You just can't beat B1M writing and production quality. Amazing video as always!

I love this view of architectural design through the decades. Please do make more, this is fascinating.

If you ever get the chance to visit NYC, don't just look at the Chrysler Building from the outside, be brave and go into the reception area. It's stunning and makes you wonder what the rest of the building is like.

I'm surprised that people used to think the Chrysler building ugly; I've always thought it beautiful. I loved to see it on my approach home; it was always comforting, somehow. It's a symbol of old NYC when working class people like me were allowed to live here.

Both the Chrysler and Empire State buildings made me fall in love with skyscrapers as a young boy. I was amazed by their outstanding appearance and their defiance over the New York City skyline. I’m not sure how I as a young boy would react to the Twin Towers had 9/11 never happened (I was born in 1998), if anything I would’ve at first thought they looked pretty weird because of their appearance, but as time would go on, I would fall in love with them, and they would be my favorite part of the city, along with Grand Central and Times Square. The Chrysler building is still one of my favorite skyscrapers, mostly because of its history and its awesome appearance, but I will be a bit sad to see it literally overshadowed by taller buildings, if anything it almost reminds me of that book I read as a kid called “The Little Skyscraper”.

Spent 37 years of my life as a rigger on megaprojects in Australia and this hands down is my favourite channel on TRshow. And it just keeps getting better! Great work as always B1M

As a New Yorker, I’d love to hear about your predictions for development in areas of Queens and Brooklyn. I imagine that zoning laws will change giving way to more skyscrapers.

As an architect working and living in New York City this amount of rich history and the feeling put into it is so impactful. It really puts into perspective the work that goes into giving this city a life or identity. Or sometimes reflecting on the current identity. I’m proud to live here. Please keep doing more of this.

Change is inevitable. I know that with every fiber of my being. And even though I live on the other side of the continent from NY City, the thought of some monstrosity overshadowing the Chrysler Building still rankles. The B1M is one of the slickest, most interesting channels on TRshow. Keep up the good work.

I worked in the World Trade Center North in the late 90s (fortunately before 911). It was a pain in the butt to work in usually being on the 80th floor. It could take you 10 minutes many times to just get to your office once you entered the building. Our office was already highly outdated and the small windows didn't help.

Fred, your work and that of your entire team at the B1M is simply OUTSTANDING .. you all keep up the truly great work, the videos are immensely enjoyable and educational ✌️

Living in NYC for the pass 23 years I’ve come to appreciate the history of my city… thanks for your unique perspective on the historical significance of skyscrapers throughout the decades and changing landscape of NYC… great content as usual…

Loving these longer, focused videos on a certain topics. You cannot beat the B1M on a normal day, but these ‘feature videos’ raise the bar, and you also get to learn a lot about that area (in this case NYC) cracking effort 👏🏻

I worked for ten years in maintenance at 45 Park Avenue. One of my favorite things to do was to have my break on the roof--especially at night. To see the Chrysler Building on a clear night was so breathtaking. I was up there so many times that my supervisor knew where I was without even using the walkie-talkie. It is one of the few things I missed on that job.

To me, as a NewYorker, the city is like a person a character a personality that grows and changes as it goes thru time. It indulges fads, trends, priorities and also painful times. Every scar, crack, pothole and yes building has a story attached.

I love the Art Deco skyscrapers. They’re iconic. The trump tower is so tacky. I have mixed feelings about the newer generation of skyscrapers. I feel like many of them look like they could exist anywhere- they’re not uniquely New York. The architect and urban planner Vishaan Chakrabarti referred to it as the "creeping sameness" that is besetting the planet.

For someone who never seen a building taller than 2 floors... This is absolutely fantastic! Thanks!

Love this kind of episode. Can you do these for other cities too!?? Amsterdam is going through a fascinating development this decade after for a long time banning ‘sky scrapers’ (yeah I know the stuff here technically doesn’t qualify as skyscraper). Especially the A’dam tower is awesome.

Thanks for this very informative video. The Chrysler Building is majestic and the thought of it being blocked by this new monolith is heartbreaking. There really is something uplifting about being able to see the Chrysler from around the city and to watch it continually change according to the light and weather. Along with the Empire State it forms a dynamic duo that for many people is the most recognisable visual representation of Manhattan. I cannot believe that for future generations of New Yorkers and tourists that iconic view will be forever lost.

I'm glad you mentioned the Skyscraper Museum. Another thing we are known for here in NYC is our museums, and I've been to most of them. I can tell you if you watched this entire video you would love the Skyscraper Museum. It's one of the tiny museums that most people skip by, but makes up for it's small size by it's charm.

Very interesting video, thanks! New York's skyscraper boom started before the 1920s however - there was the Flatiron (1902), Singer (1908), Metropolitan Life (1909), and Woolworth (1913), each working out what the world's tallest building should look like.

I went to New York for the first time just a few weeks ago, the Chrysler Building is undoubtedly the most beautiful building I've ever seen.

Very interesting. I am a construction manager myself and find these developments fascinating. Keep up the good work.

I always wanted to visit New York City and you practically took me on a tour. The fact a city can be known just by its skyscrapers is great!!! Thanks B1M. Keep up the good work.

"It’s the next chapter in the relentless evolution of..." quality presentation videos of a subject [of any sort] on TRshow. The B1M is (in my mind) now the gold standard of how an info video should be presented, directed and produced. Your crew is exceptional! I eagerly await your next chapter!

Once buildings get older they will be liked or even cherished. This is a common theme. New things are seen as bad, but as they age they are seen as more valuable. I think this has to do with people's memories when they are young. Younger people when they grow older will cherish these new buildings and its architecture. I know things built when I was little were hated and now they are valued as years go on, giving a memory of nostalgia.

An excellent episode, feels like a special. I hope to visit New York, to see the Chrysler sparkle in the sun before a new build covers it in shadow. Glass builds are stunning, Iceland Harper Hall isn't a skyscraper but it's beautiful, have a look. Fred's presentation excellent as always, best wishes everyone. (Rob)

How did I find myself watching an entire documentary about sky scrapers in New York from start to finish? Great works guys, thoroughly informative and entertaining!

I never really appreciated the Chrysler Building due to the fact I worked mostly Downtown and the Westside. Then I had an interview over on 42nd & Park. I had time to kill and wandered towards the CB. It is so impressive from the outside, but the lobby is absolutely incredible. A true Art Deco beauty and a marvelous structure. It’s a miracle that it survived pretty much intact in a city that’s constantly changing.

THAT was AMAZING! Historical perspective is SO powerful! Fred ( @The B1M ), I love how you used this video presenting why new buildings are good, to actually help prevent forgetting our history - a problem that I would presume is the main argument against "covering" the Chrysler Building. Well done, sir! Well done.

It’s always interesting how by looking at buildings how much you can learn about the culture/society/values. Say, when a city/nation has artifacts of other nations, there’s a solid chance that said nation was quite militaristic. But on the other hand, nations often gift their Ally’s statues/buildings/sculptures, to build/enhance the relations between citizens. Like back when literacy was uncommon, that it would take weeks, months, years if ever to get information from one side of a country to the other. A monument that was gifted, the citizens wouldn’t need to be able to read, information could pass from mouth to ear, of their ally being attacked/mistreated/etc, which would so that when taxes were raised, or soldiers sent to assist, it was easier to understand/accept. Especially if said nation didn’t have as much infrastructure, and when times were more focused on being pragmatic. In Hong Kong, several massive sky scrappers between the ocean and mountains have massive holes in the center, to allow “dragons” to migrate from the mountains to the sea. Japanese hospitals generally don’t use 4 & 9, for rooms or even floors. ( they just skip the number, or in some cases don’t do particular things on said floor. One of the pronunciations for 4 being the same as death, and 9 agony) Egypt, sure slavery existed. But you also gotta factor in the Pharaoh’s were essentially living gods, from my understanding the intensity even put middle age EU royalty and Chinese emperors did not have as intense believers. To even gauge the value of certain faiths. Looking at some mosques & churches that took several centuries to build. If you lived on a farm your entire life, to then traveling, going through village to village, most things being made of wood and stones to seeing something like Norte Dame. Of course you’d think “These people must be pleasing the gods.” Or with the Ottoman Empire invading Spain, and trying to build mosques as fast as possible. Even though they were the invaders, many people must’ve felt intimidated at first, but then ti hear “non Muslims are welcomed” to see the beauty, and how it likely was interpreted as a gift. It’s really not a surprise how effective the Ottoman Empire was. It also always fascinates me, that during War time, even during wars like WW2, that leaders would actually have agreements not to fight / destroy particular cities and buildings.

This was an excellent presentation. Having said that, I truly hope the developers of the Commodore tower are having second thoughts now that work from home has become so commonplace and office occupancy rates are so low. Many companies are reducing the amount of space or vacating altogether in order to adapt to this societal change. This is already impacting the redevelopment plans around Penn Station. If the Commodore tower gets built I think it will be absolutely tragic for how it will completely block views of the Chrysler Building from anywhere west. If this monstrous structure were going up five blocks away or more it wouldn't matter as much, but to completely block one of New York's most beloved landmarks is very sad indeed.

Great video. I stopped through Manhattan yesterday to check out the skyline haven't not been there in 20 years. Those narrow towers are impressive. I can only imagine what they must feel like on the upper levels during a hurricane.

Not only is the production quality brilliant of your videos but Fred could totally explore a parallel career as a news anchor or a voice over artist for various documentary channels 👏

It's strange to say the start of the worlds tallest office building competition began with the Chrysler Building. In NYC the race for worlds tallest building had been in earnest since at least the 1880's with such as the Park Row building and New York World Building. Also interesting that before 1880, the tallest buildings were all cathedrals. Like NY traded one god for another.

I like some new building but as an artist prefer ornate sculptures, etc. on buildings. Much of which was sadly lost in Europe thanks to the World Wars and sadly no one contributes that style anymore. I recently went to NY and was blown away by the architecture on and in the NY Library. It’s beautiful

Many years ago the company I worked for wanted to move their head office into the Chrysler Building and waited for a long time while renting in the IBM Building. Finally, I think it was in the 70's, their desired floor in the Chrysler Building became vacant and they moved into the 61st floor, which had a balcony and the gargoyles at each corner. I only visited the head office 5 or 6 times times, but the experience of entering the building, even getting into the elevator was surreal. Everything was exquisitely art-decor from elevator doors to marble walls, inlaid brass fittings, and on and on, but the experience of standing on the balcony looking over NY was an experience I will never forget. Such a privileged experience for an art-decor lover, great memories

Great stuff. I would love to see something like this on the Singer Building, which was one of the first ever Skyscrapers, finished in 1898 I think. It was deconstructed from 1967-69 to make way for the modern One Liberty Plaza, now 50 years old itself (it opened when I was a baby).

Like the Chrysler Building's story, I've heard many stories about iconic buildings in many different cities, that were nearly universally hated at the time of their construction, but later became nearly universally cherished city icons. The conclusion I've come to is many folks instinctively hate the visual esthetics of anything they aren't intimately familiar with. Such a tendency doesn't seem very intelligent or societally beneficial, in my opinion. 😐

Fascinating presentation on one of my favourite subjects. I live in the middle of a forest and I'm happy to not have to experience these monstrosities.

The quality of these mini-documentaries is astonishing. Great work B1M team!

Fun fact: the tube within a tube design used in the WTC design was first implemented in the building now known as the Cook County Administration Building in Chicago. A rather unassuming uninteresting building that had a MASSIVE role in the evolution of towers

Wow, what a great watch. Very well researched and presented. Please continue to make more videos like this, perhaps on different cities.

Thank you for doing proper video captioning. I watch videos a lot when I’m in noisy places, so I use captions frequently. It’s always refreshing to see when care has been taken to convey the content of the video, not just slap on automated captions and call it good. I’m sure Deaf viewers appreciate it too. Well done!

Loved this video, and I've been waiting for you to do a combined Midtown East one for a while! I'm still amazed that I've yet to see a render that includes all of 175 Park, 270 Park, One Vanderbilt, and (if possible) Penn15 in one view, alongside the Chrysler and Empire State. Would've been cool if you had talked a bit about the East Side Access project here too!

Wow, I never noticed how much the NY skyscrapers have been changing over the years. Thank you for sharing

I’m surprised there aren’t height restrictions around the Chrysler Building like there is around the Space Needle in Seattle, which are there to stop other buildings from blocking everyone's view of the landmark.

Keep up the good work and keep the team. B1M is one of my fav YT channels for years now.

To be fair the Elizabeth Tower (Big Ben) was, built 160 years ago, actually on a river bank on a site occupied for over 1000years; and 10% of the tilt was planned for when they extended the underground line close by. They estimate it is good for around 4000 years. Not quite the cock-up in San Fransisco.

The way you told the city's history through its buildings is more than amazing! It was very emotional watching your video and makes me want to go there again and enjoy how the city looks knowing all what you said now... :)

Superb video. As a Coast Guard officer and recreational sailor bringing ships and boats to and through New York Harbor over more than 40 years, New York's buildings are what makes it such an amazing site from the water. And one of the newest innovations is the building lighting, which is now enabled by complicated LED installations that are a new grand art form (for New York) that is visually absolutely arresting.

Thank you for producing such an interesting documentary. I found the history and the commentary very balanced. Well done.

As a young Englishman when i moved to NYC in '98, I lived in the shadow of the WTC Twin Towers, and walked through there every day. I left NYC in '06 and returned last year. That area holds a lot of memories for me, and I'm still emotional watching this video. I think this is one of the most informative, and sympathetic explanations of the WTC I've seen, succinct but comprehensive, and not just a rehashing of the myriad stories already out there. The rest of the video of course is up to your normal excellent standards, if not exceeding them. great video, great channel!

Ok, first video of this channel Ive seen and I am blown away by the quality! Thanks for this superb work and not rushing it like most other youtubers think they would have to do. Great cinematography, graphics and presentation!

This is my favorite video of 2022 from the B1M and the reason I originally subscribed to the channel. The focus on past, present and future architecture of skyscrapers indulges my appetite for construction and design. A nice break from the current green agenda condemning construction projects.

One World Trade Center fascinates me. I remember it being discussed relatively soon (or so it felt), then it felt like nothing happened, and then (from my perspective, on the other side of the world) it was suddenly there, without any globally perceived announcement. I like the thought that went into it and let's acknowledge for a moment how much more ginormous it is than any other building in Manhattan. While I never liked the look of the skyline with its weird cluttered mix of very different skyscrapers, OWTC pulls it together nicely, forming a symmetry and visual sense of natural falloff in the average skyline height to both sides. The footprint waterfalls are such a beautiful idea. I'm surprised they did that, given the significant amount of space that remains untouched in an ever-densifying city, but it's just beautiful. I couldn't find out just now what used to be in the location where OWTC stands now? I assume one of the smaller buildings of the previous complex? Another thing: Let's appreciate what an absurd amount of mass can be carried by such a foundation and the immensely sturdy steel construction. A lot of un-hyped progress is going on in so many technological areas.

Another great video! A few months ago, i just went to NYC for the first time and for someone like me who loves construction, to see those skyscrapers made me emotional, I cried when I watched the Chrysler Building it is a piece of art!

I would say with the chrysler" building an the empire state" building as well known, the twins" tower's will always be remembered as the most recognizable style that actually made New York City completely stand out an best know compared to every city metro around the globe

A huge thing about Midtown East in the next few years is the fact that the East Side Access is being added to Grand Central, which will make it much easier for millions to access that area from Long Island. Edit for context: I think you may have covered this massive project in the past. In the past, millions of people per day were forced to go to Penn Station to go to Midtown East, adding at least 20-30 min to each commute. With Midtown East’s expansion, I also think it deserves a better name. Someone help me with this part 😅

It seems like the new construction will partially block the Chrysler Building from the observation deck of the Empire State building, which is where I suspect the most people have experienced the full profile of the Chrysler from, rather than just a view from below. I’m glad they’re building new structures in New York, but it seems odd to obstruct the view of a historic piece of the skyline from arguably the city’s most famous observation deck.

Fascinating, highly educational and very well made - please keep up the good work

I have never watched an episode that I didn't enjoy, but this one is a great one! Congrats! Architectural history is fascinating.

I’m really glad the old school stepped look is coming back. In my opinion Art Deco and Deco inspired skyscrapers look far better then the modernist ones and reflect NYC perfectly.

I visited New York City over the summer. I loved seeing all these different skyscrapers from different eras! It was beautiful!!!!

Damn B1M, you’ve been my favorite YT channel for years but this has to be my favorite piece up until now. Absolutely love the historic and socio-economic angles. Great to see you guys always keep improving your production value, very much appreciated!

This video is beyond crisp. Eye-popping visuals and cutting-edge content. Truly THE channel for construction and engineering. And to think I began to follow B1M when it had a "measly" 80k subscribers... 🥲

The Foshay Tower in Minneapolis was once the tallest building west of the Mississippi, now it looks a bit like a garden gnome, hidden amidst the downtown towers.

I found this documentary fascinating, because the last time I've been to NYC was in 1998 so many of the buildings that have gone up since, felt alien to me. Yes I've driven by the city and seen the skyline since but really never gave it that much thought, except for the Freedom Tower measuring 1776 feet high, probably because that's the only one that really reached mainstream media. Well that, and Trump Tower

I absolutely love the quality of your videos. Keep on doing that :)

Wow, fantastic story behind The Chrysler. There really is nothing more iconic for NYC than that design in my mind, even to this day.

As per usual, a wonderful segment from B1M!

Having worked in NYC most of my life, plenty of memories of these buildings. I worked in 40 Wall Street for about a year, for instance. I also narrowly missed the bombing of the garage of the World Trade Center (1993) as well. Drove a delivery van then, and was down there all the time.

That was a seriously interesting video. I really like how you delve into the History of skyscrapers in New York. Is there any chance you might do more videos about the History of construction?

I still miss the previous World Trade Center One and Two. And there were the others lower buildings there with them as well. I live in New York back in the early 1970s and had summers trips there as well.

Would love to see you do a similar type video on the crazy architecture of Las Vegas. Would be such a fun watch for a city that doesn’t know the word subtlety.

This guy does such an excellent job covering New York. He clearly loves our city.

When you watch a video like this, slick, professional, and very informative, it comes as no surprise that television is losing its grip. A fascinating topic, well presented.

Amazingly crafted and great production value! Can't miss

So often I find myself looking back to the aesthetics of the 1930s as the model of the way forward. Style, statement and art.

I love both Art Deco & Neo Gothic. The Chrysler Building is beautiful but my favorite skyscraper is the Woolworth Building

FunFact: The reason why Manhattan is able to support such tall buildings is because of the breakup of Pangaea. You see, where Manhattan is now, there was once a rift-valley. And with continental rifting comes magma upwelling. The cliffs of the Palisades, on the west side of the Hudson, are the cooled, crystalized remains of an ancient magma chamber. Likewise, Manhattan Island is underlaid by ancient basalt. And not all that far below the surface, either. [Thank you, Laurentide Ice Sheet!] That's a very, very stable base to anchor the supports of a skyscraper into, and you can go quite deep without ever hitting the end of that volcanic rock. The last thing that helps NYC with such tall skyscrapers is that (1) It's on a passive continental margin that hasn't been geologically-active in a good 100 million years; (2) It's on the coast, away from the tornado-forming-interior of North America; (3) It's far enough north that getting hit by hurricanes is [well, was] a fairly rare occurrence.

Very good informative video. Very interesting to be fair. Great presenter as well! Edit: and one think I'll say in London whilst im waiting for a bus is looking at old school(beautiful) buildings which are a 1/4 full used and yet we still build more... I'm not a snapper but yes in reality it's about the people at the top and who's making money. Second edit: can't wait to be a bladerunner 😂

I’m loving the longer format videos you have been putting out lately. Would be interested to see similar videos for other historic cities.

The thing I want to know is just how big would Manhattan have to be to have the same square footage as the existing island plus all the square footage contained in all the buildings from the second floor up, inclusive. And one could also count the roof space. How big would that island be?

New York City has an unspeakable magic. It's a City which is impossible not to fall in love with. Once you visit it, it changes you forever and fills you with increadible feeling of life, joy, pride and inspiration. Thank you for this beautiful story.

This was very well done, and as the Chrysler and Empire State buildings are beautiful, I think the designs for those epic new office buildings look pretty great as well!

The quality of your videos is outstanding. Excellent work!

The Chrystler is still my favorite. Love that art deco era.

The Chrysler is still the best-looking skyscraper in the city. Such an iconic design

The Chrysler building is top-tier architectural design. That is one of the best looking buildings in the U.S. Classic New York! And that's coming from a Chicagoan! 🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲

I love the art deco revivalism seen in the JP Morgan tower and gothic Brooklyn tower. Steinway Tower has some art deco elements too.

Thank you, Fred. Great episode. Years ago my family and I went to New Jersey for a wedding. We stayed right across the Hudson River from Lower Manhatten. The room my brother and I were in overlooked a parking lot but we go around the corner to the room out parents were in and there they were. The Twin Towers looming right over us. The day after the wedding we were eating outside as the sun was going down over New Jersey and the Towers were lit up like a film set. That is something I will never forget. And to think my Dad was there too. My father survived the Halifax Explosion of 1917. The greatest man made explosion before the nuclear age. Little did we know that day what would happen. You thought they would be there forever. And I had the chance to ask Daniel Liebskind at a Q+A if he was haunted by the ghost of Minoru Yamasaki. Should have gone for it! New York is just not the same without them.

I don't believe that the skyscraper is even close to being done, but I do think that some reimagining will likely occur with the next couple of decades. I personally think that skyscrapers should adapt to a much more mixed use setup. Have shops on low levels, then offices, then housing. Building vertically definitely allows to fit a lot more people into a smaller overall footprint, and having some government investment to help ensure that a certain percent of living space is for low income residents.

This, this is a gem. Thank you for sharing this with us.

I loved this style of episode. I'd love to see more longer videos like this for various cities around the world.

Would love to see you take on other cities like Singapore.

First of all, great video, great quality, and content. My wife and I just came back from a quick trip to NYC, as we were leaving the city and heading towards JFK, she mentioned how "it is crazy that the Chrysler Building is slowing getting covered" This was on December 14, and my jaw dropped 30 mins ago when saw this video on my subscriptions feed uploaded on the same day! Ever since I was a child the Chrysler building was always one of my favorites, despite taller and newer being built in NYC. I have been to the observation deck of most Skyscrapers and to the lobby of most iconic/historic buildings in the city, but by far, the one I cannot die without going to the top is the Chrysler Building. I really hope that they do something to bring that jewel back to life. I have been to the lobby of the building once and it was empty and quiet. There is now an Amazon Go store that didn't even try to blend in with the beauty of the building, Being a beloved city landmark they should offer an experience for those who travel from afar to see it in person, after all, it is even listed as a tourist attraction.

I have a hard time believing that New Yorkers in 1930 thought the Chrysler Building was an "eyesore." Today it's considered one of the most beautiful skyscrapers ever built and I fail to see how that wouldn't have been the case at a time when art deco was in vogue.

love the content covered by B1M...well delivered yet again 👏

The future of mega city building will be a handful of super structures taking up multiple blocks being fairly high, containing tens of thousands of families but have such an interesting design to feature it being very open and accessible. Lots of parking garages for vehicles out of sight on sidewalks. Many commercial / recreational districts with focus on diversity of stores available for daily needs. Create it's own eco system essentially. But most importantly separate the industrial from the commercial. Under ground deliveries of goods etc. etc. sorta like main highway floor in cruise ships to deliver goods on without customer interference.