Being an out-and-out tourist, in 1974, and not knowing any better, I bought the right tickets, and went up to the 86th floor Observatory. By then, there had been a number of suicides from there, and preventive barriers had been installed which did not distract from the experience. That should have been good enough, but I went on up to the 102nd Observatory, a space that is small, confining, and a little threatening. There was noticeable sway up there. I later read that the building was designed to be supple and with this calculated amount of give, it could sway 14 inches. I knew for sure the damn building had waited for me to get up there before it toppled over onto 5th Avenue, taking me with it. When I got down, I knew how King Kong felt. That did it for me and New York skyscrapers.
3 comments:
Another version of a "Big & Little"
The "Empire State Building"
opened in May of 31 as the
"World's Tallest Building"
A title it held until 1970
Being an out-and-out tourist, in 1974, and not knowing any better, I bought the right tickets, and went up to the 86th floor Observatory. By then, there had been a number of suicides from there, and preventive barriers had been installed which did not distract from the experience. That should have been good enough, but I went on up to the 102nd Observatory, a space that is small, confining, and a little threatening. There was noticeable sway up there. I later read that the building was designed to be supple and with this calculated amount of give, it could sway 14 inches. I knew for sure the damn building had waited for me to get up there before it toppled over onto 5th Avenue, taking me with it. When I got down, I knew how King Kong felt. That did it for me and New York skyscrapers.
Post a Comment