51 Fifth Avenue

51 Fifth Avenue is an uncharacteristically restrained performance from Thomas W. Lamb, an architect known better for lavish theaters; one of his best buildings remaining in New York is the Pythian Temple (now a condominium) at 135 West 70^th Street, a building dominated by theatrical Babylonian and Egyptian details that suggest Cecil B. DeMille.

For this Fifth Avenue commission Lamb followed the lead of other normally flamboyant architects such as Emery Roth and produced a staid Colonial Revival building that still has its share of unique quirks; visible on the 12^th Street façade are a series of double-height windows that mark a series of double-height “Studio” style living rooms, among the first in the city.

Governor Alfred E. Smith lived at 51 Fifth after losing the 1928 Presidential election to Herbert Hoover; he described the building as “aristocratic yet democratic as well.”

51 Fifth was featured in the 1990s TV series “Mad About You” as the home of the couple played by Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt.

Tags: Colonial Revival, Studio Apartments, Thomas Lamb

2 responses to “51 Fifth Avenue”

1. Olga neulist says:

   July 31, 2015 at 8:43 am

   Hello,
   Can you kindly let me know if 51 5th Avenue is a Landmark building or area?
   Thank you,
   Olga

   Reply
   • landmark says:

     August 4, 2015 at 2:37 pm

     51 Fifth Avenue is just north of the Fifth Avenue border of the Greenwich Village Historic district; the building is not an individual landmark either, despite being very much a piece of the neighborhood’s Prewar character.

     Reply