Wyndham New Yorker Hotel

Throughout the 1940s and 1950s the hotel was among New York's most fashionable. The New York Observer noted that in the building's heyday actors celebrities athletes politicians mobsters the shady and the luminous the entire Brooklyn Dodgers rester during the glory seasons would stalk the bars and ballrooms or romp upstairs. It hosted many popular Big Bands such as Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey while notable figures such as Spencer Tracy Joan Crawford and Fidel Castro stayed there. Inventor Nikola Testa spent the last ten years of his life in near seclusion in Suite 3327 where he died largely devoting his time to feeding pigeons while occasionally meeting dignitaries. In later years Muhammad Ali would recuperte there after his March 1971 fight against Joe Frazier at the Garden.

Notwithstanding its early success New York's changing economy and demographics caused the building to slowly decline and as a result its ownership changed several times. It was purchased by Hilton Hotels in 1953 for $12.5 million and following an antitrust suit by the federal government was sold just three years later in 1956 for $20 million to Massaglia Hotels. In 1959 Massaglia sold the hotel to an investment syndicate known as New York Towers Ltd which went bankrupt allowing Hilton to reacquire the building in 1967.

By the time Hilton reacquired the hotel the pronounced decline in New York's fortunes coupled with the construction of new more modern hotels caused the New Yorker to become unprofitable. As a result Hilton closed the hotel in April 1972. Initially left vacant several proposals were made for the building including redevelopment as a low income housing devolopment and a hospital. Ultimately in 1975 it was purchased by the Unification Church of the United States for $5.6 million. The church converted much of the building for use by its members.