1285 Avenue of the Americas

 office building, skyscraper, 1960_construction, movie / film / TV location

545-foot, 42-story International-style office building completed in 1960. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill as The Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States headquarters, it was later renamed the Paine Webber Building. Following the acquisition of Paine Webber the business changed its name first to UBS Paine Webber in March 2001, then the subsidiary further changed its name to UBS Wealth Management USA in June 2003. The building now simply goes by the address of 1285 Avenue of the Americas, but has UBS signage around the ground floor as well as near the roof line.

It is clad in a curtain wall of steel and glass, with black metal spandrels. The square main tower is situated at the east end of the block, facing 6th Avenue; a lower 16-story wing extends to the west, connecting to the AXA Center at mid-block. At the east end of the lower wing there is a small recessed area on the north and south, where the wing connects with the main tower. The north and south entrances are located at the ground floor of these recessed bays, with brass-and-glass doors, including two revolving doors at each entrance. To the west of these entrances the lower wing projects out further toward the sidewalk, and sets back above the 11th floor. There are also two entrances on 6th Avenue with matching brass-and-glass doors; this facade spans six bays, with the entrances in the 2nd bays from the ends. The ground floor is recessed beneath the rest of the tower, supported by the grey steel piers. Some of the other bays on the north and south facades have glass storefronts, while the western four bays on the north side have loading docks.

Above the ground floor the curtain wall features narrow window panes separated by thin steel mullions. A mechanical level around the 16th floor is denoted by the black metal vents wrapping around each facade in place of windows. There are three additional mechanical floors with black vents at the top of the tower. Besides the lobby the ground floor is occupied by Chop't restaurant, and Mastro's Steakhouse.

The exterior served as a filming for the USA series "White Collar" towards the 7th season.

rxrrealty.com/details/aoa1285
www.ubs.com/locations/united-states/new-york/1285-avenu...


www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wkvcJhDAI0&feature=youtu.b...