Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Times Square and Theater District
Known as the "Crossroads of the World," Times Square is New York's most
famous intersection and the symbol of the lively surrounding theater district
that includes Broadway. It was called Longacre Square until 1904, when the
New York Times
built a 25-story tower on the site. Its occupancy on New Year's
Eve was marked with fireworks, a celebration that continues today. Currently,
a giant crystal ball descends the building at midnight to herald the new year,
cheered by the millions packed into the square. The reputation of Times Square
was sullied when the adjacent 42nd Street grew seedy in the 1970s. The 1990s
saw the peep shows and X-rated movie houses closed,
and with a massive government and private effort, the
street and neighborhood have again been transformed.
Top 10 Exhibits
1 Broadway Lights
2 Times Square News Ticker
3 Nasdaq Headquarters
4 MTV Headquarters
5 Brill Building
6 Condé Nast Building
7 New 42nd Street
8 Madame Tussaud's, New
York
9 Port Authority Bus Terminal
0 Off-Broadway
News Ticker, Times Square
Go to the TKTS booth
in Times Square at
Broadway and 47th
for half-price tickets
to all kinds of Broad-
way shows.
Discount coupons for
shows are often
available at the Times
Square Information
Center, 1560 Broad-
way between 46th
and 47th streets.
Try to see Broadway
at night, when the
lights are on.
• Times Square is
located where Broadway
and 7th Avenue intersect
at 42nd Street
• Map J3
• www.timessquare
nyc.org
• Madame Tussaud's
New York: 234 West
42nd Street, 1 800
246 8872, open
10am-8pm Mon-Thu,
10am-10pm Fri-Sun,
admission charge,
www.nycwax.com
Broadway Lights
The city's longest street
is known best for the sec-
tion north of 42nd Street
dubbed the “Great White
Way” for its dazzle of neon.
Times Square
News Ticker
In 1928, the
New York
Times
erected the world's
first moving electronic sign
to post news, a fixture that
remains although the
Times
has moved to 43rd Street.
Nasdaq
Headquarters
The headquarters of this
over-the-counter stock mar-
ket dominates its corner
with a screen that regularly
broadcasts financial news.
22
For more entertainment venues
See pp50-51
