Completed in 1909, and located on Madison Ave, NYC, the Metropolitan Life Tower was the tallest building in the world until 1913. Elements of a few of its intriguing designs were photographed by me a few years ago from nearby Madison Park. My son Steve and I, with several hundred people, were enjoying a wonderful concert there with singer/songwriter Lucy Kaplanski …until the in-ground watering sprinklers popped up and activated, in some cases under people’s blankets.
Thanks for viewing and comments are always welcome. M 🙂
Family Vacation, 32 years ago. American Airlines 747 from NYC’s Kennedy Airport to LAX. After the image below, is the story of “Early A.M. in L.A. on 11/10/87”
Images: Above: Giant Swiss Army Knive at Museum of Contempoary Art, Downtown L.A. – and L.A. as seen from Griffith Observatory, 11/11/87 with City Hall to left – 5.6 miles (9 km) distant. Above, the iconic L.A. City Hall, known at the time as “The Dragnet Building.”
Twelve hours after landing, I would be exploring Los Angeles by foot before the morning’s rush hour, while the family slept off jet-lag in the Holiday Inn about a mile away. An awesome two hour adventure into an “architectually diverse” downtown, with parks and plazas, and… WHAT??? – a Giant Swiss Army Knife??? Yes indeed!
And, not far away, …Swinging Cars!hi
Years later, and of course living 3000 miles away, I wondered exactly where these two photos were taken. I searched maps, and photos where I could, without success – until now. Thanks to the remarkable 3D satellite image and orientation tools available on most any smart phone and/or computer, I “flew” between the buildings and first found the cars: W. Fourth street, and S. Grand Ave. See it below?
The Swiss Army knife was a lot harder. In fact, it’s not there anymore. BUT, by looking at the photo I took in 1987, and specifically for the glass pyramid in its background, I zoomed way in on the “Tom Tom” 3D map, and searched until noticing the glass pyramid structure. Below is from today’s mapping app, zoomed in showing that same glass pyramid. A “new” contempoary display is in the exact place where the knife was 32 years ago.
Above: The Plaza at The Museum of Contemporary Art, on S. Grand Street, L.A. (From Tom Tom Maps, Apple I-Pad)
Below, another photo of downtown Los Angeles on that beautiful morning.
Thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome, and zoom in for a closer look. M 🙂
October 21, 1964, I was fortunate to be there, …in New York City, walking around the Staten Island side of this brand new and, at that time, longest suspension bridge in the world. In an hour or two the ribbon cutting would facilitate the official opening, and we would be among the first to cross.
“New York’s Finest” on foot, and on motorcycle, as the latter start one final sweep of the roadway just prior to the official opening.
See Part Two, as we prepare to cross the new bridge, which after 2018 became correctly and officially named as the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge with two z’s, finally conforming to the explorer’s actual name. Giovanni va Verrazzano was the first documented European explorer to sail through this waterway, in 1524!
Thanks for viewing, zoom in for a closer look on these original 35mm film images, and comments are always welcome. M 🙂
Last week we toured the Boscobel Federalist Mansion near Cold Spring, New York. Below is the view from its front lawn overlooking the Hudson River, …the i-Phone capture reminiscent of a genre of Early American Art from the Hudson River School. Information on this impressive site can be found at
This former passenger line, crossing Palisades Ave, in Englewood, NJ and adequately guarded by flashing lights and long crossing gates, would not be a comfortable ride today. Still used for limited light freight, it was originally opened in 1859, providing passenger service for 107 years, till 1966. The re-purposed original station still stands aside the right of way, just behind me in this photograph. Many would welcome the conversion to modernized “Light Rail” for connections to Manhattan, via Hoboken, NJ.
As usual, thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome. M 🙂
Continuing a theme from my last post, once again we have the last quarter moon hanging above a fairly well known landmark – the Griffith Observatory and Science Center overlooking Los Angeles. It was day two of a family vacation with a somewhat newer SLR film camera, early in the morning of November 11th, 1987.
As usual, click on the image for a closer look, and thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome. M 🙂
Thanks for viewing and comments are always welcome. M 🙂
