Talk:Construction of Rockefeller Center

Requested move 22 November 2017

 * The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review. No further edits should be made to this section. 

The result of the move request was: moved. Jenks24 (talk) 10:14, 30 November 2017 (UTC)

Construction of the Rockefeller Center → Construction of Rockefeller Center – The title is grammatically incorrect. There's no "the" with Rockefeller Center. oknazevad (talk) 20:00, 22 November 2017 (UTC)
 * Support. As page creator, I don't see anything wrong with just boldly moving the page right now. epicgenius (talk) 20:22, 22 November 2017 (UTC)
 * I tried, but you edited the redirect to point to this article thereby making it impossible to move without admin assistance. oknazevad (talk) 03:05, 23 November 2017 (UTC)
 * I guess you can ask a page mover to do it for you. I can do it if you close this requested move discussion. epicgenius (talk) 02:17, 24 November 2017 (UTC)
 * As the proposer, I don't think I can as I'm an involved editor. oknazevad (talk) 12:30, 24 November 2017 (UTC)
 * Support nom and closing the nomination and asking for the page to be moved over the redirect. Randy Kryn (talk) 13:06, 24 November 2017 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page or in a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.

Genesis of the Sidewalk Superintendents' Club
The article states:

Merle Crowell set up a viewing platform on the east side of Rockefeller Center and founded the facetious "Sidewalk Superintendents' Club" so the public could view construction.

The book The Last Rivet, pages 42–45, has interesting but somewhat conflicting information on the reason for the Club(s) existence. Speaking at the last-rivet ceremony of November 1, 1939, Nelson Rockefeller tells of his father's being somewhat curtly told to move as he stood watching the construction; and that that was the genesis of the clubs (the book says that there were two, the first opening on November 10, 1938), "where people could watch construction work at the Center in comfort and without being chased away." One could become a member, and 75,600 did. Furthermore, there were eleven branch chapters in various U.S. cities (indicating the considerable interest throughout the country in this particular construction). Dhtwiki (talk) 20:52, 23 December 2019 (UTC)
 * , thanks for the comment. Sorry for the late response, as I am just seeing this now. I will drop by the library to check out what The Last Rivet and Okrent (p. 377) say. I've changed the wording for now. epicgenius (talk) 14:32, 22 January 2020 (UTC)
 * I know you've been busy, and you've done a magnificent job with this article. That was the only bit I could find that seemed worthwhile to mention that hasn't been well covered by a wealth of secondary sources. I might have made an edit myself, but this is a primary source that could stand some vetting by scholarship. You've already found a Times source for some of it, although their rendition of the quote isn't as colorful as what I remember ("Move along buddy; you can't stand loafing here.") Rockefeller was watching a "steam shovel" at work (actually powered by steam, as opposed to diesel or other internal combustion?; that would be interesting to know). Was he in the way and unrecognized as a person of consequence even in what was probably splendid clothing (the sheen on the some exposed socks in pictures in the book tell me that at least some of these gentlemen enjoyed the feel of fine silk next to their skin)? Those are probably questions that can't be resolved. Dhtwiki (talk) 00:36, 23 January 2020 (UTC)
 * , thanks, I appreciate it. I am not sure that these questions can be answered without going off topic or including unencyclopedic material. My clarification was in a footnote, because it's not too important to mention who founded the Superintendents' Club, and there isn't much info on this obscure detail anyway. All I could find (well, at least in the books I did research) is that it existed and that more than 10,000 people joined - maybe as many as 75,600 from 11 separate chapters, as you say. epicgenius (talk) 17:02, 23 January 2020 (UTC)

Motivation
The first sentence ends with the claim "... to help revitalize Midtown Manhattan". Am I too cynical if I presume that the true motivation was just to make money ? I mean all kinds of people and companies claim that they do what they do in order to (for example) build the best automobiles in the world - while actually just running a business and building what sells best. So if there is no actual proof to what motivated Mr. Rockefeller I would rather not see such idealising glory draped over a mere building project. JB. --92.195.95.36 (talk) 01:43, 3 January 2023 (UTC)


 * Please do not blindly revert (delete) my comment since it is correctly intended to improve the quality of the page. I discuss the statement currently on the page, ask for a relevant source and challenge its correctness. Imho that is actually the sense of the talk page, right ? Afaik it is highly unusual and considered unkind to just delete talk which somebody does not like. I have absolutely no problem with people having a different opinion and am always ready to discuss any topic in a reasonable way. Please let's not jump into crazzy Wikipedia battles here, I'm a reasonable person. JB. --92.193.255.107 (talk) 20:26, 3 January 2023 (UTC)