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Built between 1959 and 1962, this Modern Futurist and Googie building was designed by Eero Saarinen and Associates for Trans World Airlines to serve as a Flight Center, or Terminal headhouse, for their passenger services at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. The building is an example of thin shell construction, with a parabolic and curved sculptural concrete roof and concrete columns, with many surfaces of the building's structure and exterior being tapered or curved. The building also appears to take inspiration from natural forms, with the roofs appearing like the wings of a bird or bat taking flight. The building served as a passenger terminal from 1962 until 2001, when it was closed.
The building's exterior is dominated by a thin shell concrete roof with parabolic curves, which is divided by ribs into four segments, with the larger, symmetrical north and south segments tapering towards the tallest points of the exterior walls, and soar over angled glass curtain walls underneath. At the ends of the four ribs are Y-shaped concrete columns that curve outwards towards the top and bottom, distributing the weight of the roof structure directly to the foundation. The east and west segments of the roof are smaller, with the west roof angling downwards and forming a canopy over the front entrance with a funnel-shaped sculptural concrete scupper that empties rainwater into a low grate over a drain on the west side of the driveway in front of the building, and the east roof angling slightly upwards, originally providing sweeping views of the tarmac and airfield beyond. The exterior walls of the building beneath the sculptural roof consist of glass curtain walls, with the western exterior wall sitting to the east of the columns and the eastern exterior wall being partially comprised of the eastern columns, with the curtain wall located in the openings between the columns. To the east and west of the taller central section are two half crescent-shaped wings with low-slope roofs, with a curved wall, integrated concrete canopy, tall walls at the ends, and regularly-spaced door openings. To the rear, two concrete tubes with elliptical profiles formerly linked the headhouse to the original concourses, and today link the historic building to the new Terminal 5 and Hotel Towers.
Inside, the building features a great hall with a central mezzanine, and features curved concrete walls and columns, complex staircases, aluminum railings, ticket counters in the two halls to either side of the front entrance, a clock at the center of the ceiling, and skylights below the ribs of the roof. The space features penny tile floors, concrete walls and built-in furniture, red carpeting, and opalescent glass signage. On the west side of the great hall, near the entrance, is a curved concrete counter in front of a large signboard housed in a sculptural concrete and metal shell that once displayed departing and arriving flights. On the north and south sides of this space are former ticket counters and baggage drops, which sit below a vaulted ceiling, with linear light fixtures suspended between curved sculptural concrete piers that terminate some ways below the ceiling. To the east of the entrance is a staircase with minimalist aluminum railings, beyond which is a cantilevered concrete bridge, with balconies and spaces with low ceilings to either side, off which are several shops, restrooms, and telephone booths. On the east side of the bridge is a large sunken lounge with red carpet and concrete benches with red upholstered cushions, surrounded by low concrete walls that feature red-cushioned benches on either side, sitting below a metal analog signboard mounted to the inside of the curtain wall. To the north and south of the lounge are the entrances to the concrete tubes that once provided access to the concourses, which are elliptical in shape, with red carpeted floors and white walls and a white ceiling. On the mezzanine are several former lounges and a restaurant, which feature historic mid-20th Century finishes and fixtures.
The complex includes two contemporary hotel towers, the Saarinen and Hughes wings, which were designed carefully to harmonize with the original building and match its character. The two wings feature concrete end walls, curved Miesian glass curtain walls, and interiors with red carpeting, wooden paneling, brass fittings and fixtures, and white walls and ceilings. The only substantial modification to the structure's significant interior spaces was the puncturing of the two concrete tubes to provide access to these towers. The former terminal also features several service areas that were not previously open to visitors, which today house a massive fitness center, a cavernous underground conference center, and various meeting rooms and ballrooms, with all of these spaces, except the fitness center, being redesigned to match the mid-20th Century modern aesthetics of the rest of the building, with new fixtures, furnishings, and finishes that are inspired directly by the time period in which the building was built, and are nearly seamless in appearance with the rest of the building.
The fantastic building was designated a New York City Landmark in 1994, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. Between 2005 and 2008, the new Terminal 5, occupied by JetBlue, was built, which wraps the structure to the east, and was designed by Gensler, and was carefully placed so as to avoid altering or damaging the character-defining features of the historic terminal. Between 2016 and 2019, the building was rehabilitated in an adaptive reuse project that converted it into the TWA Hotel, which was carried out under the direction of Beyer Blinder Belle, Lubrano Ciavarra Architects, Stonehill Taylor, INC Architecture and Design, as well as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and MCR/Morse Development. The hotel features 512 guest rooms, large event spaces, a rooftop pool at the top of the Hughes Wing, a large basement fitness center, and a Lockheed Constellation L-1649A "Connie" on a paved courtyard to the east of the building, which houses a cocktail lounge. The hotel is heavily themed around the 1960s, and was very carefully designed to preserve the character of this iconic landmark.
4666 Holt Blvd
Montclair, California
AMF has a terrible history of signage demolition and preservation catastrophes. Judging by the facade of this googie bowling alley, parabolic entrance and curving rock walls, it looks like the design of this place was once fabulous. And yet, AMF very likely stripped the place of any character it could. The current Bowlium roadside sign wasn't even worth photographing.
In downtown Garland, Texas, I came across this cool sign. I stopped my car and got out to take a picture.
Spotted during a walking tour of LAX on my way to Australia
Theme Building
The Theme Building is a landmark structure at Los Angeles International Airport within the Westchester neighborhood of the City of Los Angeles. It opened in 1961, and is an example of the Mid-Century modern influenced design school known as "Googie" or "Populuxe."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theme_Building
www.wikimapia.org/#lat=33.9440141&lon=-118.4031075&am...
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Ann Darling Shopping Center sign at 1625 McKee Road in San Jose, CA. Now, this was truly a fabulous find. The shopping center dates to 1959. The "Food Bowl" portion of its flower-like Googie sign swings back and forth in the wind... probably motorized at one point in its life.
While the Del-Mar was state of the art in the middle of the last century, Interstate 75 rerouted most of its legitimate business. It's likely a hotbed of drugs and/or prostitution, since no visitors are allowed after a certain time.
Ashley Street (US 41) at College, Valdosta.
Update to my post here. Photo taken from same angle. Looks like they still care! The white paint was removed from the ceiling, and they either exposed redwood or installed it, I can't tell. The floating effect under the deck is lost, but the skirt looks ok. Overall, looks great! I could do with out the seagull strings everywhere, though.
Marina ("Corncob") Towers, Chicago
Wikipedia sayeth:
The Marina City complex was designed in 1959 by architect Bertrand Goldberg and completed in 1964 at a cost of $36 million. When finished, the two towers were both the tallest residential buildings and the tallest reinforced concrete structures in the world. The complex was billed as a "city within a city", featuring numerous on-site facilities including a theatre, gym, swimming pool, ice rink, bowling alley, several stores and restaurants, and of course, a marina. Currently, the complex houses the House of Blues concert hall and hotel; as well as 10 Pin, an upscale bowling alley; a Crunch health club; and restaurants Bin 36 and Smith & Wollensky.
Marina City was the first urban post-war high-rise residential complex in the United States and is widely credited with beginning the residential renaissance of American inner cities. Its model of mixed residential and office uses and high-rise towers with a base of parking has become a primary model for urban development in the U.S. and has been widely copied throughout downtown Chicago.
Each residential tower is an identical 61 floors in height. The bottom 19 floors of each tower is an exposed spiral parking ramp operated by valet.
Still Hanging On in the Old Weathered Neighborhood in the Jewel of the MidWest ~ Kansas City ~ Missouri
Sorry about the smudge just to the right of the orange 'foot'. There was a piece of dust on my lens, and I tried to remove it with photoshop. I did a shitty job, but it's still way better than it was. That friggin' thing messed up about 20 pictures. Maybe I should finally get my glasses so that I can see stuff like that beforehand.