LOS ANGELES | 777 Tower | 725 FT / 221 M | 52 FLOORS | 1991

plinko · #1 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 6:11 AM**

Cesar Pelli's contribution to downtown LA. This extremely understated tower anchors the south end of the LA skyline along Figueroa Street. The building has a simple form with rounded ends and three simple setbacks (+ notched corners). At each setback is a small projecting cornice at each vertical bay.

The tower's white cladding can take on a yellow-ish hue under cloudy conditions, and it's smoke gray glazing takes on a 'blackish' quality under harsh sunlight.

Simple and subtle, like many of Pelli's buildings.

I'm not a huge fan of this tower. It's not bad or anything, it just doesn't interest me all that much. It needs something...some sort of crown perhaps. It just seems to end too abruptly.

source: my postcard collection

Austin55 · #2 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 6:20 AM**

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Im....jpg#filelinks

neat little picture

I like this tower alot. I never liked it untill recently,but it has grown on me And its now on of my LA favorites.

LosAngelesBeauty · #3 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 7:16 AM**

I like it too. I think it's simple and elegant. I like the ivory/white facade, which I think adds to that touch of elegance. Something I am uncertain about is why Maguire Properties decided to get rid of the different colored lighting at night during the holidays. The tower used to be illuminated at night with red and green during the holidays and because there is so much area that is lighted, it actually made the most dramatic impact to the LA skyline at night. However, this past December 2007, I noticed the lighting never changed from its soft yellowish/white hue. I hope they start bringing back the themed lighting in the future.

Here are some of my photos I took of 777:

Aleks · #4 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 8:48 AM**

Didn't really pay much attention to this building before but when I saw it in person last week I thought it was one of the best in the West coast. Very elegant but simple.

LosAngelesBeauty, how did you get roof access to the Library Tower? We looked for an observation deck last week and no tall skyscraper had one. Is it a safety thing or what? Cause skyscrapers in Seattle are much closer to each other than in LA and we have a few observation decks here and there.

LosAngelesBeauty · #5 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 8:55 AM**

^ I used to work for a non-profit called the "DCBID" and my job was to attract businesses and residents to move downtown. One of the perks was having access to a lot of the buildings in our district. You could say I was elated, being a skyscraper fanatic, when I went up there the first time. The sky was super clear for LA because it had just rained the night before, so it was essentially smog free. I was really lucky otherwise I wouldn't have been able to see anything up there!

The view up there is amazing! (1,018 feet up!)

Buckeye Native 001 · #6 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 2:37 PM**

Brigham, do you have those Library Tower roof pictures up on a photo hosting site? That thread was a classic.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aleks0o01

LosAngelesBeauty, how did you get roof access to the Library Tower? We looked for an observation deck last week and no tall skyscraper had one. Is it a safety thing or what? Cause skyscrapers in Seattle are much closer to each other than in LA and we have a few observation decks here and there.

Depending on what time of day you go (myself, ChrisLA, DaveofCali and DonB went at 4:30 on a Sunday afternoon), the staff at the restaurant atop the Bonaventure Hotel will let you look around and take pictures.

As for 777, its classic Pelli: Simple and elegant (like others have said). My only complaint is that the building just "ends" without any ornamentation on top. I'm not saying it should have something as distinctive as a decorative crown like the Library Tower, but a little touch of detail wouldn't have hurt (then again, other Pelli towers from that time like BofA in Charlotte or the Key Tower in Cleveland have tops that are a little too flamboyant)

DowntownCharlieBrown · #7 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 5:02 PM**

It has a very simple crown, sort of. Pelli puts the 4th, and almost unnoticed, set-back at the very top so there are two rows of the projecting cornices that serve as the crown.

LosAngelesBeauty · #8 Posted **Jul 2, 2008, 10:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Buckeye Native 001

Brigham, do you have those Library Tower roof pictures up on a photo hosting site? That thread was a classic.

On top of Library Tower.

Buckeye Native 001 · #9 Posted **Jul 3, 2008, 2:52 AM**

Awesome. Much obliged

latennisguy · #10 Posted **Jul 3, 2008, 6:17 AM**

I love how this building lights up at night:

flickr mike s etc

Fabb · #11 Posted **Jul 15, 2008, 7:43 PM**

^Amazing photo !
Probably one of the best skyscrapers in downtown LA.

Lecom · #12 Posted **Jul 15, 2008, 8:47 PM**

An LA classic. We can always count on pelli to produce some of the best background towers.

JDRCRASH · #13 Posted **Jul 17, 2008, 2:05 AM**

This is one of the most uniquely shaped towers in Downtown.

KevinFromTexas · #14 Posted **Jul 19, 2008, 9:05 AM**

My favorite in LA. I mean, yes, there's the Library Tower and others, but I love the subtlety of the 777 Tower.

BrandonJXN · #15 Posted **Feb 22, 2014, 2:49 PM**

^ Speaking of subtlety, here is an article from 1990 that talks about this building.

http://articles.latimes.com/1990-04-...hed-skin-style

Here is the interesting part:

Quote:

A further subtlety is the widening of the spacing of the window mullions from the center to the edges of the tower's rounded east and west facades. This adds to the sense of curvature and emphasizes the tower's vertical thrust.

You can clearly see that in this picture:

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2357/1...9a0bc2b6_b.jpg