The dark brown building in the background
is the American Radiator Building. The silhouette
is the Empire State Building.
About the American Radiator Building:
The American Radiator Building (since renamed to the
American Standard Building) is a landmark skyscraper
located at 40 West 40th Street, in midtown Manhattan,
New York City. It was conceived by the architects
John Howells and Raymond Hood in 1924 and
built for the American Radiator and
Standard Sanitary Company.
The structural form is based on Eliel Saarinen's
unbuilt competition entry for the Tribune Tower,
augmented with a strong use of color.
The architects combined Gothic and modern styles in
the design of the building. Black brick on the frontage
of the building (symbolizing coal) was selected to give
an idea of solidity and to give the building a solid mass.
Other parts of the facade were covered in gold bricks
(symbolizing fire), and the entry was decorated with
marble and black mirrors. Once again, the talents of
Rene Paul Chambellan were employed by
Hood and Howells for the
ornamentation and sculptures.
In 1998, the building was sold to Philip Pilevsky for
$150 million. Three years afterwards, the
American Radiator Building
was converted into The Bryant Park Hotel with
130 rooms and a theatre in the basement.
[Notes from: Wikipedia: Amercian Radiator Building]