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1. (The following interview was recorded with Andy Warhol at 4:30 A.M. on the 43rd floor of the Time-Life Building, just 30 minutes after completion of the shooting of the 8-hour "underground" movie, EMPIRE, in the summer of 1964.) INTERVIEW WITH ANDY WARHOL ON EMPIRE / by Gerard Malanga GM: Could you tell me how you felt as you were being taken up into the building? AW: The actual elevator ride to the top of the Empire State Building took as little time as one minute, but a visit to Empire State is an experience that each visitor will remember all his life. My thrills began the moment I stepped aboard a modern express elevator which whisked me to the 86th floor Observatory at a speed of 1,200 feet per minute. A special elevator took me to the 102nd story peak. GM: What did you see once you reached the top? AW: Once atop the Empire State Building, the most spectacular view in the world was spread at my feet. from the outdoor terraces or the glass-enclosed, heated Observatory on the 86th floor (1,050 feet or 320 meters), other buildings are dwarfed by this engineering marvel. The view is even more amazing from the circular, glass-enclosed Observatory on the 102nd floor (1,250 feet or 381 meters). Here I was often at cloud level nearly a quarter of a mile above the streets. I could distinguish Landmarks as far away as 25 miles and was able to gaze as far as 50 miles into five states... Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York. GM: What were some of New York's landmarks that you were able to see from atop Empire State? AW: To the north the RCA Building stands out against the 840 acres of Central Park. The Hudson River to the left leads to upper New York State and New England. The Bronx is in the background. From the northwest corner of the 86th floor Observatory, visitors look into Times Square (center) and the bustling piers along the Hudson River, where giant ships from all over the world tie up.
