The 1980s were a time of many changes for New York City especially after the end of the 1970s, which saw the city through the Yom Kippur War, the Iran hostage crisis, the New York City blackout and the death of Disco.
The 1980s were a time of renewal where money-making opportunities were made possible for New Yorkers and immigrants alike and the city’s hotels were renovated, new restaurants and shops opened and the city saw its first skyscrapers in decades.
Times Square, the city’s heart and soul, underwent extensive renovations and re-inventions and is the home of New York City’s biggest annual celebration, the New Year’s Eve Ball Drop.
Times Square is where you’ll find everything, the neon signs, the flashing billboards and the bright fireworks as well as being the epi-center of New Year’s Eve in America. It’s also the home of many of New York City’s biggest attractions, Broadway shows and much else besides.
Times Square In The 1980s: Its Restaurants
Times Square in the 1980s also saw a revolution in the world of food. New York City cuisine, long dominated by Italian and Jewish cuisines, was revolutionized by relatively recent Asian and Mexican immigrants and many of these immigrants from other countries, had a taste for Americanized food.
The Times Square of the 1980s saw the introduction of Little Tokyo’s sushi, home-cooked Mexican dishes and street foods from the cities they had come from. There were also new and more sophisticated ways of cooking and eating food that still play a part today.
There were new dining experiences that were all the rage at the time, a Prix Fixe menu, which included sushi, a three course meal, a piece of pie, a cocktail and a coffee that was introduced by a restaurant called Sona in 1980.
Times Square In The 1980s: Its Attractions
The Times Square of the 1980s was also home to many attractions, many of which are still in use today. Disco Inferno, which was a New York City landmark for the decade, was opened for the New Year’s Eve celebration and the rest of the year, was open to the public.
While it was open, the “Inferno” was a blaze of red and yellow lights, a blast of sound from 70’s and 80’s disco records and a wall of flame. The wall was filled with wood, paper and other flammable materials, so that when someone ignited it, the wall would burst into flames and send a shower of sparks high into the air.
That’s definitely something you won’t see today due to the bane of modern day health and safety.
Times Square In The 1980s: Its Neon Signs
Times Square in the 1980s also saw the rise of neon signs with the being erected in Times Square by Harry E. Bird in 1929. This sign, which was advertising a beer distributor, was a simple rectangle with the company’s name on it but would eventually over the years be replaced by many more interesting signs, some absolutely huge that you can still see today.
Let’s be honest, Times Square without the gigantic flashing billboards and neon signs would be a completely different place without them, so long may they continue.
Times Square In The 1980s: Its Skyscrapers
The Times Square of the 1980s also saw the city’s first newly built skyscrapers in decades with the first in Times Square being the Citicorp building, constructed in the late 1960s but that building would certainly not be the last.
As Times Square in the 1980s started to become a major world tourist hub, it would see the construction of many more skyscrapers, including the first skyscraper north of Houston Street in decades.