Supreme NY (New York City, New York)

 store / shop, residence, landmark, interesting place, historical building

6-story, granite and limestone Renaissance-revival building completed in 1898. Designed by Robert Maynicke for the Germania Bank, which later changed its name to Commonwealth Bank before being merged with Manufacturers Trust Bank.

In 1966, the building (which by then had been vacated by the bank) was bought by Jay Maisel, a commercial photographer. Maisel rented the second and fourth floors to artists Adolph Gottlieb and Roy Lichtenstein, respectively, between 1966 and 1968. Maisel is still the owner of the building and maintains his residence, studio and gallery there. The first and second floors are badly marred by graffiti.

Maisel's purchase is seen as a real-estate fairy tale: His $102,000 purchase is now worth $30-50 million. But it was a very different neighborhood in those days: ''Every single thing that can come out of a human body has been left on my doorstep,'' Maisel said. It has succumbed to a lack of maintenance over many years.