The Ticker of Times Square
Times Square is an icon, a Hollywood backdrop, the heart of the Big Apple, and One Times Square sits right at its center. The “Times Tower” was built for The New York Times in 1904, and Longacre Square was renamed Times Square in honor of the newspaper. In 1908, the owner of the Times, Adolph Ochs, organized the first New Year’s Eve ball drop. The electric news ticker sign – “The Zipper” – went up in 1928, displaying headlines within a minute of a story breaking. The Times had moved their headquarters one block west by then, but they still maintained ownership of the building.
In this episode of New York: A Portrait in Sound, you’ll hear from the people who kept the sign running each day until closing at midnight each night. The lights of Times Square may shine 24/7 now in the city that never sleeps, but this piece brings us back to a time when even Times Square went to bed.
The New York Times no longer owns the building or the news ticker, but Times Square has remained an exciting hub of the city. More about the history of One Times Square can be discovered through this timeline.
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