WINSTON-SALEM, NC -- It's a Father's Day fact or fiction with a twist of local history.
The phrase chip off the old block has a literally meaning with the Empire State Building in New York and the Reynolds Building, the former home of RJ Reynolds Tobacco, in downtown Winston-Salem.
Fact or fiction: the Empire State Building was modeled after the Reynolds Building?
That's a fact. The architect firm Shreve and Lamb designed and built the Reynolds Building in 1929. It won the "Building of the Year Award". That award got the duo The Empire State Building job. The Empire State Building opened it's doors in 1931.
The folklore is, The Empire State Building sends the Reynolds Building a Father's Day card every year. But it's fiction! David Howard of Reynolds American says a one-time anniversary card is problem the root of the lore.
He sent a picture of the card and the picture. Both hung in the Reynolds Building for years.
In 1979, The Empire State Building's general manager sent the "card". It reads:
"HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DAD
On the 50th anniversary of the Reynolds Building, we would like to offer our congratulations to the structure that served as the architectural model for New York's famous skyscraper. The Empire State Building is one of the world's wonders and we are appreciative of its roots in Winston-Salem, N.C. We hope that the Reynolds Building will continue to serve R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. well, just as the Empire State Building serves the people of New York City.
Robert L. Timber
Vice-President and General Manager
THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING"
The Empire State Building is actually two buildings in one. The architects used the Reynolds Building as the topper, but the base is taken from the Carew Tower In Cincinnati.
Reynolds American has offered the artwork to PMC/Kimpton, which bought the Reynolds Building and is making it into a hotel.
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