Empire State Building. The one on Fifth Avenue, not the one on Broadway (though that one does have its charms).
And what’s put you in such a warm, cheerful mood?
I don’t think your faintly racist slurs about the Malays are called for, and this isn’t the Pit. I’ve been to Kuala Lumpur, I’ve met the people who maintain the Twin Towers, and I have several friends in the city. I found the Malaysian people to be very welcoming, warm, charming and peaceful. Bear in mind that this is a part of the world where sizeable communities of Hindus, Muslims, Chinese and Chinese Buddhists, plus a smattering of Christians, all live together in more or less perfect peace. We could learn a few lessons. (It’s true that the government still has some way to go in terms of what we would consider basic human rights, eg they don’t have a totally free press, but you can’t visit the sins of the government on all of the people.)
As for the Towers, the Petronas people and the Malays are rightly proud of what are two amazing and impressive structures. When you read around a few websites devoted to the question of ‘world’s tallest building’ you realise that the issue is rife with controversy and debate, and nobody can agree on a single definition. When the Towers were completed, some people felt they were the world’s tallest buildings, some didn’t. Anyway, since the Taipei 101 is obviously taller, the issue is now moot. The Malays themselves don’t much care either way. Tallest or not, the Twin Towers are nonetheless magnificent symbols of national pride and identity.
I agree with you that the Sears Tower would seem to have a solid claim to be considered ‘taller’ than either of the Petronas Towers, but it comes down to lots of areas of interpretation, such as whether radio masts and the like are to be included.
Sorry for the slight hijack, but I didn’t like Shagnasty’s slur on the Malaysian people.
the Turning Torso is my favourite too.
I also like the [del]Lingam Building[/del] “London Gherkin” or more properly, 30 St Mary Axe , by Norman Foster. It’s the skycraper as statement - and that statement is:
“I’ve got a great big tonker!”
I’ve always been fond of the PPG building, even prior to Inspector Gadget movie!
The PPG buidling is one of the highlights of the stunning view of downtown Pittsburgh when you come through the Fort Pitt tunnels.
Did you know it was being converted into condos? And to make it sound more, well, snobbish, they’re calling the building One Hanson Place. shiver
As a former Manhattanite, I pick the Chrysler Building over the Empire State, but I have to say that there is nothing prettier, skyscraper-wise, than when the top of the Empire State Building is lit up in white on a foggy night–the light is just beautiful then.
This is so weird. They were talking about the Chrysler Building on Antiques Roadshow last night, and I said to my husband, “that is my favorite skyscraper,” and now I see your thread!
Generally, I am partial to the architecture here in Chicago, but I just love the Chrysler Building…it is so beautiful. I also love the John Hancock building, even though, like you, I typically like the older ones better. I think the Hancock does such a good job of being modern, but not featureless, like so many of the “wall of glass” buildings from the modern era, and I like that the decorative element of the cris-crossing is actually a structural element as well.
I am a big fan of the Chrysler Building, but I’ve got to give it to Philadelphia for having One Liberty Place and Two Liberty Place in their skyline. The overall look of both of them side by side is gorgeous.
I’ve always loved the Em,pire State Building. As a kid, I used to build replicas of it out of my blocks. It got saintly status for being in King Kong, of course, but even without that, the building had character. It’s one of the things that made me fall in love with Art Deco.
I was disappointed when the World Trade Center and the Sears Tower surpassed it in height. No class – the WTC was basically two big rectangular boxes.
The Chrysler Building is pretty cool, with its top supposede to be intentionally reminiscent of a radiator cap. I underastand it’s not really Art Deco, although it sure looks like it to me. But if you took away that radiator cap, how many fans would even recognize the building?
Pennzoil Place is still my favorite, even if the lousy company did lay me off 20 years ago.
I wasn’t talking about all Malaysians. I don’t even think I know any and I am sure they are almost universally lovely people. I am just talking about the ones involved in the conspiracy to build not one but two buildings that that they tried to pass off as the world’s tallest. Maybe it is just my competitive nature but I don’t understand why someone would just take a dive 100 feet from the finish line and still claimed they won. I assume that the tallest building in the world status played heavily on their minds because it was talked about so much and they threw a cap on top of them to try and claim the title even though they clearly are not the tallest buildings. I don’t understand why they couldn’t just do it is that was a big part of the goal. What else were they trying to show with two buildings that are almost* as tall as something built in the U.S. 30 years ago?
Vancouver’s wonderful Art Deco masterpiece, the Marine Building
Local Chicagoan here, so it’s no surprise on my choices…
[ol]
[li]John Hancock Building [/li][li]Sears Tower[/li][li]Monadnock (someone else picked this? Wow!)[/li][li]Aon Building[/li][/ol]
The Monadnock notwithstanding, I love the almost brutal, imposing form of the other three. The square form, the slightly tapered design, and the technical brilliance (esp. the Sears) wow me. I defy anyone to look at the form of those three buildings and not recall the “Broad Shoulders” poem. I also like where hey fall in the skyline…The Sears anchors the left (when viewed from the Lake), and the Hancock and Aon hold down the right. There are little sine-wave representatives in-between, and it makes the best skyline around.
The Monadnock…just cool to see…weird stony architecture.
By the way…if anyone on the Dope comes to Chicago, an architectural boat -tour (numerous vendors) is a must-do.
-Cem
A lot of my favorites - Flatiron, Woolworth, ESB, Chrysler - have already been mentioned. Here’s a few more:
I’ve always loved the American Standard Building, AKA the Radiator Building. It’s an early Raymond Hood building, one of the first set-back skyscrapers. The colors and designs are positively surreal - it looks like the fortress of some style-conscious Dark Lord - and with its back to Bryant Park, it seems much taller than it actually is.
I’m also very fond of the Metropolitan Life Insurance building on Madison Park - not only the St. Marks-inspired Tower, but also the weird angular building across the street… and even more, after I discovered its secret history
I’d have to put the Chrysler Building right at the top of my list, although I’m also partial to the Bank of America Center in Houston:
http://www.jonssons.org/bin/Johnson-Bank-of-America-Center.jpeg
and Key Tower (formerly the Society Bank building) here in Cleveland:
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en-commons/thumb/f/f9/250px-Key_tower.jpg
Ralph124c and Ranchoth, Frank Lloyd Wright’s The Illinois is very interesting indeed; I even have a print of it hanging in my front hall. A mile-high building, private helicopter pads, atomic-powered elevators - what’s not to like? Some architectural historians think FLW was joking, though - it was so unlike his organic archictural paradigm as to be almost absurd.
Webner, the Fordham Spire looks like a narwahl (sp?) tusk!
Flodnak and MrDibble, thanks for telling us about the Turning Torso. Never saw that before - fascinating.
Alessan, the American Standard Building looks like a darker version of the eeeeevil apartment building from Ghostbusters.
PBS’s Nova had a program on superskyscrapers a few years ago. Several architects and engineers said there’s no upper limit on building height anymore from an engineering standpoint. If you’ve got the money, the building can go as high as you want it…