Building of the Week - 41st Ed.
- Sara Regnier
- Dec 20, 2024
- 4 min read
Updated: May 26
Rockefeller Center
30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10111
My Christmas spirit has been a little low this month, guys. I think it's because the decorations in the city have been lackluster at best. Like Brookfield Place is doing beach-themed holiday decorations? Hey? It’s 27 degrees outside. Even my beloved Seaport opted out of holiday decorations to put up these fuck ass orbs instead. I’m so mad about them. They are so lazy!! There’s got to be a better way to include different types of winter holidays without resorting to STUPID PLASTIC BALLS!!!! I’m about to throw a 2015 Starbucks Red Cup bitch fit.
All of that rant is to say that I love holiday decorations. They are the paper-thin string many of us hold on to to avoid seasonal depression. That’s why for this week I wanted to lift all of our spirits by talking about the most decorated place I can think of: Rockefeller Center.
So, who is this feller? And where exactly is he rocking? Around the Christmas tree, mayhaps? And why is that Christmas tree so full of staples? All of these questions will be answered today as we dive into the lore of Rockefeller Center and how it became a global holiday landmark.
For all of you Building of the Week freaks out there who have been around since week 15, you may recall me talking about how Radio City Music Hall and the rest of Rockefeller Center were all part of John D. Rockefeller Jr.’s plan to lift the city’s spirits during the Great Depression. He also wanted to make a lot of money, but the lifting of the spirits thing was definitely his passion. Designed to be a city within a city, Rockefeller Center is comprised of 19 buildings spread across 22 acres!! 30 Rockefeller Plaza is the iconic centerpiece and tallest building of the complex.
The design process of this 73-story Art Deco-style skyscraper as well as the rest of the complex was led by architect Raymond Hood. Hood and his team of architects worked to design a building that gives hope for a better tomorrow and, dare I say, lift spirits. The sleek vertical lines emphasize the building’s height and grandeur while the limestone facade marries functionality with elegance.
Sure! If you say so!
30 Rockefeller Plaza, or ‘30 Rock’ for short, was originally designed to be the central hub for the RCA, or ‘the Radio Corporation of America’ for long. It has developed over the years to be NBC’s evil lair - I mean headquarters. The building is now home to shows like SNL, The Tonight Show, Late Night with Seth Meyers, and The Kelly Clarkson Show.
I find it pretty cool that the design of the building’s steel frame makes having larger interior spaces without support columns possible. This allows for big studios for radio and television broadcasting and offices tailored to the needs of media production. Some of these office features include couches long enough to sleep on but too short to sleep comfortably, walls of coffee makers, and storage closets for unpaid interns to cry in. Just the essentials, really.
So what does all of this have to do with Christmas?! First of all, there’s no need to scream at me. Second of all, during the construction of Rockefeller Center back in 1931 (aka peak Great Depression vibes), construction workers pooled their money together to buy a Christmas tree in an effort to lift everyone’s spirits. If there’s one thing to take away from this week’s installment, it’s that spirits = lifted. They found a simple 20-foot tree and decorated it with handmade garland and strings of cranberries made by their families. Cute! Two years later, the owners decided to make it an annual thing (mostly as a money thing but also spirits blah blah lifted blah blah)
That modest 20-foot Depression-Era pick-me-up tree got quite the facelift over the years. Now the trees that get selected (Hunger Games style) have to be at least 75 feet tall and 45 feet wide. In the last few years, people have started to notice the trees have gotten scrappier and scrappier. Multiple branches seem to be surgically attached to give the trees a ‘fuller’ look. Okay, here are a few jokes I have about that:
Not even Christmas trees are safe from the BBL craze.
Wow. Yet another unachievable beauty standard for trees.
When they say they haven’t had any work done but they have Balsalm Fir branches sticking out from their Norway Spruce trunk.
BBL or not, the Rockefeller tree is that bitch. She’s got a 900-pound Swarovski crystal topper that features over 3,000,000 crystals and over 50,000 lights adorn her beautiful Frankenstein-ed (or should I say Frankenstein’s monster-ed) body.
Now this place is an international sensation known for its ice skating rink, massive Christmas tree, and ample shopping options (because America, duh). Rockefeller Plaza has an estimated 125 million people visit it every year! That’s like if every citizen in San Diego, California visited this place 125 times! I thought about equating that number to some type of football field but, like, ew sports.
So next time you’re despairing over weird orbs or lackluster decor, remember Rockefeller Center has been doing the absolute most for almost a century. It’s drama, it’s spectacle, it’s capitalism, it’s everything you need, and more! Just don’t go at peak hours or you’ll most likely be suffocated by the crowds.
Fun Facts
The design of the observation deck at the top of 30 Rock was inspired by a cruise liner. Neato! I'm too lazy to include a picture. You can look it up if you want to see it.
The show ‘30 Rock’ is very obviously set here and is my friend Kerstin’s favorite show.
Do you know that iconic picture of the construction workers eating on a metal bar suspended hundreds of feet in the air? That was at the construction site of 30 Rockefeller Plaza! Eat your heart out OSHA!
Only one more BOTW before the end of the year!! WOOO!! Don’t forget to vote for your favorite buildings here!!!
Anyways… I WON'T see you next week because I am going on vacay! Alexa, play Kokomo!
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the frankenstien monster tree can't hurt you....