Reunion Tower - Downtown Dallas, Texas
Reunion Tower, known as "The Ball", was completed on February 2, 1978, along with the Hyatt Regency Dallas at Reunion, as part of an urban redevelopment project that also renovated the historic Union Station, now servicing Amtrak, Dallas Area Rapid Transit, and the Trinity Railway Express to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Fort Worth. It is a 561 ft tall observation tower with 259 exterior LED lights on each 'point' of the surrounding geodesic dome structure, and is one of the city's most recognizable landmarks.
Henry C. Beck Company was the tower's prime construction contractor after the designed was completed by the architectural firm Welton Becket & Associates. The tower contains three floors with circular floor plans on top of four shafts of poured-in-place concrete. A central cylindrical shaft houses both stairs and mechanical equipment. Three rectangular shafts, featuring elevators, rise parallel to the central shaft. Each shaft's outfacing wall is made up of glass panels, providing tourists views of the city during the 68-second elevator ride to the top. The top three floors are encased in an open-air sphere, which is a geodesic dome formed with aluminum struts.
When it first opened, the tower included radio station KOAX-FM, now KRLD-FM 105.3 FM, once owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting ("Live twenty-four hours a day from five-hundred feet above the city"). Because it is not used as a broadcast tower, it is not listed in the FCC Database.
*The Reunion Tower in Pop Culture*
‧ Reunion Tower is shown in the open credits of Dallas. It is also the setting for a scene in the second season of the show. At the time, the structure had only been standing for a few months.
‧ The landmark appears as a symbol of futurist society in the 1980 film The Lathe of Heaven.
‧ Reunion Tower is the setting for the finale of the 1986 action film Getting Even.
‧ Reunion Tower can also be seen in the 1987 film RoboCop, although the film is set in Detroit.
‧ In the 1997 made-for-TV movie Asteroid, Reunion Tower is destroyed by a meteorite shower in the 2nd half of the movie.
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in some episodes of the Walker, Texas Ranger TV series.
‧ Reunion Tower is in the season finale of The Amazing Race 26.
‧ The tower can be seen in the 2011 film The Tree of Life.
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in the season one episode of Halt and Catch Fire "High Plains Hardware".
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in the 2023 film The Iron Claw.
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in season 3, episode 13 "Murder Most Foul" of Sliders (TV series).
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
Reunion Tower - Downtown Dallas, Texas
Reunion Tower, known as "The Ball", was completed on February 2, 1978, along with the Hyatt Regency Dallas at Reunion, as part of an urban redevelopment project that also renovated the historic Union Station, now servicing Amtrak, Dallas Area Rapid Transit, and the Trinity Railway Express to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Fort Worth. It is a 561 ft tall observation tower with 259 exterior LED lights on each 'point' of the surrounding geodesic dome structure, and is one of the city's most recognizable landmarks.
Henry C. Beck Company was the tower's prime construction contractor after the designed was completed by the architectural firm Welton Becket & Associates. The tower contains three floors with circular floor plans on top of four shafts of poured-in-place concrete. A central cylindrical shaft houses both stairs and mechanical equipment. Three rectangular shafts, featuring elevators, rise parallel to the central shaft. Each shaft's outfacing wall is made up of glass panels, providing tourists views of the city during the 68-second elevator ride to the top. The top three floors are encased in an open-air sphere, which is a geodesic dome formed with aluminum struts.
When it first opened, the tower included radio station KOAX-FM, now KRLD-FM 105.3 FM, once owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting ("Live twenty-four hours a day from five-hundred feet above the city"). Because it is not used as a broadcast tower, it is not listed in the FCC Database.
*The Reunion Tower in Pop Culture*
‧ Reunion Tower is shown in the open credits of Dallas. It is also the setting for a scene in the second season of the show. At the time, the structure had only been standing for a few months.
‧ The landmark appears as a symbol of futurist society in the 1980 film The Lathe of Heaven.
‧ Reunion Tower is the setting for the finale of the 1986 action film Getting Even.
‧ Reunion Tower can also be seen in the 1987 film RoboCop, although the film is set in Detroit.
‧ In the 1997 made-for-TV movie Asteroid, Reunion Tower is destroyed by a meteorite shower in the 2nd half of the movie.
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in some episodes of the Walker, Texas Ranger TV series.
‧ Reunion Tower is in the season finale of The Amazing Race 26.
‧ The tower can be seen in the 2011 film The Tree of Life.
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in the season one episode of Halt and Catch Fire "High Plains Hardware".
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in the 2023 film The Iron Claw.
‧ Reunion Tower can be seen in season 3, episode 13 "Murder Most Foul" of Sliders (TV series).
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/