1000 Park Avenue
Encyclopedia
1000 Park Avenue is an apartment building on the Upper East Side
of the New York City
borough
of Manhattan
. It is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of Park Avenue
and East 84th Street.
It was built in 1915-16 by the developers Bing & Bing
from a design by Emery Roth
. The brown brick structure is 13 stories tall with some Gothic
-inspired stone and terra cotta
decoration
. Two carved figures in medieval dress near the main entrance are said to represent the Bing brothers. Across 84th Street is the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola
.
The building is currently a co-op owned by its residents. There are 64 units,.
Among the former residents of the building are James J. Rorimer, former Director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
, and Nicola Kraus
, co-author of the 2002
bestselling
chick lit
novel The Nanny Diaries
. She vehemently denies that Mrs. X, the mother in the novel, set at a similar Park Avenue building with a fictitious address, is based partially on women she worked for at 1000 Park. Most often speculated as the model for the character is Lisa Birnbach
, a part-time CBS News
correspondent best known for editing The Official Preppy Handbook in 1980, who has some similarities to the character in the book. Birnbach confirmed that Kraus had worked for her, but described her as "more of a play date
for my daughter" than an actual nanny
.
Another resident of 1000 Park named as a possible model for Mrs. X did not return phone calls from The New York Times
requesting comment. Kraus did not think it inappropriate to use her former neighbors as models for her characters, but current residents of building disagreed. One even referred to Kraus as a "snitch" and suggested the co-op board should forbid residents from fictionalizing their neighbors' lives.
Upper East Side
The Upper East Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, between Central Park and the East River. The Upper East Side lies within an area bounded by 59th Street to 96th Street, and the East River to Fifth Avenue-Central Park...
of the New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
borough
Borough (New York City)
New York City, one of the largest cities in the world, is composed of five boroughs. Each borough now has the same boundaries as the county it is in. County governments were dissolved when the city consolidated in 1898, along with all city, town, and village governments within each county...
of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. It is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of Park Avenue
Park Avenue (Manhattan)
Park Avenue is a wide boulevard that carries north and southbound traffic in New York City borough of Manhattan. Through most of its length, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the west and Lexington Avenue to the east....
and East 84th Street.
It was built in 1915-16 by the developers Bing & Bing
Bing & Bing
Bing & Bing was one of the most important apartment real estate developers in New York City in the early 20th century.The firm was founded by Leo S. Bing and his brother, Alexander M. Bing...
from a design by Emery Roth
Emery Roth
Emery Roth was an American architect who designed many of the definitive New York City hotels and apartment buildings of the 1920s and 30s, incorporating Beaux-Arts and Art Deco details...
. The brown brick structure is 13 stories tall with some Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
-inspired stone and terra cotta
Architectural terracotta
Terracotta, in its unglazed form, became fashionable as an architectural ceramic construction material in England in the 1860s, and in the United States in the 1870s. It was generally used to supplement brick and tiles of similar colour in late Victorian buildings.It had been used before this in...
decoration
Ornament (architecture)
In architecture and decorative art, ornament is a decoration used to embellish parts of a building or object. Large figurative elements such as monumental sculpture and their equivalents in decorative art are excluded from the term; most ornament does not include human figures, and if present they...
. Two carved figures in medieval dress near the main entrance are said to represent the Bing brothers. Across 84th Street is the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola
Church of St. Ignatius Loyola (New York City)
The Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola is a Roman Catholic parish located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, administered by the Society of Jesus . The parish is under the authority of the Archdiocese of New York and was established in 1851 as St. Lawrence O’Toole’s Church....
.
The building is currently a co-op owned by its residents. There are 64 units,.
Among the former residents of the building are James J. Rorimer, former Director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, and Nicola Kraus
Nicola Kraus
Nicola Kraus is an American novelist.-Private life:Kraus graduated from New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. She met Emma McLaughlin while both were attending New York University, and working as nannies...
, co-author of the 2002
2002 in literature
The year 2002 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 16: Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested and jailed poet Abdul Mohsen Musalam and fired a newspaper editor following the publication of Musalam's poem The Corrupt on Earth that criticized the state's Islamic...
bestselling
Bestseller
A bestseller is a book that is identified as extremely popular by its inclusion on lists of currently top selling titles that are based on publishing industry and book trade figures and published by newspapers, magazines, or bookstore chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and...
chick lit
Chick lit
Chick lit is genre fiction which addresses issues of modern womanhood, often humorously and lightheartedly. The genre sold well during the 1990s and 2000s, with chick lit titles topping bestseller lists and the creation of imprints devoted entirely to chick lit...
novel The Nanny Diaries
The Nanny Diaries
The Nanny Diaries is a 2002 novel by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, both of whom are former nannies. The book satirizes upper class Manhattan society as seen through the eyes of their children's caregivers....
. She vehemently denies that Mrs. X, the mother in the novel, set at a similar Park Avenue building with a fictitious address, is based partially on women she worked for at 1000 Park. Most often speculated as the model for the character is Lisa Birnbach
Lisa Birnbach
Lisa R. Birnbach is an author best known for co-authoring The Official Preppy Handbook, which spent 38 weeks at number one on the New York Times bestseller list in 1980.-Career:...
, a part-time CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
correspondent best known for editing The Official Preppy Handbook in 1980, who has some similarities to the character in the book. Birnbach confirmed that Kraus had worked for her, but described her as "more of a play date
Play date
A play date or playdate is an arranged appointment for children to get together for a few hours to play.Playdates have become the standard for children of many western cultures because the work schedules for busy parents, along with media warnings about leaving children unattended, prevent the kind...
for my daughter" than an actual nanny
Nanny
A nanny, childminder or child care provider, is an individual who provides care for one or more children in a family as a service...
.
Another resident of 1000 Park named as a possible model for Mrs. X did not return phone calls from The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
requesting comment. Kraus did not think it inappropriate to use her former neighbors as models for her characters, but current residents of building disagreed. One even referred to Kraus as a "snitch" and suggested the co-op board should forbid residents from fictionalizing their neighbors' lives.