stuff, but it's not like you need to travel to a different country just to get high.
      Don't get me wrong, the city is nice, especially with the fantastic integration for bicycles, but it's just a city in the end, and they aren't all that terribly interesting.

  • @Roxor128
    @Roxor128 2 роки тому +8

    I can think of a use for that building's interior: A datacentre. Racks of computers won't care about not getting any sunlight, and you can use one of them to run the signs. That's one computer, not one rack. You're just playing back video files, not analysing scientific data. It's hardly a heavy-duty load. Just outfit one machine with a bunch of graphics cards and run DisplayPort repeaters out to the billboards.

    • @Blaqjaqshellaq
      @Blaqjaqshellaq 2 роки тому +1

      Maybe that would be useful for the New York Stock Exchange!

    • @j.casalino
      @j.casalino 2 роки тому

      Amusingly, if you look through the sides of the red stairs/TKTS booth, there's a bunch of power equipment and control systems underneath and a highly outdated Windows PC running it. Oh, the possibilities.

    • @danieldaniels7571
      @danieldaniels7571 2 роки тому

      I’d like to see a Japanese style capsule hotel there

  • @GigglyWalrus
    @GigglyWalrus 2 роки тому +34

    I love how in all the fluff they never explain why people don't rent the office space in the building. Is it because of the ads?

    • @michaelwarren2391
      @michaelwarren2391 2 роки тому +3

      Maybe because the owners are not renting out the space?

    • @CaptOrbit
      @CaptOrbit 2 роки тому +34

      It's not worth the hassle for the comparatively little income it would generate especially given that they would have to discount the rent in the first place because the billboards block the majority of the buildings windows. I do believe somewhere in the building is the active office of the company who actually puts on the times square celebrations though. It probably does take a year to get all the logistics and celebrity bookings and set up some place for the festivities.

    • @ThisIsntmyrealnameGoogle
      @ThisIsntmyrealnameGoogle 2 роки тому +9

      It's worth more to turn it into an observation deck rather than office space. The building doesn't actually hold that many workers compared to modern office buildings anyway.

    • @eskay1891
      @eskay1891 2 роки тому +3

      Its not safe for human occupation in any form

    • @texaswunderkind
      @texaswunderkind 2 роки тому +3

      The vlogger is just as clueless as the comments. New York has some of the most expensive real estate in the world, so NONE of it remains empty. Raw storage space in Midtown Manhattan costs $5 per square foot PER MONTH. Let's say, on the low end, that the building has six floors useable for storage, and each floor is only 2,000 sq. feet in size. Even at that tiny size, as unimproved storage, the building would net $720,000 PER YEAR in rent. It could easily be seven times that number (the average Walgreens is 14,500 sq. ft.). Who here thinks the owners would pass up five million dollars a year to lease it as storage? I don't either.

  • @mg42000
    @mg42000 2 роки тому

    Loved that first episode! Without giving any spoilers, Sam's lack of reaction was hilarious 😂😂

  • @k1263
    @k1263 2 роки тому +2

    Last time I was this early, there was no channel named Half as Interesting!

  • @alli_mode
    @alli_mode 2 роки тому +3

    This is the second video ive watched in the last half hour with "spider-man: turn off the dark"

  • @oleksandrbyelyenko435
    @oleksandrbyelyenko435 2 роки тому +37

    Cheddar, TheB1M, and now Wendover Prosuctions....
    It is like the hypest theme currently.
    I was actually watching one just before this one
    P.S. okay this video is on a different topic.

    • @k1263
      @k1263 2 роки тому +6

      @Just Dope Yes, the same fax of your birth certificate, your mama tore when you were born.

    • @sosexyimsexy3210
      @sosexyimsexy3210 2 роки тому

      Only for fans over 18 years old. girl in perfect BODY G BUNNYGIRLSS.SITE cup milk god & perfect erotic body constriction god Toro face transcendent beautiful sister like a famous model
      tricks I do not know
      Megan: "Hotter"
      Hopi: "Sweeter"
      Joonie: "Cooler"
      Yoongi: "Butter
      So with toy and his tricks, do not read it to him that he writes well mamon there are only to laugh for a while and not be sad and stressed because of the hard life that
      is lived today.
      Köz karaş: '' Taŋ kaldım ''
      Erinder: '' Sezimdüü ''
      Jılmayuu: '' Tattuuraak ''
      Dene: '' Muzdak ''
      Jizn, kak krasivaya melodiya, tolko pesni pereputalis.
      Aç köz arstan
      Bul ukmuştuuday ısık kün bolçu, jana arstan abdan açka bolgon.
      Uyunan çıgıp, tigi jer-jerdi izdedi. Al kiçinekey koyondu wins taba algan. Al bir az oylonboy koyondu karmadı. '' Bul koyon menin kursagımdı toyguza albayt '' dep oylodu arstan.
      Arstan koyondu öltüröyün dep jatkanda, bir kiyik tigi tarapka çurkadı. Arstan aç köz bolup kaldı. Kiçine koyondu emes, çoŋ kiyikti jegen jakşı dep oylodu. # 垃圾
      They are one of the best concerts, you can not go but just seeing them from the screen, I know it was surprising
      💗❤️💌💘

  • @sheephearder8643
    @sheephearder8643 2 роки тому +3

    “S and M to M and M” joke is fucking gold!

  • @laurenconrad1799
    @laurenconrad1799 2 роки тому +1

    I also love the bow tie shape at west 72nd street and the one just a few blocks south at Lincoln center and at Union Square and the Flatiron building. New York is the city of bow tie shapes. Lol

  • @Kane69022
    @Kane69022 2 роки тому

    I love that Michigan in your game show ad is just a big lake

  • @MrPopples72843
    @MrPopples72843 2 роки тому

    I CANT WAIT FOR THE NEXT EPISODE OF THE CRIME SPREE

  • @themole4369
    @themole4369 2 роки тому +20

    Still seems an odd reason to me. Just because the outside of the building is more valuable than the inside, doesn't mean there's no value on the inside that could be added to the advertisement profits. Sure you'd have no windows for your offices but given the general land value in Times Square you'd think someone would be prepared to pay something for office space in that area.

    • @oneminuteofmyday
      @oneminuteofmyday 2 роки тому +15

      I Googled it. The interior is severely dilapidated and would take extensive repair and remodeling to bring it up to current building codes. Due to that, the owners decided to leave it basically empty and just do the advertising on the exterior. You would think the profits from the exterior would pay for the interior work, but apparently not.

    • @Utonian21
      @Utonian21 2 роки тому +2

      Yeah, it seems like a waste. Why not take advantage of the entire property?

    • @filanfyretracker
      @filanfyretracker 2 роки тому +5

      @@Utonian21 a storage facility would be a good call, those need no windows and and really almost no climate control.

    • @samshelton6640
      @samshelton6640 2 роки тому +3

      My conspiracy side assumes that the CIA, NSA, etc have secret offices in there.

    • @adog3129
      @adog3129 Рік тому

      @@samshelton6640 that would be the dumbest place to put a secret office. jesus christ. they have multiple underground bases that the public is allowed to know about but they have to put secret offices in a skyscraper that everyone is looking at

  • @PhilipLuckey
    @PhilipLuckey 2 роки тому +18

    Adolph Ochs’ last name is pronounced “Ocks” not “Oaks”. Ochs made money publishing the Chattanooga Times (in Tennessee) in the late 1800s, and used his profits from that paper to buy the New York Times.

    • @089qwe1
      @089qwe1 2 роки тому

      It’s a German name, though, and it’s pronounced like “oaks” in that language.

    • @PhilipLuckey
      @PhilipLuckey 2 роки тому +1

      @@089qwe1 Perhaps it’s pronounced “oaks” in Germany, but in Tennessee and New York he and his family pronounced it “ocks”. (I met his granddaughter; she used “ocks” when talking about her grandfather Adolph Ochs.)

  • @LouisSubearth
    @LouisSubearth 2 роки тому +2

    I went to Times Square, and when I saw 1 Times Square in person I was greeted by a Genshin Impact ad.

  • @RobbbbC
    @RobbbbC 2 роки тому +1

    The peep bit was phenomenal, bravo!

    • @sosexyimsexy3210
      @sosexyimsexy3210 2 роки тому

      Only for fans over 18 years old. girl in perfect BODY G BUNNYGIRLSS.SITE cup milk god & perfect erotic body constriction god Toro face transcendent beautiful sister like a famous model
      tricks I do not know
      Megan: "Hotter"
      Hopi: "Sweeter"
      Joonie: "Cooler"
      Yoongi: "Butter
      So with toy and his tricks, do not read it to him that he writes well mamon there are only to laugh for a while and not be sad and stressed because of the hard life that
      is lived today.
      Köz karaş: '' Taŋ kaldım ''
      Erinder: '' Sezimdüü ''
      Jılmayuu: '' Tattuuraak ''
      Dene: '' Muzdak ''
      Jizn, kak krasivaya melodiya, tolko pesni pereputalis.
      Aç köz arstan
      Bul ukmuştuuday ısık kün bolçu, jana arstan abdan açka bolgon.
      Uyunan çıgıp, tigi jer-jerdi izdedi. Al kiçinekey koyondu wins taba algan. Al bir az oylonboy koyondu karmadı. '' Bul koyon menin kursagımdı toyguza albayt '' dep oylodu arstan.
      Arstan koyondu öltüröyün dep jatkanda, bir kiyik tigi tarapka çurkadı. Arstan aç köz bolup kaldı. Kiçine koyondu emes, çoŋ kiyikti jegen jakşı dep oylodu. # 垃圾
      They are one of the best concerts, you can not go but just seeing them from the screen, I know it was surprising
      💗❤️💌💘

  • @differentfins
    @differentfins 2 роки тому +3

    Even though I live in the 🇨🇦 wilderness, NYC is my second home. I've spent more time living there than any other city. I used to work in Times Square 😉, I am very comfortable being in NYC.
    I ❤ NY

  • @-AirKat-
    @-AirKat- 2 роки тому

    “Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark”
    Now there’s something I haven’t heard in a while

  • @michaeld8304
    @michaeld8304 2 роки тому

    Jesus I've never seen a more apt description of times sq, nice intro.

  • @JosephJohnson-gu5fw
    @JosephJohnson-gu5fw 2 роки тому

    The shade to Spiderman: TOTD was gold

  • @kharimarquette
    @kharimarquette 2 роки тому

    Kwisagik Trail, which became most famously known as the Albany Post Road.

  • @pierreroy8124
    @pierreroy8124 2 роки тому +1

    Looks like a good contender for a centrally located data centre….

  • @benpaulwell2846
    @benpaulwell2846 2 роки тому +1

    $495 Billion sure is valuable real estate

  • @__init__
    @__init__ 2 роки тому +1

    It's weird they don't just knock the whole thing down to get more billboard space in there, if there allowed to cover the whole building like that they might as well just get rid of it.

  • @janzendavi
    @janzendavi 2 роки тому +11

    Massive factual error - Avenue Q just ended its two decade run. There’s probably still another play with puppet sex though.

  • @dodo-ux4po
    @dodo-ux4po 2 роки тому +17

    Why not just still use the interior as office space/rent and also use the exterior for ads? Considering infamous NY housing/rent prices, wouldn't that be beneficial for everyone involved?

    • @jxl180
      @jxl180 2 роки тому +5

      No one would want to rent space with zero windows .

    • @quarksarranged
      @quarksarranged 2 роки тому +6

      @@jxl180 nope. Every single room would fill. The issue would be the light pollution.

    • @dodo-ux4po
      @dodo-ux4po 2 роки тому +7

      @@jxl180 In New York? I definitely disagree. It's not uncommon in NY to find flats with no windows or blocked windows. And the building is in the middle of the damn Times Square, the flats would be sold in a heartbeat I'm sure

    • @Nhicki
      @Nhicki 2 роки тому +4

      Yeah I feel like that was glossed over, a bit disappointing really when that would be the first logical question to pose. just because the exterior would be the main source of revenue doesn't mean you don't want to maximize profits, but I'm sure there's a good reason, we just weren't given it in the video..

    • @0Clewi0
      @0Clewi0 2 роки тому +1

      @@jxl180 if it's not as expensive as other things around, yeah people would live there.

  • @capbarker
    @capbarker Рік тому

    That security guard is probably more annoyed that he's the only person stuck inside an asbestos-ridden building

  • @mablaba3629
    @mablaba3629 2 роки тому

    Well that opening hit me like a dump truck 💀😂

  • @JasonZakrajsek
    @JasonZakrajsek 2 роки тому

    What a timely “Turn Off the Dark” reference.

  • @FinnishArmy
    @FinnishArmy 2 роки тому +1

    What are the chances someone sees and ad in time square and thinks “Oh perfect, I needed that.” Like how are these ads even paying for them selves? They don’t right?

    • @ThSadomasohista
      @ThSadomasohista 2 роки тому

      That applies to most ads though. It's not about seeing an ad and thinking 'I want that' since that barely ever happens. It's about repeatedly flashing the information into your brain so that it sticks, and next time you're shopping for whatever, the brand that advertised and stuck in your head will feel more familiar, even if you don't 'remember' the ad specifically.
      Makes it somewhat difficult to calculate the effectiveness of an individual ad, but ad campaigns as whole can generally be seen as successful or not without that much issue.

  • @5710fpilot
    @5710fpilot 2 роки тому

    Omfg! The analogies and innuendos! Where has this writer been? 🤔 🤣😂 keep it up!

  • @jaymusduke3459
    @jaymusduke3459 2 роки тому

    Just watched the first episode of your new show. I'm excited to see what other wired laws you have in there. You should make a video jsut about all the werid laws around North America and why the laws got established. :]

  • @qolspony
    @qolspony 2 роки тому +1

    Wow. I did not even know that was a building. I thought it was a stand with signs on it. And the Times News building was on 35th Street as I know it until it moved across the street from Port Authority..
    Being in Time Square in the 70s/80s as a young child was like being in the ghetto. So this was my least favorite area growing up.

  • @euphony5552
    @euphony5552 2 роки тому +2

    I remember going to times square and being very bored, the sex shops would actually make the place more interesting.

  • @tigerseye1202
    @tigerseye1202 2 роки тому +2

    This doesn't explain why the building is empty though. Even if the outside is worth more then the inside, can't you make *even more* money by also renting out the office space?

  • @DGFishRfine1
    @DGFishRfine1 2 роки тому +2

    I feel like 20% fewer jokes would make this video about 50% better. Just let Wendover Wendover and I'll be happy 🤷

  • @two-face1041
    @two-face1041 Рік тому

    It looks like they are planning to actually renovate the building and actually use it for things

  • @FinancialShinanigan
    @FinancialShinanigan 2 роки тому +3

    I actually watched the Spider-Man musical on the mezzanine level lol

  • @bloodshotterror624
    @bloodshotterror624 2 роки тому

    Thing is there is a massive number of vacant units throughout NYC now.. some buildings just have a few offices and tenants left and people are still fleeing up to a couple hundred a day.

  • @urldroidsuperbot2139
    @urldroidsuperbot2139 2 роки тому

    Excellent video. Sam, keep it up.
    Sam, are you really only 24 years old?

  • @LuckyBird551
    @LuckyBird551 2 роки тому

    That one tall empty building in Norh Korea: "Finally, a worthy opponent."

  • @tookay4ever
    @tookay4ever 2 роки тому +2

    That’s where I live. It’s a 278 bedroom 344 bathroom home and I would like you all to stop standing in front of my home. Thanks

    • @warpnin3
      @warpnin3 2 роки тому

      Don't you hate not having a view of Times Square because of the large billboard on the front of the building?

  • @johnwanke3863
    @johnwanke3863 2 роки тому +4

    I was harassed and abused on reddit because I responded to a post asking, “What historical photo makes you feel uneasy?” I said the time square kiss photo made me uneasy because it was a romanticized vision of a traumatic sexual assault which triggered the survivor whenever she saw it. Hundreds of people (read: men) downvoted the post and then some started sending me threatening messages because I stood by what I said - even proving that the “hoax” claims I was getting were unjustified with carefully sourced historical evidence. Thank you for being honest about the history of that picture, even in an offhand comment. It was validating for a survivor like myself.

  • @fuzzyegghead
    @fuzzyegghead 2 роки тому +1

    The photo of the soldier kissing a nurse on VE day is not harassment or assault.
    If you lived in the time period or understood the situation you would understand.

  • @BrassSpyglass
    @BrassSpyglass 2 роки тому +2

    1:14 why is it spelled “New Amfterdam”

  • @jamesscott9081
    @jamesscott9081 2 роки тому

    You plugged your crime spree show but didn't tell us where we can watch it! Im interested!

  • @Iris-jw3ci
    @Iris-jw3ci Рік тому

    OMFG i'm watching this is 2023 & I love their gameshow so much & I was hearing about crime spree like ok so they're advertising their old gameshow I guess then they said it's coming out today & I was like WHAT A NEW GAMESHOW then I realized I'm f'ing stupid it's an old video.

  • @Geertt
    @Geertt 2 роки тому +1

    I learned so much in this video, yet I don't feel like the question in the title was answered

  • @pestilence4120
    @pestilence4120 2 роки тому

    I got a reference to Avenue Q in this video. I can die happy now.

  • @chattphotos
    @chattphotos 2 роки тому

    The Neon Seizure district sums it up well