The Long, Slow Death of Midtown Glamour
APR. 10, 2014Justin DavidsonThe Long, Slow Death of Midtown Glamour
Just as Don Draper gets ready to stride into his office in the Time & Life Building for the protracted final season of Mad Men, Time magazine may be saying good-bye to its eponymous skyscraper. The show’s 1950s men are staggering into the psychedelic era and their own irrelevancy; the embattled icon of old (not to say dying) media is heading towards cheaper digs downtown. Between them, they might be taking the last shreds of mid-century midtown glamour with them.
Today’s Pete Campbell and Peggy Olson would be starting their careers not in serious, minimal offices floating far above 51st Street, but in some tech company’s cluttered, dormlike playspace downtown. To the current crop of creative young ladder-climbers, a corner office in a midtown tower was their grandparents’ dream, not theirs. Half a century ago, La Fonda del Sol, the Time & Life Building’s Americas-themed restaurant on the Avenue of the Americas, was an emblem of high-corporate chic, with its custom Eames chairs, sun-colored Alexander Girard interior, and copious martinis. Its 21st-century equivalent is the free salad bar at Google.
La Fonda del Sol, where glamour was never in short supply. Photo: Yale Joel/Time & Life Pictures
That’s not to say that midtown is over: Time is trading places with the financial firms that abandoned Wall Street a decade ago, and the area is still among the world’s most expensive places to rent an office. The Times pushed the business district’s boundaries out to Eighth Avenue, but it’s going no farther. Yet the media diaspora has accelerated since New York left Madison Avenue for Hudson Square in 2007. Condé Nast will vacate its West 42nd Street building later this year and move to the World Trade Center. Time Warner recently announced plans to bolt from its headquarters at Columbus Circle for Hudson Yards. Bloomberg built its tower on East 58th Street just a dozen years ago, but during the boss’s years as mayor, he effectively acknowledged how badly east midtown is aging when he tried (and failed) to rezone it for a new crop of hyper-tall towers. The new giants like Facebook and Twitter, plus a whole school of social-media minnows, are forming a new center of gravity around Astor Place. And BuzzFeed, whose founder Jonah Peretti recently compared his company to Time (and, by extension, himself to Henry Luce), is nicely ensconced in the Flatiron District.
Nobody was going downtown. Photo: Leonard McCombe/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
Does that leave midtown as New York’s stodgy back office, where ledgers get reconciled and purchase orders get filled out but nothing truly interesting happens? Or, since Time has been running behind the, um, times for a while now, does its defection presage the next swing of the pendulum? Mid-century furniture and highball tumblers have had their revival, so maybe real estate will follow. Sixth Avenue is about due to acquire a new retro glamour; maybe soon the kids will starting hanging out with the ghost of Henry Luce and cook up another Zeitgeist.
1/1 Skip Ad Continue watching after the ad Visit Advertiser websiteGO TO PAGE PLAY Top Stories Video Settings Full Screen About Connatix V446448 
Read More 
Read More 
Read More 
Read More 
Read More 
Read More FEATURED STORIES FROM INTELLIGENCERAbsolutely Everything We Know About the Trump SneakersTrump SneakersRead More 
THE FEED3/11/2024what we know
what we knowAbsolutely Everything We Know About the Trump SneakersThere’s a shady Wyoming LLC behind the effort and nobody knows who the manufacturer is, but it’s already pretty clear these aren’t quality kicks.3/11/2024royal rumblings
royal rumblingsKate Middleton Photo Editing Made Me a Conspiracy TheoristThe likeliest explanation is that the royal press team is incompetent. But I can’t resist the “Where is Kate?” rumors any longer.3/11/2024sotu
sotuDid One Speech Really Turn Biden From a Sure Loser Into a Winner?Pre-SOTU overreactions to Biden’s low poll numbers have given way to post-SOTU Democratic euphoria. Everyone needs to chill.3/11/2024politics
politicsFDNY Searching for MAGA Firefighters Who Booed Letitia JamesThe attorney general, who recently won a $454 million judgment against Donald Trump, was met with chants of his name at an FDNY ceremony.3/11/2024scandals
scandalsKatie Britt Falsely Blamed Biden for Decades-Old Sex-Trafficking CrimesThe senator made up false context for the lurid anecdote she told in her speech. The victim whose story Britt used is now criticizing her as well.3/11/2024just asking questions
just asking questionsThe Struggle to Help Gaza’s Starving ChildrenUNICEF regional director Adele Khodr on trying to deliver food into a bombed-out war zone.3/11/2024politics
politicsTrump Resumes His Costly Defamation of E. Jean CarrollMore than $83 million in damages apparently wasn’t enough to dissuade him.3/11/2024longshot bets
longshot betsTrump Is Closer Than Ever to a Giant Truth Social PaydayThe ex-president’s social network has been a joke for years, but it might be on the verge of an unlikely turnaround.3/11/2024the money game
the money gameTrump Pumps Crypto, Sneakers in CNBC Interview After Posting $92 Million Bond“People were going crazy for these sneakers. You probably were, too. Everybody was.”3/11/2024royals
royalsHow Are King Charles & Kate Middleton Doing? Latest Health UpdatesEverything we know about King Charles’s cancer diagnosis, Kate Middleton’s recovery from surgery, and the edited Mother’s Day photo drama.3/11/2024tremendous content
tremendous contentKimmel Reads Trump’s Mean ‘Tweet’ Live at the OscarsThe Academy Awards host read Trump’s nasty Truth Social critique, then shot back: “I’m surprised you’re still up. Isn’t it past your jail time?”3/11/2024the national interest
the national interestTrump Already Tried Orbán’s Most Effective Weapon Against DemocracyTrump’s mostly forgotten plan to put the media under his thumb didn’t work the first time. It might if he gets another chance.3/11/2024ideas
ideasThe Right to Change SexThe moral case for letting trans kids change their bodies.3/10/2024royals
royalsThe Royal Family’s Kate Middleton CrisisHer disappearance isn’t just a tabloid sensation. It’s a sign of the monarchy’s deepening instability.3/10/2024roundup
roundupWhat Pundits Are Saying About Biden’s State of the Union (and Britt’s Response)A running review of the commentary and reactions to Joe Biden’s big-energy address and Katie Britt’s big weird response.3/10/2024foreign affairs
foreign affairsNot Just Putin: Why the Right Falls in Love with DictatorsTrump didn’t create a new style of politics, according to a new book, but was the extension of a century-old romance with despots.3/9/2024foreign interests
foreign interestsThe Biden Plan to Ditch NetanyahuThe “come to Jesus” moment is already here, according to Israeli and U.S. sources.3/9/2024the system
the systemThe Normalization of Trump’s Alleged CrimesHis legal strategy is both buying him time and erasing the accusations against him.3/8/2024state of the union
state of the unionTrump Responds to State of the Union With Truth Social Crash, Snapchat FiltersHe promised a “play-by-play” response to Biden’s State of the Union. He delivered Truth Social outages and a video of Biden with a hat and pigtails.3/8/2024early and often
early and oftenNo Labels Green-lights 2024 Bid With No CandidatesThe idea of a “unity ticket” is more popular than a bid with named candidates. Maybe that’s why the group is putting off making its pick.3/8/2024state of the union
state of the unionKatie Britt Turns Motherhood Into a WeaponThe GOP presents its ideal woman.3/8/2024early and often
early and oftenTrump’s Most Unhinged Plans for His Second TermHe’s openly plotting to persecute his enemies, assume kinglike powers, and deport millions of people. But at least we’ll all have flying cars!3/8/2024politics
politicsWho Actually Likes Hochul’s National Guard–in-Subways Plan?Democrats criticized the governor’s heavy-handed approach, while riders’ opinions seemed more varied.3/8/2024the approval matrix
the approval matrixThe Approval Matrix: No Thanks, Kathy!Our guide to what’s highbrow, lowbrow, brilliant, and despicable.3/8/2024the national interest