1271 Avenue of the Americas

1271 Avenue of the Americas
Former names	Time & Life Building
General information
Status	Completed
Type	Office
Location	Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Coordinates	40°45′38″N 73°58′52″W / 40.76056°N 73.98111°W / 40.76056; -73.98111
Construction started	1957
Completed	1960
Opening	October 1959
Cost	$70 million
Owner	Rockefeller Group (Mitsubishi Group)
Management	Rockefeller Group
Height
Roof	587 ft (179 m)
Technical details
Floor count	48[a]
Floor area	1,400,000 sq ft (130,000 m2)
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Wallace Harrison of Harrison, Abramovitz, and Harris
Main contractor	George A. Fuller Company
New York City Landmark
Designated	July 16, 2002[1]
Reference no.	2119[1]
Designated entity	Ground-floor interior

1271 Avenue of the Americas (formerly known as the Time & Life Building) is a 48-story skyscraper^[a] on Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas), between 50th and 51st Streets, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Designed by architect Wallace Harrison of Harrison, Abramovitz, and Harris, the building was developed between 1956 and 1960 as part of Rockefeller Center.

The building's eight-story base partially wraps around its 48-story main shaft. Both sections are surrounded by a plaza, which has white-and-gray pavement in a serpentine pattern, as well as water fountains. The facade consists of glass panels between limestone columns. The lobby contains serpentine floors, white-marble and stainless-steel walls, and reddish-burgundy glass ceilings, in addition to artwork by Josef Albers, Fritz Glarner, and Francis Brennan. The ground floor also includes storefronts and originally housed La Fonda del Sol, a Latin American-themed restaurant. Each of the upper floors covers 28,000 sq ft (2,600 m²), with offices around a mechanical core. The 48th floor originally contained the Hemisphere Club, which operated as a members-only restaurant during the day and was open to the public during evenings.

After Time Inc. expressed its intention to move from 1 Rockefeller Plaza in the 1950s, Rockefeller Center's owners proposed a skyscraper at 1271 Avenue of the Americas to accommodate the move. Construction started in May 1957; the building was topped out during November 1958, and occupants began moving into their offices in late 1959. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the lobby as a city landmark in 2002. Time Inc. vacated 1271 Avenue of the Americas in 2015, and the building was subsequently renovated between 2015 and 2019.

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