Discover the Secrets: Top 12 Fun Facts About the Iconic Chrysler Building

1. Skyscraper Tiara

If we allowed skyscrapers to wear jewelry, the Chrysler Building would undoubtedly be sporting one heck of a sparkling tiara: The stunning crown atop this magnificent Art Deco beauty boasts seven terraced arches with ribbed and riveted sunbursts, illuminating the night sky with fluorescent and colored floodlights.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

2. King Kong's Building Rival

Step aside, King Kong; move over, Empire State: The Chrysler Building was once the towering talk of the town! Boasting a record height of 1,048 feet and 77 floors topped with a dazzling Art Deco design, this iconic skyscraper was voted the number one favorite New York tower in a 2005 survey – and its lobby is just as grand, adorned with a stunning mural and luxurious African marble.
Source => jamesmaherphotography.com

Did you know there's an annual race to climb 1,576 steps to the Empire State Building's 86th-floor observatory? Discover this adrenaline-pumping event and the building's impressive speedy elevators!

=> Fun Facts about The-Empire-State-Building

3. Rapid, Riveting Construction

As high as a giraffe's aspirations and built sturdier than a cat on a hot tin roof, the Chrysler Building stood tall amidst the grand race for the sky in the Big Apple: Surprisingly, throughout its rapid construction - at an astonishing rate of four floors per week - not a single worker met their maker, and the towering masterpiece was held together with a whopping 400,000 rivets and nearly 3.8 million bricks, lovingly laid by hand.
Source => architectuul.com

4. Tin Foil Hat Alternative

Fear not, folks, the Chrysler Building isn't wearing a tin foil hat to ward off aliens – it's just stylishly crowned for a night on the town! That luminous noggin: Conceals seven levels of swanky crescent setbacks and triangular windows that ensure the building has a well-lit place in the hearts of the New York City skyline admirers.
Source => khanacademy.org

5. Snapshot on an Eagle Gargoyle

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but how about one perched atop a majestic stainless steel eagle gargoyle, flapping 61 floors high in the Manhattan skyline? Well, that's priceless: Margaret Bourke-White, a daring photographer, immortalized herself in a snapshot as she casually posed on one of the four iconic eagle gargoyles of the Chrysler Building, which, contrary to popular belief, were not inspired by Chrysler car hood ornaments. On a lower, stealthier setback, you can spot inconspicuous Chrysler-like hood ornament decorations posing as winged urns, providing a subtle nod to the automobile industry without disrupting the building's simple, yet striking base design.
Source => flickr.com

6. Car Showroom Turned HQ

Vroom, vroom went the skyscraper dreams: The Chrysler Building was initially intended to feature a car showroom at its base, flaunting the newest Chrysler models, but ultimately shifted gears, transforming into the company's headquarters and donning architectural elements inspired by its own automobiles.
Source => eagletransfer.com

7. Short-Lived Tallest Title, Everlasting Charm

Towering not too long in a world of short-lived fame, the Chrysler Building is like that guy who held the "World's Tallest Man" title before the next growth spurt came around – but never lost his style and charm: An Art Deco icon, its lobby remains one of New York City's most opulent with African marble and a stunning aviation-themed mural, earning enduring admiration from modern architects, even though it held the title of the world's tallest building for a mere 11 months.
Source => jamesmaherphotography.com

8. Shiny Rocket of the Art Deco Cosmos

Much like a shiny metal rocket ready to launch into the Art Deco cosmos, the Chrysler Building shoots its stainless steel spire through the New York City sky with an astonishing grace: Boasting a dazzling crown replete with seven terraced arches and a 197 ft tall spire—which took a mere 90 minutes to raise—the Chrysler Building was the tallest structure in the world in 1930, outdoing both 40 Wall Street and the Eiffel Tower, and it still holds the record for being the tallest brick building on planet Earth.
Source => freetoursbyfoot.com

9. Ice Cream Sundae Crown

If the Chrysler Building were an ice cream sundae, its crown would be the ooey-gooey caramel sauce dripping with sparkly sugar crystals, beguiling New Yorkers with its irresistible radiance: Sporting seven layers of crescent setbacks with triangular windows, the Chrysler Building's iconic illuminated crown has become a symbol of urban modernity, delighting generations of stargazers and solidifying the building's spot in the annals of New York City's architectural feats.
Source => khanacademy.org

10. Movie, Book, and Pop Culture Star

From Tom Cruise cruising through the lobby to alien-busting Men in Black setting up shop: The famed Chrysler Building has not only graced countless films like "Cocktail" and "Men in Black" but also literary classics like F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" and E.B. White's children's book "Stuart Little," securing its role as a popular culture icon.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

11. Tallest for a New York Minute

If the Chrysler Building could talk, it would probably say, "I used to have the best view of all the other skyscrapers, but it only lasted a New York minute": This stunning Art Deco masterpiece actually held the title for the tallest building in the world at 1,046 feet (319 meters), but was dethroned by the Empire State Building in 1931, less than a year later. Still, it remains an unmissable part of the New York City skyline and a testament to its architectural legacy.
Source => imdb.com

12. Rags to Riches Real Estate Saga

If the Chrysler Building's life story were a movie, it'd be titled "From Rags to Riches to Rags to Riches," with an action-packed twist of investors and retail: Built in the late 1920s as an automobile hub for Walter Chrysler, it narrowly escaped doom in the 1970s and 1980s, got whisked away by Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance for a $100-million revamp, played matchmaker with Tishman Speyer and Travelers Group in the late 90s, found an $800-million sugar daddy in Abu Dhabi in 2008, and recently high-fived a duo of developer and investment firm for $151 million in 2019.
Source => therealdeal.com