Who wouldn’t like to know where all the celebrities/ famous people live, or have lived?
We did some research for you, so the next time you walk past building x or y you always have a story to tell.
Let’s start off 285 Lafayette Street. This building was originally constructed in 1912 and was subsequently converted into 31 apartments and about 30,000 square feet of retail space. It is surrounded by boutiques, restaurants and excellent public transportation and is also just south of the famed Puck Building on the southeast corner of Houston Street.
No one less then David Robert Jones, better known as ‘David Bowie’, and his wife lived in this apartment. For those of you who don’t know him, he was an English singer and songwriter and also an actor. His world-famous songs like ‘Space Oddity’ or ‘Under Pressure’ are still remembered as one his greatest hits. Unfortunately, Bowie died due to liver cancer in 2016, aged 69.
Next up is 212 Fifth Avenue near Madison Square Park. The majority of you will probably know who just bought a three-story penthouse and the two units below it for a record setting price of about $80 million! Before I tell you who it was, let’s talk a bit about the building and why it was worth spending all that money for it.
“212 Fifth Avenue is an iconic early skyscraper, newly converted to forty-eight exceptional two, three- and four-bedroom condominium residences. Open floor plates, high ceilings and oversized windows create a foundation for dramatic, light flooded residential floor plans with the best of pre-war and contemporary design fused into one. Residences feature gracious entry foyers, galleried hallways, huge loft-like living rooms, fully integrated kitchens, master bedroom suite retreats, dedicated ensuite bathrooms for all other bedrooms, plus powder rooms and smart home technology." Also, the observatory on the third floor of the penthouse opens up into a 950-square-foot terrace that offers views of the Empire State Building, the Flatiron Building, and the World Trade Center.
So, who bought it? It was Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon. He bought this gem in April 2019.
Ever heard of the ‘paparazzi-proof’building? If not, you heard it now! Located at 443 Greenwich Street, this 7 Stories und 53 Units building was built in 1882 and doesn’t lost any of its charm. Just look at the beautiful brick façade! Wow, right?! To maintain its look it got meticulously restored by CetraRuddy Architects.
It offers 8 Penthouses sized between 5,000 SF and 9,300 SF, and also 45 loft-style home sized between 2,900 SF and 4,250 SF. Residents like Rebel Wilson, Harry Styles, Meg Ryan, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jennifer Lawrence, Jessica Biel and Justin Timberlake can enjoy an outstanding portfolio of amenities, including a 24-hour doorman, 24-hour concierge, valet and live-in resident manager and much more. 443 Greenwich also has a 71-foot indoor swimming pool, children’s playroom, 5,000 SF landscaped roof terrace, a fitness center, a private fitness studios, as well as both men’s and women’s locker rooms with an adjacent Hamam.
But why is it, what they all love about this building? Regarding many websites and articles, it’s starts with the privacy, goes along with the ‘protection’ from the paparazzi’s and there are elevators programmed to ensure that homeowners never have to share ride with a neighbor.
What do you think Lucky Luciano, Frank Castello and Meyer Lansky have in common? They were not only all former heads of the Luciano crime family (later know as the Genovese crime family), but they also used to live in the same building. Any Idea which building it could be? Here is a hint: Vincent “The Chin” Gigante shot Frank Castello in the lobby of this building.
It was a failed assassination attempt.
The Building we are talking about is the “The Majestic” located at 115 Central Park West between 71st and 72nd Street. It was constructed in 1930 and designed by Irwin S. Chanin and Jacques Delamarre in the Art Deco style.
The building contains approximately 220 apartments, distributed on 29 stories.
Another, not only famous, but also very good-looking building is the Dakota building.
It is located on the northwest corner of 72nd Street and Central Park West in the Upper West Side of the borough of Manhattan. The construction started in 1880 and finished in 1884. It was designed by the Architect Henry J. Hardenbergh. Interesting fact, the building has no fire escapes…
Personalities like U2's Bono, Rex Reed, Jack Palance, Lillian Gish, Boris Karloff, Rosemary Clooney, Connie Chung, Maury Povich and John Lennon with his wife Yoko Ono have lived in this building.
According to author Stephen Birmingham's 1996 book, "Life at the Dakota" the previous resident of John and Yoko's apartment hid $30,000 under the master-bedroom floor. Whether that's true or not will remain a question, as the board of the Dakota refuses to destroy the floor to solve the mystery.
