919 North Michigan

From Towrs

Contents 1 Statistics 2 Timeline 3 Trivia 4 919 North Michigan Building Pictures

Statistics

• Originally: The Playboy Building
• Formerly: Palmolive Building
• Type: Skyscraper
• Uses: Residential, Retail
• Address: 919 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60611

Timeline

• 1929: Construction completed.
• 1982: Ground floor renovated by Skidmore, Owings, & Merrill (SOM)
• June 3, 2006: The building is renovated from offices to apartments, and the whole building is illuminated, but in 2008, the blinking beacon portion is turned off.
• July 4, 2007: The Lindbergh Beacon is illuminated for several hours as a test. The device is fitted with baffles and its rotation restricted to keep light from shining into neighboring homes.

Trivia

• Architecture firm: Holabird & Root
• The building is topped with a rotating beacon on a 150-foot-tall mast. This Lindbergh Beacon was used to by pilots as a navigational aid until neughboring buildings obstructed it and neighbors complained about the light.
• Geoffrey Baer says he may be able to remember the "Lindbergh Beacon" when it was lit up at night, before it was turned off, and how "shining out" it was towards the lake.

919 North Michigan Building Pictures

• 919 North Michigan from above in downtown Chicago, from inside the John Hancock Center. Photo By: Wayne Lorentz
• Lower Floors of 919 North Michigan in Chicago. Photo By: Wayne Lorentz
• The "Lindberg Beacon" atop the Palmolive Building in Chicago, Illinois. Photograph © Wayne Lorentz. Courtesy of Chicago Architecture Info