4. Ziegfeld Theater

The Ziegfeld Theater, shown above before it closed as a movie theater, is itself a second version of the original Ziegfeld, located just next door. There is nothing very architecturally distinctive about the second Ziegfeld, especially in comparison to the wildly imaginative original designed by Joseph Urban and Thomas Lamb. But it is likely the name Ziegfeld, which conjures up the heady excess of Gilded Age entertainment venues, that partially caused the uproar when it was announced that the movie theater would be closing in 2016. It and the Paris Theatre were the only two single-screen cinemas left in Manhattan at the time., though the Ziegfeld had nearly twice the number of seats.

The Ziegfeld is now a ballroom operated by Gotham Events. The renovation has an Art Deco influence and is said to draw inspiration from the S.S. Normandie’s interiors.