 GE Building, New York City
The GE Building, also known as 30 Rock, is a famous 70-storey Art Deco skyscraper that forms the centerpiece of the Rockefeller Center in Midtown Manhattan. It should not be confused with the General Electric Building in Midtown Manhattan.
The GE Building was known as the RCA Building until 1988, and houses the headquarters of the NBC television network. At 850 feet (259 meters) tall, the GE Building is the 10th tallest building in New York City and the 33nd tallest in the United States. Unlike most other tall Art-Deco buildings constructed in the 1930s, the GE Building has no spire on its roof.
The GE Building was completed in 1933 as part of the original Rockefeller Center. It was named the RCA Building for its main tenant, the Radio Corporation of America, formed in 1919 by General Electric. The GE Building was the first building to be constructed with the elevators grouped in the central core.
The National Broadcasting Company, also owned by General Electric, rented space in the building. The Rockefeller family originally occupied Room 5600 on the 56th floor. Today it is occupied by Rockefeller Family & Associates, spanning from the 54th floor and the 56th floor of the building. The building acquired official landmark status in 1985. In 1988 it was renamed as the GE Building in 1988, two years after General Electric re-acquired the RCA Corporation.
One of the best panoramic views of New York City can be enjoyed from the observation deck atop the GE Building, dubbed "Top of the Rock". Closed since 1986, it reopened to the public on 1 November 2005, after undergoing a $75 million renovation. The deck is built to resemble the deck of an ocean liner. While it rivals the 86th floor observatory of the Empire State Building, it allows views a panoramic view of the latter.
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