Overview
A visual history of Times Square from the late 19th century to today, rich with rarely seen photographs of the neighborhood's shimmering, pre-World War II electric advertising signs.
In Times Square Spectacular, Darcy Tell traces the 100-year story of Times Square using rare photographs and hand-colored lantern slides, maps, restaurant menus, theater programs, magazine covers, postcards, sheet music, and archival documents. Presenting even the most familiar elements of Times Square lore with fresh, eye-catching detail, she pays special tribute to ad man extraordinaire Douglas Leigh's arrival in the early 1930s, which brought a stunning new era of electric brightness and innovation. Leigh dominated the Broadway streetscape for nearly 50 years, stopping traffic with special-effects billboards such as the legendary Camel cigarettes "smoke rings" sign.
Covering both Times Square's infamous decline as well as its hard-wrought, present-day revival, Times Square Spectacular is the first pictorial history of the legendary American landmark.
Synopsis
A visual history of Times Square from the late 19th century to today, rich with rarely seen photographs of the neighborhood's shimmering, pre-World War II electric advertising signs.
In Times Square Spectacular, Darcy Tell traces the 100-year story of Times Square using rare photographs and hand-colored lantern slides, maps, restaurant menus, theater programs, magazine covers, postcards, sheet music, and archival documents. Presenting even the most familiar elements of Times Square lore with fresh, eye-catching detail, she pays special tribute to ad man extraordinaire Douglas Leigh's arrival in the early 1930s, which brought a stunning new era of electric brightness and innovation. Leigh dominated the Broadway streetscape for nearly 50 years, stopping traffic with special-effects billboards such as the legendary Camel cigarettes "smoke rings" sign.
Covering both Times Square's infamous decline as well as its hard-wrought, present-day revival, Times Square Spectacular is the first pictorial history of the legendary American landmark.
The New York Times - Steven Heller
…a smartly illustrated book that captures the brilliance of the area and the designers who made it shine…In addition to other famous images, among them the Kleenex, Camel and Bond signs, this book is loaded with rare documentary photos of advertisements, movie marquees and other marvels of Times Square.
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
Most tourists and Broadway theatergoers would be astonished to learn that Times Square was once renowned as a slaughterhouse and livery district. Darcy Tell's Times Square Spectacular charts the remarkable transformation of the neighborhood in the past century from a warehouse center to the Great White Way that we know today. This rich visual history uses 200 color photographs of period memorabilia and a detailed text to render the story of this center of New York nightlife and culture.Steven Heller
…a smartly illustrated book that captures the brilliance of the area and the designers who made it shine…In addition to other famous images, among them the Kleenex, Camel and Bond signs, this book is loaded with rare documentary photos of advertisements, movie marquees and other marvels of Times Square.—The New York Times