Spook Central (55 Central Park West)

Forget everything you know about apartment hunting. When the Ghostbusters location scouts needed a building that could plausibly serve as a lightning rod for the apocalypse, they picked this handsome Art Deco co-op on Central Park West — and more than forty years later, fans still gather on its sidewalk, tilting their heads back at a rooftop temple that was never really there.

The Scene

In Ghostbusters (1984), this is where cellist Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver) lives — the apartment where her fridge becomes a portal and she gets possessed by the demonic Zuul. Her neighbor, the gloriously awkward Louis Tully (Rick Moranis), dubs the building “Spook Central,” the nickname fans have used ever since. On screen the address reads 550 Central Park West; the production designer slipped an extra zero onto the real 55, presumably to keep the tourists guessing. It did not work.

New York got the street-level exteriors, filmed on location; everything upstairs was Hollywood — Dana’s and Louis’ apartments were a single set built at Burbank Studios. Matte paintings stacked extra floors and the temple of Gozer on top; a miniature handled close-ups, and the gargoyles were painted in optically. In the film’s climax, the building becomes Gozer’s gateway to our world — and a hundred-foot Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man climbs it.

The Backstory

The real 55 Central Park West is a 19-story Art Deco housing co-op designed by the firm Schwartz & Gross, built in 1929 and opened in 1930 — a contributing property in the Central Park West Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its design is considered a pivotal piece of the Art Deco movement.

On screen, though, its architect is Ivo Shandor: a fictional surgeon, architect, and cult leader who designed the entire tower as a “super-conductive antenna for pulling in and concentrating spiritual turbulence.” The real building’s early residents were far less sinister: fashion designer Calvin Klein and actress Marsha Mason were reportedly among them.

What to Look For

This is a private co-op, so the hunt stays on the sidewalk — and that’s fine, because the entrance, awning, and brick facade look much as they did in 1984. The giveaway: the real roof is flat. No temple, no gargoyles, no storm clouds. Admire the real stars instead — the Art Deco setbacks and vertical detailing.

For the full postcard shot, follow this post’s original tip: cross into Central Park and look back from near Tavern on the Green — the only angle that fits the whole tower in one frame. It doubles as a film location: it’s where Louis Tully flees a terror dog. And yes: no dogs allowed. Zuul and Vinz Clortho never got the memo.

Getting There

55 Central Park West, between 65th and 66th Streets, directly across from Central Park — New York, NY 10023. Take the 1 train to 66th St–Lincoln Center and walk one block east; that’s the closest stop. The A, B, C, and D at 59th St–Columbus Circle mean a ten-block stroll north along the park. Pair it with Tavern on the Green — or the Ghostbusters firehouse downtown for a full two-stop hunt.

Trivia

• The producers’ first choice was 1 Fifth Avenue near Washington Square Park — taller, with a natural temple-like crown — but its co-op board voted against filming, according to production accounts.
• The co-op board at 55 Central Park West wasn’t thrilled either: production accounts say the residents initially refused filming, then were talked into it.
• The on-screen address, 550 Central Park West, is a fib — production designer John DeCuir added a zero to the real address.
• The apartment interiors were built as one set at Burbank Studios, raised six feet off the stage floor so puppeteers could operate the terror dogs from underneath.
• Matte artist Matt Yuricich’s paintings piled extra floors onto the building and set the temple on top; a miniature covered the close-ups, and at least one gargoyle was added optically.

The Hunt Clue

High above the park it towers, built to harness ancient powers. No dogs are allowed, especially those of terror—find the gateway where ghosts made their error!

Photo by David Shankbone via Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0