Upcoming Events

What: A screening, followed by a conversation on the roots of the preservation movement with writer/producer Gordon Hyatt and Kent Barwick, President of the Municipal Art Society. The evening concludes with a wine and cheese reception.

When: May 18, 2005 from 6:30 – 8:30 PM

Where: Center for Architecture, 536 LaGuardia Place, New York, NY 10012

Cost: $12 general admission, $8 with valid student ID or an AIA membership card

The New York Preservation Archive Project invites you to join us for a special screening of Our Vanishing Legacy, the first prime-time broadcast advocating preservation efforts in New York City. Written and produced by award-winning producer Gordon Hyatt, the film has rarely been screened since it originally aired on WCBS-TV on September 21, 1961. Our Vanishing Legacy, made prior to the passage of the New York City Landmarks Law in 1965, looks at threats to the city’s architectural heritage and argues the need to enact a law to protect important landmark buildings.

With veteran CBS Correspondent Ned Calmer, one of Edward R. Murrow’s original team of reporters anchoring the studio, documentary film sequences explore landmarks including the recently saved Carnegie Hall, the prospects for what has since come to be the adaptive reuse of the Jefferson Market Courthouse, and commercial threats to the architectural integrity of Grand Central Terminal. At the time, Pennsylvania Station was slated for demolition and the film includes rare footage of the building.

Following the screening of Our Vanishing Legacy, a half-hour program, Kent Barwick will interview Mr. Hyatt to learn more about his experience making the film, as well as his thoughts on the preservation movement in New York City. Mr. Hyatt served as Secretary of the Municipal Art Society of New York from 1973-1982 and traveled on the Landmarks Special train to Washington with Brendan Gill, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and over 200 protestors to demonstrate to the Supreme Court their support for the Landmarks Law then challenged by developer’s plans threatening Grand Central Terminal. Mr. Hyatt later served on the Art Commission of the City of New York, where he initiated the restoration of the Governor’s Room in City Hall. Today he is a past president and secretary of the Associates of the Art Commission.

The evening concludes with a wine and cheese reception honoring Mr. Hyatt. Ticket prices are $12 for general admission, or $8 with valid student ID or AIA membership card. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact Liz McEnaney at lmcenaney@nypap.org or 212-861-4993 x 246. Use of the film is Courtesy of WCBS-TV.