Kong's Last Stand -- Empire State Building in New York City, New York
by Darin Volpe
Title
Kong's Last Stand -- Empire State Building in New York City, New York
Artist
Darin Volpe
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
The spire of the Empire State Building stands quietly on this June afternoon, but there are still a few who remember when the Eighth Wonder of the World, King Kong, carried Ann Darrow to its lofty heights before meeting his demise at the hands of the Army Air Corps.
The Empire State Building is one of the best known skyscrapers in the world. Located at the intersection of 5th Avenue and West 34th Street, it stands 1,454 feet to the top of the spire. Its name is derived from the nickname for New York, the Empire State. At 103 stories, it was the world's tallest building from its completion in 1931 until the Twin Towers were completed in 1970. It has been named one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The building was designed by William F. Lamb. Work was started in January of 1930 and was completed in only one year and forty-five days. It was the first building to have more than 100 floors. Typical of pre-World War II New York architecture, the building features an art deco design. The spire was originally designed to be a mooring mast and depot for dirigibles, but this proved impractical and dangerous due to, among other things, the powerful updrafts caused by the size of the building itself.
Of course, the most famous use of the spire was by King Kong in the final scenes of the 1933 movie of the same name.
Uploaded
October 29th, 2013
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