It’s Just 1271 Sixth Avenue Now
Our own Ralph Spielman walked into the reopened and refurbished lobby of 1271 Sixth Avenue (or 1271 Avenue of the Americas, as it is officially known) the other day and found the serpentine Copacabana tiling on the floor and the oversized font of type on the north wall, just as they were when we were there, but nothing to tell visitors that this had been the Time & Life Building for almost 60 years. The lobby is protected as a city landmark so much of it remains unchanged while the Rockefeller Group finishes a $600 million renovation of the rest of the building. The burnished steel panels around the elevators shafts remain and the art works by Josef Albers and Fritz Glamer are still there. From the outside, the building looks new. The windows are wider and deeper, so there will be more light inside and the outside will present a curtain wall of glass. Other changes include a new HVAC system and elevators with new interior and “destination dispatch controls.”
The renovation, overseen by the I.M.Pei company, will be finished at the end of this year and the building will reopen early next year. Since last summer it has been almost fully booked. Greenhill & Co., an investment bank, scooped up the last available full floors, 20 and 21, in June. Depending on what the tenant wants entire floors can be completely open.
The Rockefeller Group has been signing up new tenants since 2018, most notably Major League Baseball, which will consolidate its offices from the Park Avenue headquarter and other buildings scattered around the city. It will take over the 4th through the 9th floors. That will give MLB use of the 8th floor terrace. MLB will also have a retail outlet in the lobby and will have access to the sidewalk plaza, which has been redesigned.
It’s no longer our building. Literature put out about the building refers to its “iconic stature” and “historic” character but you have to search to find a reference to Time and Life.
In the plaza outside the building, the wavy Copacabana paving remains, as does the cornerstone to remind people this was the Time & Life building. But the pool is gone as is the sculpture of a huge twisted paperclip or magnet, or whatever it was. Living plants will decorate the plaza.
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It is in the nature of alumni to talk about “the good old days.” Here we will talk about the history of the institution where we spent some or much of our lives. This section will dip into the life and times of what we produced over the years since Briton Hadden and Henry Luce conceived of the original TIME in 1920, the first issue in 1923 and what happened until the company’s demise in 2018. You will find selections by Bill Hooper from the Time Archives, reprints from the newsletter and other sources as we collect them. —JM
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The Time covers shown here were selected to illustrate Jeremy Main’s review of The Illustrated History of the World’s Most Influential Magazine, TIME, By Norberto Angeletti and Alberto Oliva, Rizzoli, 2010.
The review appeared in the Fall 2010 and Spring 2011 issues of our printed newsletter.
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The Time covers shown here were selected to illustrate Jeremy Main’s review of The Illustrated History of the World’s Most Influential Magazine, TIME, By Norberto Angeletti and Alberto Oliva, Rizzoli, 2010.
The review appeared in the Fall 2010 and Spring 2011 issues of our printed newsletter.
Out of Our Past
In November 1973, prior to People’s first issue dated March 4, 1974,publisher Dick Durrell and Ad Director Dick Thomas
gathered the newly hired sd sales staff together for a dinner in the Airplane Room at Christ Cella.
Seated: John Crowley, Frank Roth, Dick Durrell, Dick Thomas, Mike Carpenter
Back row: Ray Scheuler, Mick Jenney, Bob Bantz, Don Foster. Picture provided by Frank Roth. Posted 5/23/2019
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gathered the newly hired sd sales staff together for a dinner in the Airplane Room at Christ Cella.
Seated: John Crowley, Frank Roth, Dick Durrell, Dick Thomas, Mike Carpenter
Back row: Ray Scheuler, Mick Jenney, Bob Bantz, Don Foster. Picture provided by Frank Roth. Posted 5/23/2019
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Bill Hooper, formerly Time Inc.’s archivist and now guardian of the company archives at the New-York Historical Society, several years ago, mounted an exhibit of Sports Illustrated memorabilia in the TIME & LIFE Building, on the 2nd floor’s long cafeteria corridor. To accompany the exhibit he wrote an exhaustive history of the magazine. Here is the first segment of his history, which we will publish here in full over time.
Chapter 2: Mr. Luce is in “An Empire-Building Mood”
Chapter 1: Mr. Hadden’s Dreams of a “SPT. MAG.” Scroll down
Chapter 2: Mr. Luce is in “An Empire-Building Mood”
Chapter 1: Mr. Hadden’s Dreams of a “SPT. MAG.” Scroll down
Chapter 2: Mr. Luce is in
“An Empire-Building Mood”
It was, perhaps, unfair of Hadden to so bitterly grumble, “H.R. Luce, no sportsman he.” Co-founder Henry Luce was reportedly a strong, graceful tennis player in his youth. He was known to play golf and baseball on occasion—but Alan Brinkley had to admit in his biography of Luce that “Luce had never been very much interested in sports or wilderness activities himself.” In the decades between Hadden’s death and the launch of Sports Illustrated, the suggestion to develop a sports magazine was floated several times, but the idea failed to gain any traction with Luce or his closest associates.
Luce established an Experimental Department in 1933, to sift through “ideas about ‘What To Do Next.’” One of the ideas listed was “an all sports magazine.” But, Luce’s heart was set on “A picture magazine.” In November 1936, he launched Life.
Early in 1943, Luce established a Post War Committee. A memo to the Senior Group members of the committee lists collected suggestions for post-war expansion. There were suggestions for “A Magazine of Opinion,” “A world magazine,” and even a suggestion that we “Take over Walt Disney” (!), but no mention of a sports magazine.
In November of 1950, Time Inc. President Roy E. Larsen set up a development department, and placed Daniel Longwell, who was instrumental in the creation of Life magazine, in charge of the department. Larsen sent out a memo to the Time Inc. staff, soliciting suggestions. Robert Cowin, an ambitious young assistant circulation manager for Time, sent Longwell a three-page argument for a sports magazine as our next publishing venture. Cowin explained that “While in Columbus two weeks ago in connection with a survey Time is conducting. . . I made a number of home interviews and was amazed at the number of women who said their husbands constantly have their heads buried in some kind of sports literature. . . With the trend toward a shorter work week and more holidays, the number of people—and the time they spend—engaged in their favorite sporting activity is growing at an enormous rate. Why not cater to this obvious interest?”
In March of 1951, when Longwell sent a summary of all the suggestions to members of the Development Department, Cowin’s recommendation was at the very top of his list. But, as Michael MacCambridge reported, in his history of Sports Illustrated (The Franchise, Hyperion, NY, 1997), at that time, “None of the ideas seemed like quite the right one; none seemed big enough to seize the imagination of a company that was respected in Washington D.C., trusted across America, and known throughout the world.”
Yet, as they continued to weigh the various suggestions, Luce noted that “The compass needle always came back to sport.” The idea for a sports magazine got a further boost from one of Life magazine’s more successful promotions. In 1952, Life invited its readers to “compete” against reigning golf pro, Ben Hogan, on a “National Golf Day.” More than 87,000 readers paid to play an 18-hole round on their own courses against Hogan’s round on a course in Dallas. After this demonstration of interest in golf, and of our influence with the affluent middle class, the future of a sports magazine looked much more promising.
Robert Elson reported in Volume II of his Time Inc. history (The World of Time Inc.: 1941-1960, Atheneum, NY, 1973) that we became more confident “that the fast growing leisure time activities of the American people would create the kind of readership that would make the magazine a unique advertising medium. The theory was bolstered by ‘The Changing American Market’ series which Fortune began publishing in 1953; the titles of these articles indicated their thrust: ‘The Rich Middle-Income Class,’ ‘The Lush New Suburban Market’. . . ‘$30 Billion for Fun.’”
Alan Brinkley states in The Publisher that by early 1953 Luce was once again in what Editorial Director John Shaw Billings called “an empire building mood. . . .”
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“An Empire-Building Mood”
It was, perhaps, unfair of Hadden to so bitterly grumble, “H.R. Luce, no sportsman he.” Co-founder Henry Luce was reportedly a strong, graceful tennis player in his youth. He was known to play golf and baseball on occasion—but Alan Brinkley had to admit in his biography of Luce that “Luce had never been very much interested in sports or wilderness activities himself.” In the decades between Hadden’s death and the launch of Sports Illustrated, the suggestion to develop a sports magazine was floated several times, but the idea failed to gain any traction with Luce or his closest associates.
Luce established an Experimental Department in 1933, to sift through “ideas about ‘What To Do Next.’” One of the ideas listed was “an all sports magazine.” But, Luce’s heart was set on “A picture magazine.” In November 1936, he launched Life.
Early in 1943, Luce established a Post War Committee. A memo to the Senior Group members of the committee lists collected suggestions for post-war expansion. There were suggestions for “A Magazine of Opinion,” “A world magazine,” and even a suggestion that we “Take over Walt Disney” (!), but no mention of a sports magazine.
In November of 1950, Time Inc. President Roy E. Larsen set up a development department, and placed Daniel Longwell, who was instrumental in the creation of Life magazine, in charge of the department. Larsen sent out a memo to the Time Inc. staff, soliciting suggestions. Robert Cowin, an ambitious young assistant circulation manager for Time, sent Longwell a three-page argument for a sports magazine as our next publishing venture. Cowin explained that “While in Columbus two weeks ago in connection with a survey Time is conducting. . . I made a number of home interviews and was amazed at the number of women who said their husbands constantly have their heads buried in some kind of sports literature. . . With the trend toward a shorter work week and more holidays, the number of people—and the time they spend—engaged in their favorite sporting activity is growing at an enormous rate. Why not cater to this obvious interest?”
In March of 1951, when Longwell sent a summary of all the suggestions to members of the Development Department, Cowin’s recommendation was at the very top of his list. But, as Michael MacCambridge reported, in his history of Sports Illustrated (The Franchise, Hyperion, NY, 1997), at that time, “None of the ideas seemed like quite the right one; none seemed big enough to seize the imagination of a company that was respected in Washington D.C., trusted across America, and known throughout the world.”
Yet, as they continued to weigh the various suggestions, Luce noted that “The compass needle always came back to sport.” The idea for a sports magazine got a further boost from one of Life magazine’s more successful promotions. In 1952, Life invited its readers to “compete” against reigning golf pro, Ben Hogan, on a “National Golf Day.” More than 87,000 readers paid to play an 18-hole round on their own courses against Hogan’s round on a course in Dallas. After this demonstration of interest in golf, and of our influence with the affluent middle class, the future of a sports magazine looked much more promising.
Robert Elson reported in Volume II of his Time Inc. history (The World of Time Inc.: 1941-1960, Atheneum, NY, 1973) that we became more confident “that the fast growing leisure time activities of the American people would create the kind of readership that would make the magazine a unique advertising medium. The theory was bolstered by ‘The Changing American Market’ series which Fortune began publishing in 1953; the titles of these articles indicated their thrust: ‘The Rich Middle-Income Class,’ ‘The Lush New Suburban Market’. . . ‘$30 Billion for Fun.’”
Alan Brinkley states in The Publisher that by early 1953 Luce was once again in what Editorial Director John Shaw Billings called “an empire building mood. . . .”
• • •
Chapter 1: Mr. Hadden’s Dreams
of a “SPT. MAG.”
A restless, compulsive list maker, Time Inc. co-founder Briton Hadden always kept a little black notebook in his pocket, in which to jot down ideas. On one of the pages of the notebook, titled “EXPANSION,” he made a list of possible magazine development projects. Near the top of this list, Hadden wrote down a “SPT. MAG.” (see photo in the slide show above)
From early childhood, Hadden dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player. Though he lacked the physical coordination to play baseball or, for that matter, any game particularly well, his passion for sports never dimmed. In school he tried high jumping, but had to admit, “I am rotten at it. It is good fun however, and I will keep at it until I am kicked out of the gym.” He joined the hockey team, only to be cut from the squad. He went out for football, even though he knew “there isn’t much chance for me to make it.”
But, first and foremost, Hadden was obsessed with baseball. Isaiah Wilner, in his biography of Hadden (The Man TIME Forgot, Harper Collins, 2006) relates that as a child, Hadden “would stand for hours outside the office of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in order to survey a giant scoreboard posted on the building’s wall. As the numbers changed, Hadden memorized each inning’s occurrences.” Later, in a friend’s backyard, he “would recount the entire game from memory. ‘This is the way Ty Cobb did it,’ he would say, setting up at the plate and spewing an imaginary stream of tobacco juice. ‘Now watch.’”
As he reached adulthood, his fantasy of playing professional baseball gradually shifted to the dream of one day owning a major league club. In the mid1920s, when Time Inc. was briefly headquartered in Cleveland, Hadden organized a sandlot baseball team, the Crescent Athletic Club. According to Wilner, “Hadden loved running the team, and he told his friends that one day he would buy a New York ball club. ‘When I get my baseball team, the first thing we do is open the gates and let all the kids in free, see?. . .Then, when all the kids are in and provided there’s still some room left, we begin to sell tickets.’” As a method for selecting checkers and office boys for Time, Hadden expected the boys to answer such questions as, “What is the percentage standing of the first four teams of the National League?”
of a “SPT. MAG.”
A restless, compulsive list maker, Time Inc. co-founder Briton Hadden always kept a little black notebook in his pocket, in which to jot down ideas. On one of the pages of the notebook, titled “EXPANSION,” he made a list of possible magazine development projects. Near the top of this list, Hadden wrote down a “SPT. MAG.” (see photo in the slide show above)
From early childhood, Hadden dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player. Though he lacked the physical coordination to play baseball or, for that matter, any game particularly well, his passion for sports never dimmed. In school he tried high jumping, but had to admit, “I am rotten at it. It is good fun however, and I will keep at it until I am kicked out of the gym.” He joined the hockey team, only to be cut from the squad. He went out for football, even though he knew “there isn’t much chance for me to make it.”
But, first and foremost, Hadden was obsessed with baseball. Isaiah Wilner, in his biography of Hadden (The Man TIME Forgot, Harper Collins, 2006) relates that as a child, Hadden “would stand for hours outside the office of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in order to survey a giant scoreboard posted on the building’s wall. As the numbers changed, Hadden memorized each inning’s occurrences.” Later, in a friend’s backyard, he “would recount the entire game from memory. ‘This is the way Ty Cobb did it,’ he would say, setting up at the plate and spewing an imaginary stream of tobacco juice. ‘Now watch.’”
As he reached adulthood, his fantasy of playing professional baseball gradually shifted to the dream of one day owning a major league club. In the mid1920s, when Time Inc. was briefly headquartered in Cleveland, Hadden organized a sandlot baseball team, the Crescent Athletic Club. According to Wilner, “Hadden loved running the team, and he told his friends that one day he would buy a New York ball club. ‘When I get my baseball team, the first thing we do is open the gates and let all the kids in free, see?. . .Then, when all the kids are in and provided there’s still some room left, we begin to sell tickets.’” As a method for selecting checkers and office boys for Time, Hadden expected the boys to answer such questions as, “What is the percentage standing of the first four teams of the National League?”
In 1928, the year that Hadden created his “EXPANSION” list, he and his cousin, John S. Martin (who would go on to be the first person to be listed on Time’s masthead as Managing Editor), hammered out a prospectus for a sports magazine. In an oral history interview, conducted in 1965 for Time Inc.’s History Project, Martin remembered, “The fact of the matter is that Brit Hadden and I dreamed up a magazine that would cover all sports. There was no magazine devoted to the whole spectrum of sports. There was a baseball magazine, there were football magazines and so on. . .But our idea was there should be an all-sport magazine—it should touch all the bases. . .everybody’s sport would be reported in this thing. But it would be reported by experts, and it would be in the vernacular, and it would be beautifully illustrated. . .there would be meat for everybody. And maybe Hadden and I were, each of us, so interested in all sports that we couldn’t imagine boring anybody. . .Brit and I did a prospectus in 1928. . .we can lay claim to have planted that germ in the publishing company known as Time Inc.”
But, Hadden knew that his and Martin’s concept for a sports magazine would be a hard sell. Wilner reports that Hadden told another cousin, Noel Busch, that “he would launch a sports magazine but for one obstacle. ‘You’ve got to remember that Luce is no sportsman. . .H.R. Luce, no sportsman he.’”
Only a few months later, in December 1928, Hadden became ill with a streptococcus infection that entered his blood stream and affected his heart (wide use of penicillin was still 15 years away). After weeks of battling the infection in Brooklyn Hospital, he passed away on February 27, 1929, six years to the day after he put the first issue of Time to press. (Hadden’s “SPT MAG” was not born until 25 years later and we will tell more of the story over time—Stay Tuned!)
Picture captions: The portrait above of Briton Hadden was painted by Donald M. Campbell, and hangs in the building named in his honor, the Briton Hadden Memorial Building, in New Haven, Connecticut, which houses the offices of the Yale Daily News. Hadden was Chairman of the Yale Daily News from 1918 to 1920. The building was erected by the contributions of 272 friends and admirers of Hadden, and was dedicated on April 27, 1932. The photograph is of John S. Martin who collaborated with his cousin, Briton Hadden, on a prospectus for a sports magazine, in 1928. Martin would go on to be the first person on TIME’s masthead to be listed as Managing Editor (1929 – 1933). He is also the only person at TIME to hold that position for a second time (1936 – 1937). Photo courtesy of the Time Inc. Picture Collection.
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But, Hadden knew that his and Martin’s concept for a sports magazine would be a hard sell. Wilner reports that Hadden told another cousin, Noel Busch, that “he would launch a sports magazine but for one obstacle. ‘You’ve got to remember that Luce is no sportsman. . .H.R. Luce, no sportsman he.’”
Only a few months later, in December 1928, Hadden became ill with a streptococcus infection that entered his blood stream and affected his heart (wide use of penicillin was still 15 years away). After weeks of battling the infection in Brooklyn Hospital, he passed away on February 27, 1929, six years to the day after he put the first issue of Time to press. (Hadden’s “SPT MAG” was not born until 25 years later and we will tell more of the story over time—Stay Tuned!)
Picture captions: The portrait above of Briton Hadden was painted by Donald M. Campbell, and hangs in the building named in his honor, the Briton Hadden Memorial Building, in New Haven, Connecticut, which houses the offices of the Yale Daily News. Hadden was Chairman of the Yale Daily News from 1918 to 1920. The building was erected by the contributions of 272 friends and admirers of Hadden, and was dedicated on April 27, 1932. The photograph is of John S. Martin who collaborated with his cousin, Briton Hadden, on a prospectus for a sports magazine, in 1928. Martin would go on to be the first person on TIME’s masthead to be listed as Managing Editor (1929 – 1933). He is also the only person at TIME to hold that position for a second time (1936 – 1937). Photo courtesy of the Time Inc. Picture Collection.
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