CBS Studio Building

Office building in Manhattan, New York

CBS Studio Building

General information
Type| Office
Location| 49 East 52nd Street, Midtown Manhattan, New York, US
Coordinates| 40°45′33″N 73°58′27″W﻿ / ﻿40.759164°N 73.974123°W﻿ / 40.759164; -73.974123
Completed| 1908
Technical details
Floor count| 7
Design and construction
Architect(s)| Warren & Wetmore

The CBS Studio Building is a seven-story office building at 49 East 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It has had various uses at different times, including serving as a Vanderbilt family guest house, the first graduate school of the Juilliard School, CBS Radio studios, and Columbia Records studio.

It is currently owned by the Fisher Brothers, who converted it to an office building in conjunction with construction of the 45-story Park Avenue Plaza to its east.

## Vanderbilts

[edit]

It was built in 1908 as a guest house for the Vanderbilts who had a home a block away at Fifth Avenue and 52nd. It was designed by Warren and Wetmore.[1]

## Juilliard

[edit]

In 1924 the Vanderbilts sold it to the Juilliard Musical Foundation where it became Juilliard's first graduate school.[2]

## CBS Radio

[edit]

In 1939, CBS, which had its corporate headquarters around the corner at 485 Madison Avenue, bought the building at 49 East 52nd Street to move its radio operations, except for the main network newsroom.

Architects Fellheimer & Wagner extensively renovated the building—including eliminating the earlier Vanderbilt ornate external features and eliminating windows for soundproofing—and carved up the building into seven studios, including one which could accommodate audiences of 300 as well as symphony orchestras that could broadcast. Arthur Godfrey broadcast from Studio 21 in the building and had his main office there.[1]

## Columbia Records

[edit]

With the advent of television, large radio studios that could accommodate audiences were no longer needed. Radio operations moved to the CBS Broadcast Center at 524 West 57th Street.[3] By 1966 the facility had become recording studios for Columbia Records.[4] Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Leonard Cohen, Laura Nyro,[5] Bob Dylan (in spring 1970 for part of his New Morning album),[6] Paul Simon, Miles Davis, Paul McCartney and Mahavishnu Orchestra (Birds Of Fire) recorded music there.[1]

The facility contained Columbia's "Studio B" on the second floor and "Studio E" on the sixth floor.[7] From 1974 until 1982, CBS Radio Mystery Theatre was recorded in Studio 27, renamed Studio G in honor of Arthur Godfrey.

## Fisher Brothers

[edit]

In 1979 the Fisher Brothers acquired the land under the building in conjunction with construction of the Park Avenue Plaza building to its east. However, CBS retained ownership of the building itself. In 1988 the building was leased to Sony, which had purchased CBS Records,[8] and a Duane Reade store opened on the ground level and second floor. For several years CBS used studio space as offices.[1] CBS eventually sold the building to Fisher Brothers in 1993,[9] and in 1996 Fisher Brothers undid the 1930s Art Moderne style, replacing the windows and replicating the original Vanderbilt appearance.[8]

## See also

[edit]

* CBS 30th Street Studio

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Gray, Christopher, "STREETSCAPES: CBS Studio on 52d; At One Time, the 'Last Word in Broadcasting Design'", The New York Times, August 7, 1988
2. ^ The Juilliard School: A Brief History[permanent dead link]
3. ^ "CBS RADIO NETWORK'S NEW AUTOMATED BROADCAST CENTER OPENS; NEWSROOM, STUDIOS, OFFICES AT TWO LOCATIONS VACATED" (PDF) (Press release). New York: CBS Radio. July 27, 1964. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
4. ^ "TALENT". Billboard. October 29, 1966. p. 26. Retrieved April 3, 2019. "BARBRA STREISAND and CBS/Columbia Group president Goddard Lieberson bid farewell to Columbia's Recording Studios at 799 Seventh Avenue, New York. Miss Streisand's recording session on Oct. 14 marked the studio's last use. In the future, Columbia artists will use the new facilities located at 49 East 52d Street."
5. ^ [1] Laura Nyro at the Columbia 49 East 52nd Street studio
6. ^ Heylin, Clinton, Bob Dylan: The Recording Sessions 1960–94. Penguin. UK; St Martin's Press, US, 1995. ISBN 0-312-13439-8. Cf. p.84 on use of Studio B and Studio E in New York City in 1970 which were at the Columbia Studio Building.
7. ^ Simons, David (2004). Studio Stories – How the Great New York Records Were Made. San Francisco: Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-817-9.
8. ^ a b Garbarine, Rachelle (October 20, 1996). "A Mansion Will Wake Up To Find It's 1908 Again". New York Times. New York. Retrieved April 3, 2019. "Fisher Brothers acquired the land under the Vanderbilt building, but not the building itself, in 1979 as part of the site assemblage for the Park Avenue Plaza office tower, using its air rights to build the 44-story tower that flanks the smaller building on two sides."
9. ^ "POSTINGS: Home of the Arthur Godfrey Show; Old CBS Studios Sold". New York Times. New York. October 24, 1993. Retrieved April 3, 2019. "The nine-floor, 58,000-square-foot building, at 49 East 52d Street, was bought for an undisclosed sum by Park Avenue Plaza Company, an affiliate of Fisher Brothers, a Manhattan real estate company."

## Further reading

[edit]

* Cogan, Jim; Clark, William, Temples of sound: inside the great recording studios, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2003. ISBN 0-8118-3394-1. Cf. chapter on Columbia Studios, pp. 181–192.

* v
* t
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Midtown (42nd–59th Streets)

Manhattan, New York City

Buildings

| West of
5th Av|

* 1 Worldwide Plz
* 2 Columbus Cir
* 5 Columbus Cir
* 5 W 54th St
* 7 W 54th St
* 10 W 56th St
* 11 W 54th St
* 12 W 56th St
* 13–15 W 54th St
* 30 W 44th St (Penn Club)
* 30 W 56th St
* 46 W 55th St
* 53W53
* 111 W 57th St
* 120 W 46th St
* 125 W 55th St
* 130 W 57th St
* 140 W 57th St
* 165 W 57th St
* 200 Central Park S
* 218 W 57th St
* 220 Central Park S
* 224 W 57th St
* 240 Central Park S
* 500 5th Av
* 520 5th Av
* 608 5th Av
* 650 5th Av
* 660 5th Av
* 712 5th Av
* 740 8th Av
* 745 7th Av
* 750 7th Av
* 810 7th Av
* 888 7th Av
* 1166 6th Av
* 1301 6th Av
* 1345 6th Av
* 1717 Broadway
* 1740 Broadway
* Aeolian Hall
* Alwyn Court
* Americas Tower
* ARO
* Axa Equitable Center
* Bank of America Tower
* Bergdorf Goodman Bldg
* The Briarcliffe
* Brill Bldg
* Calvary Baptist Church
* Carnegie Hall Tower
* Central Park Place
* Central Park Tower
* CBS Bldg
* Church of St. Mary the Virgin
* Crown Bldg
* Coty Bldg
* Deutsche Bank Center
* Executive Plz
* Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church
* Gainsborough Studios
* Hampshire House
* Hearst Tower
* Manufacturers Trust Bldg
* Mark Hellinger Theatre
* Times Square Church
* Metropolitan Tower
* New York City Bar Association Building
* New York Yacht Club Building
* One57
* The Osborne
* Paramount Plz
* Park House
* Philippine Center
* Random House Tower
* Rockefeller Apts
* Rodin Studios
* St. Malachy Roman Catholic Church
* St. Thomas Church
* Salmon Tower Bldg
* Solow Bldg
* Tower 49
* Tower Fifth
* Trump Parc
* W. R. Grace Bldg

| Rockefeller Center|

* 1 Rockefeller Plz
* 10 Rockefeller Plz
* 30 Rockefeller Plz
* 50 Rockefeller Plz
* 75 Rockefeller Plz
* 1211 6th Av
* 1221 6th Av
* 1251 6th Av
* 1271 6th Av
* British Empire Building
* International Building
* La Maison Francaise

|

Times Square|

* 1 Astor Plz
* 1 Times Sq
* 3 Times Sq
* 4 Times Sq
* 11 Times Sq
* 20 Times Sq
* 229 W 43rd St
* 255 W 43rd St
* 1500 Broadway
* 1501 Broadway
* 1540 Broadway
* 1552 Broadway
* 1585 Broadway
* TSX Broadway

East of
5th Av|

* One Vanderbilt
* 3 E 57th St
* 7 E 44th St
* 12 E 53rd St
* 18 E 50th St
* 19 E 54th St
* 100 E 53rd St (Selene)
* 138 E 50th St
* 175 Park Av
* 219 E 49th St
* 252 E 57th St
* 245 Park Av
* 270 Park Av
* 277 Park Av
* 299 Park Av
* 345 Park Av
* 350 Park Av
* 383 Madison Av
* 399 Park Av
* 400 Madison Av
* 425 Park Av
* 432 Park Av
* 450 Lexington Av
* 450 Park Av
* 488 Madison Av (Look Bldg)
* 500 Park Av
* 525 Lexington Av
* 550 Madison Av (Sony Bldg)
* 569 Lexington Av
* 590 Madison Av (IBM Bldg)
* 599 Lexington Av
* 647 5th Av
* 689 5th Av
* 731 Lexington Av
* 919 3rd Av
* Amster Yard
* Apple Fifth Avenue
* Bloomingdale's
* Cartier Bldg
* CBS Studio Bldg
* Central Synagogue
* Charles Scribner's Sons Bldg
* Chrysler Bldg
* Church of Sweden in New York
* Citigroup Ctr
* CitySpire
* DuMont Bldg
* Fifth Church of Christ, Scientist
* Fred F. French Bldg
* Fuller Bldg
* General Electric Bldg
* General Motors Bldg
* Graybar Bldg
* Helmsley Bldg
* Lescaze House
* Lever House
* Lipstick Bldg
* LVMH Tower
* MetLife Bldg
* Modulightor Bldg
* William H. Moore House
* Olympic Tower
* Park Avenue Plz
* Park Avenue Tower
* Ritz Tower
* Rockefeller Guest House
* Saks Fifth Avenue
* St. Agnes Church
* St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church
* St. Patrick's Cathedral
* Seagram Bldg
* Sutton 58
* Tiffany & Co.
* Trump Tower
* Villard Houses
* William and Helen Ziegler House

Former|

* Grand Central Palace
* Hoffman Auto Showroom
* Hotel Marguery
* Mrs. O. H. P. Belmont House
* Sherwood Studio Building
* St. Nicholas Collegiate Reformed Protestant Dutch Church
* Studebaker Building
* Temple Emanu-El
* Union Carbide Building
* Vanderbilt Triple Palace
* William K. Vanderbilt House
* West Presbyterian Church

Theaters

| Broadway theaters|

* Ambassador
* August Wilson
* Belasco
* Bernard B. Jacobs
* Booth
* Broadhurst
* Broadway
* Circle in the Square
* Ethel Barrymore
* Eugene O'Neill
* Gerald Schoenfeld
* Gershwin
* Hayes
* Hudson
* Imperial
* James Earl Jones
* John Golden
* Lena Horne
* Longacre
* Lunt-Fontanne
* Lyceum
* Lyric
* Majestic
* Marquis
* Minskoff
* Music Box
* Neil Simon
* Palace
* Richard Rodgers
* St. James
* Samuel J. Friedman
* Shubert
* Stephen Sondheim
* Studio 54
* Todd Haimes
* Walter Kerr
* Winter Garden

|

Other venues|

* 55th Street Playhouse
* Carnegie Hall
* Ed Sullivan Theater
* The ImaginAsian
* New Victory Theater
* New York City Center
* Paris Theater
* Radio City Music Hall
* Sony Hall
* The Theater Center
* The Town Hall
* York Theatre

Closed/demolished|

* 44th Street
* 48th Street
* Apollo
* Center
* Capitol
* Earl Carroll
* Edison
* Embassy
* Fulton
* George M. Cohan's
* Loew's State
* Lyric
* New Century
* Olympia
* Playhouse
* Roxy
* Strand
* Times Square
* Vanderbilt
* Victoria
* Ziegfeld (1927)
* Ziegfeld (1969)

Hotels

| Current|

* Algonquin Hotel
* Allerton Hotel for Women
* The Benjamin Royal Sonesta New York
* Cassa Hotel & Residences
* The Chatwal New York
* Club Quarters, Midtown
* Crowne Plaza Times Square Manhattan
* Four Seasons Hotel New York
* Hard Rock Hotel New York
* Hotel Edison
* Hotel Elysée
* Hotel Gerard
* Hyatt Grand Central New York
* InterContinental New York Barclay Hotel
* JW Marriott Essex House
* The Iroquois New York
* Lexington Hotel
* Lombardy Hotel
* Lotte New York Palace Hotel
* Luxor Hotel
* Mansfield Hotel
* The Michelangelo
* Millennium Times Square New York
* New York Hilton Midtown
* New York Marriott Marquis
* Paramount Hotel
* Park Central Hotel
* Park Lane Hotel
* The Peninsula New York
* Plaza Hotel
* The Quin
* The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park
* Roger Smith Hotel
* Row NYC Hotel
* Royalton Hotel
* St. Regis New York
* Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel
* Sofitel New York Hotel
* Thompson Central Park New York Hotel
* Waldorf Astoria New York
* Warwick New York Hotel

|

Former|

* DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Metropolitan New York City
* Hotel Carter
* Hotel Claridge
* Hotel Manhattan
* Hotel Metropole
* New York Biltmore Hotel
* New York Marriott East Side
* Omni Berkshire Place
* Pabst Hotel
* Ritz-Carlton Hotel
* Roosevelt Hotel
* Savoy-Plaza Hotel
* Times Square Hotel
* Weylin Hotel
* Windsor Hotel

Other points of interest

| Restaurants/
nightlife|

* 21 Club
* 54 Below
* Alto
* Anthos
* Aureole
* Burger Heaven
* Le Bernardin
* Cafe Chambord
* Campbell Apartment
* La Caravelle
* Caviar Russe
* Del Pezzo Restaurant
* Ellen's Stardust Diner
* Four Twenty Five
* Gabriel Kreuther
* Gallagher's Steakhouse
* Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant
* La Grenouille
* Iridium Jazz Club
* Le Jardinier
* King Cole Bar
* Kurumazushi
* Latin Quarter
* Lespinasse
* Marea
* Naro
* The Pool and the Grill
* Oceana
* The Original Soupman
* P. J. Clarke's
* Patsy's
* Le Pavillon
* Prime Burger
* The Quilted Giraffe
* Rainbow Room
* Restaurant Aquavit
* Rumpelmayer's
* Russian Tea Room
* Sardi's
* Satsuki
* Shun Lee Palace
* Stage Deli
* The Campbell

|

Museums/
cultural centers|

* Austrian Cultural Forum New York
* Girl Scout Museum and Archives
* John M. Mossman Lock Museum
* Korean Cultural Center New York
* Madame Tussauds New York
* Museum of Arts and Design
* Museum of Broadway
* Museum of Modern Art
* New York Transit Museum
* Paley Center for Media
* Rose Museum
* Spyscape

Stores|

* Argosy Book Store
* Gotham Book Mart

Clubhouses|

* American Fine Arts Society
* The Brook
* Century Association
* Cornell Club of New York
* General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen of the City of New York
* Harvard Club of New York City
* New York Athletic Club
* New York City Bar Association
* New York Friars Club
* New York Yacht Club
* Penn Club of New York
* Racquet and Tennis Club
* University Club of New York
* Women's National Republican Club
* Yale Club of New York City

Clubhouses (former)|

* Princeton Club of New York

Green spaces|

* Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden
* Central Park
* Grand Army Plaza
* Greenacre Park
* Paley Park

Educational
institutions|

* 53rd Street Library
* Circle in the Square Theatre School
* CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies
* High School of Performing Arts
* Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School for International Careers
* Saint Thomas Choir School
* SUNY College of Optometry

Art galleries|

* Galerie St. Etienne
* Rehs Galleries

Transportation

| Subway stations|

* Fifth Avenue/53rd Street
* Fifth Avenue–59th Street
* Seventh Avenue
* 42nd Street–Bryant Park/Fifth Avenue
* 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal
* 47th–50th Streets–Rockefeller Center
* 49th Street
* 50th Street
* 50th Street
* 57th Street–Seventh Avenue
* 57th Street
* 59th Street–Columbus Circle
* Grand Central–42nd Street
* Lexington Avenue/51st Street
* Lexington Avenue/59th Street
* Times Square–42nd Street

|

Railroad stations|

* Grand Central Madison
* Grand Central Terminal

Streets and
intersections|

* Third Avenue
* Fifth Avenue
* Sixth Avenue
* Six and a Half Avenue
* Seventh Avenue
* Eighth Avenue
* 42nd
* 47th
* 50th
* 51st
* 52nd
* 53rd
* 54th
* 55th
* 57th
* 59th
* Broadway
* Columbus Circle
* Duffy Square
* Grand Army Plaza
* George Abbott Way
* Lexington Avenue
* Madison Avenue
* Park Avenue
* Park Avenue Viaduct
* Pershing Square
* Shubert Alley
* Times Square
* Vanderbilt Avenue

Related topics

* Billionaires' Row
* Little Brazil
* Midtown South
* Minnesota Strip

See also: Manhattan Community Board 5

Authority control databases: Geographic |

* MusicBrainz place
* 2

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