666 Fifth Avenue
Encyclopedia
Fifth Avenue (Manhattan)
Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the center of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. The section of Fifth Avenue that crosses Midtown Manhattan, especially that between 49th Street and 60th Street, is lined with prestigious shops and is consistently ranked among...
between 52nd
52nd Street (Manhattan)
52nd Street is a long one-way street traveling west to east across Midtown Manhattan.-Jazz center:The blocks of 52nd Street between Fifth Avenue and Seventh Avenue were renowned in the mid-20th century for the abundance of jazz clubs and lively street life...
and 53rd
53rd Street (Manhattan)
53rd Street is a midtown cross street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, that contains buildings such as the Citicorp Building. It is 1.83 miles long. The street runs westbound from Sutton Place across most of the island's width, ending at DeWitt Clinton Park at Eleventh Avenue...
Streets in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Tishman ownership
The Tishman family via Tishman Realty and Construction built the 1500000 square feet (139,354.6 m²) tower in 1957. It was designed by Carson & Lundin and the building was called the Tishman Building. One of its most famous exterior features was the prominent 666666 (number)
666 is the natural number following 665 and preceding 667.- In mathematics :666 is the sum of the first 36 natural numbers 666 (six hundred and sixty-six) is the natural number following 665 and preceding 667.- In mathematics :666 is the sum of the first 36 natural numbers 666 (six hundred and...
address emblazoned on the top of the building. The other distinctive exterior features are embossed aluminum panels.
The original design included lobby sculptures by Isamu Noguchi
Isamu Noguchi
was a prominent Japanese American artist and landscape architect whose artistic career spanned six decades, from the 1920s onward. Known for his sculpture and public works, Noguchi also designed stage sets for various Martha Graham productions, and several mass-produced lamps and furniture pieces,...
including the "Landscape of the Cloud" which consists of sinuously cut thin railings in the ceiling to create a cloud effect. The cloud is also carried into a floor to ceiling waterfall.
The penthouse was occupied by the Top of the Sixes restaurant. For many years the building had a distinctive feature of a T-shaped atrium walk-through open to the sidewalks on 52nd Street, 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue with glass storefronts inside the walk-through. This included a bookstore and another area used for years by Alitalia
Alitalia
Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. , in its later stages known as Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. in Extraordinary Administration, was the former Italian flag carrier...
Airlines. The entrance to 666 Fifth Avenue was inside this walk-through.
Sumitomo Realty ownership
Tishman Realty dissolved in 1976 and the building was sold for $80 million. In the late 1990s Japanese firms bought both Rockefeller CenterRockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commercial buildings covering between 48th and 51st streets in New York City, United States. Built by the Rockefeller family, it is located in the center of Midtown Manhattan, spanning the area between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. It was declared a National...
and 666 Fifth Avenue. The new owner of 666 Fifth was Sumitomo Realty & Development Company. Major changes included replacing the Top of the Sixes restaurant with the Grand Havana Room, a cigar bar
Cigar bar
-History:While cigar bars have been around for years, interest in them developed in the 1990s when cities and government entities began instituting smoking bans but provided exceptions for establishments that catered to smokers.-Features:...
private club.
Tishman ownership
The newly reconstituted Tishman Speyer PropertiesTishman Speyer Properties
Tishman Speyer Properties is a real estate building and operating company set up in 1978 by two founding partners, Jerry Speyer and Robert Tishman.-Overview:...
bought the building for $518 million in 2000. At about the same time Tishman also bought Rockefeller Center. Shortly after the purchase Tishman enclosed the atrium walk-through and added a third tenant Hickey Freeman
Hickey Freeman
Hickey Freeman is a manufacturer of suits for men and boys, based in Rochester, New York, and founded in 1899. The Hartmarx Corporation bought the company in 1964. In August 2009, India's leading textile and apparel company, SKNL, bought Hartmarx in bankruptcy procedings.The Hickey-Freeman Co...
.. The enclosure cut off the Fifth Avenue entrance. Access is now via 52nd or 53rd Streets. In 2002 the 666 address in the side of the building was replaced with a Citigroup
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
logo. Citigroup is now the building's largest tenant.
The 2006 sale was the third blockbuster deal involving Tishman in two years. In 2005 Tishman bought the MetLife Building
MetLife Building
The MetLife Building, originally called the Pan Am Building, is a skyscraper located at 200 Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City.-History:...
for $1.72 billion setting the previous record. A month before the 666 sale, Tishman bought Stuyvesant Town
Stuyvesant Town
Stuyvesant Town—Peter Cooper Village is a large private residential development on the East Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, and one of the most iconic and successful post-World War II private housing communities...
and Peter Cooper Village for $5.4 billion which was the biggest real estate deal in history in the United States.
Kushner ownership
In December 2006, Tishman Speyer PropertiesTishman Speyer Properties
Tishman Speyer Properties is a real estate building and operating company set up in 1978 by two founding partners, Jerry Speyer and Robert Tishman.-Overview:...
along with the German investment firm TMW announced the sale of the building to the Kushner Properties
Kushner Properties
Kushner Properties is a real estate developer in the New York City metropolitan area.The company's biggest presence is in the New Jersey residential market. It also owns in the Puck Building in New York City...
for $1.8 billion, the highest price ever paid for an individual building in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
The deal turned heads since the building at 483 ft (147.2 m) is not even on the list of tallest buildings in New York City. However it is considered a trophy building because of its location on Fifth Avenue across from Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commercial buildings covering between 48th and 51st streets in New York City, United States. Built by the Rockefeller family, it is located in the center of Midtown Manhattan, spanning the area between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. It was declared a National...
.
Kushner sold the retail condiminium portion of 666 Fifth to a Stanley Chera led group for $525 million.
Tenants
Brooks BrothersBrooks Brothers
Brooks Brothers is the oldest men's clothier chain in the United States. Founded in 1818 as a family business, the privately owned company is now owned by Retail Brand Alliance, also features clothing for women, and is headquartered on Madison Avenue in Manhattan, New York City.-History:On April 7,...
and the National Basketball Association store
NBA Store
The NBA Store is a series of officially licensed retailers which sell merchandise for the National Basketball Association . The most prominent of these stores was located in the United States on Fifth Avenue and 52nd Street, Manhattan, New York...
became the initial ground floor tenants. Brooks Brothers moved out in 2009. Hickey Freeman
Hickey Freeman
Hickey Freeman is a manufacturer of suits for men and boys, based in Rochester, New York, and founded in 1899. The Hartmarx Corporation bought the company in 1964. In August 2009, India's leading textile and apparel company, SKNL, bought Hartmarx in bankruptcy procedings.The Hickey-Freeman Co...
moved out in May 2009. The new Hollister Co.
Hollister Co.
Hollister Co., sometimes advertised as Hollister or HCo., is an American lifestyle brand by Abercrombie & Fitch Co. The concept was originally designed to attract consumers aged 14–18 through its SoCal-inspired image and casual wear. Goods are available in-store and through the company's online store...
Epic New York flagship has announced plans to lease the Hickey Freeman space, and Uniqlo
UNIQLO
is a Japanese casual wear designer, manufacturer and retailer.The company was originally a division of Fast Retailing Co., Ltd.. On November 1, 2005, it was restructured as a separate wholly owned subsidiary called Uniqlo Co., Ltd. , which is listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock...
will occupy 90000 square feet (8,361.3 m²) on the ground, second, and third floors. The Hollister flagship opened in the later part of 2010 and features a live video feed from Huntington Beach, California
Huntington Beach, California
Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County in Southern California. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 189,992; making it the largest beach city in Orange County in terms of population...
displayed on 179 flat-screen TVs outside the store along with wave pools. Polished gray columns were placed in the lobby near the elevators and the changes were made to the subway
New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the City of New York and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, a subsidiary agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and also known as MTA New York City Transit...
entrance at the base of the building. The building is directly above the Fifth Avenue / 53rd Street station which is served by the trains. The building has also become an attractive location for law firms, hosting the New York offices of Vinson & Elkins, Fulbright & Jaworski
Fulbright & Jaworski
The international law firm of Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. is one of the largest law firms in the United States with nearly 1,000 attorneys in over 50 practice areas. The firm was founded in Houston in 1919 by R. C. Fulbright, an attorney working in railway regulation, and J.H. Crooker, a litigator...
, and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is an international law firm founded in San Francisco. Orrick traces its roots back to 1863, making it the oldest continuously-operating law firm in San Francisco, and the second-oldest privately-held company in San Francisco after Levi Strauss & Co....
. It also houses the hedge fund Atlantic Investment Management. In addition, the real estate developer Rockrose also moved in in mid 2009 after break up. In Klaus Nomi
Klaus Nomi
Klaus Sperber , better known as Klaus Nomi, was a German countertenor noted for his wide vocal range and an unusual, otherworldly stage persona....
's self-titled 1981 record, 666 Fifth Avenue Room 2220 is listed as the contact address in the liner notes.
In popular culture
- The construction of the building can be seen in Shirley ClarkeShirley ClarkeShirley Clarke was an American independent filmmaker.-Early life:Born Shirley Brimberg in New York City, Shirley Clarke was the daughter of a Polish-immigrant father who made his fortune in manufacturing. Her mother was the daughter of a multimillionaire Jewish manufacturer and inventor. Her...
's film Skyscraper (1960). - A high POV shot from behind St. Patrick's Cathedral looking at the intersection of 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue in Godspell (film)Godspell (film)Godspell, released in 1973, is the film adaptation of the Off-Broadway musical Godspell created by John-Michael Tebelak.Set in modern New York City, the film stars Victor Garber as Jesus and David Haskell as John the Baptist/Judas...
(1973) - The roof of the building can be seen (fittinglyNumber of the BeastThe Number of the Beast is a term in the Book of Revelation, of the New Testament, that is associated with the first Beast of Revelation chapter 13, the Beast of the sea. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translations of the Bible, the number of the Beast is...
) in John BoormanJohn BoormanJohn Boorman is a British filmmaker who is a long time resident of Ireland and is best known for his feature films such as Point Blank, Deliverance, Zardoz, Excalibur, The Emerald Forest, Hope and Glory, The General and The Tailor of Panama.-Early life:Boorman was born in Shepperton, Surrey,...
's Exorcist II: The HereticExorcist II: The HereticExorcist II: The Heretic is a 1977 American horror film and the sequel to The Exorcist , directed by John Boorman from a screenplay by William Goodhart and starring Linda Blair, Richard Burton, Louise Fletcher, Max von Sydow, James Earl Jones, Ned Beatty and Kitty Winn...
(1977). - Klaus NomiKlaus NomiKlaus Sperber , better known as Klaus Nomi, was a German countertenor noted for his wide vocal range and an unusual, otherworldly stage persona....
used the address on his self-titled album, Klaus NomiKlaus Nomi (album)Klaus Nomi is the debut album by German countertenor Klaus Nomi.-Track listing:#"Keys Of Life" – 2:26#"Lightning Strikes" – 2:59#"The Twist" – 3:10#"Nomi Song" – 2:47...
(1981). - This building is featured in Good OmensGood OmensGood Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch is a World Fantasy Award nominated novel written in collaboration between the English authors Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman....
as the headquarters for Famine
In March 2011 Inditex acquired 3,600 square meters of commercial surface in the building for USD 324 million.