Sony Tower

Identification

Map

Structure in general

Usage

Facts

• Structurally, the building employs tube frame in its framework, with the tubular columns tied with trusses at the top and bottom.
• The building is clad in grayish-pink granite from the same quarry that supplied the facade facing for Grand Central Terminal.
• A statue from the roof of the previous AT&T headquarters at 195 Broadway, the seven-meter Spirit of Communication (or "Golden Boy") by Evelyn B. Longman, was removed from the entrance lobby after the transaction and moved to AT&T's New Jersey premises.
• The building is the U.S. headquarters of Sony Corporation.
• The entrance is a grand, glazed arch surmounted by porthole-shaped openings.
• The tripartite division of the facade is emphasized by a large entrance and pedestrian arcade at the base, a tall shaft with regular windows, and a wide band of windows just below the building's crown.
• The plaza never succeeded as a public space and was converted to an enclosed retail space when Sony purchased the building.
• There is a Sony Shop of New Technology in the building's base.
• One of the most noticeable skyscrapers in New York, with its unusual pediment topping a slablike shaft. The shape is often likened to a Chippendale highboy, designed by the master 18th century English cabinet-maker, Thomas Chippendale.
• A similar building named Edificio Simon Bolivar was built in 1992 in Santiago, Chile.
• When the building was sold to Sony in 1992, AT&T moved its head offices to the AT&T Building at 32 6th Avenue.