Michigan Central Depot:
The 18-story train station, Michigan Central Depot, was designed in part by the architects who designed New York’s Grand Central Station. These days, it sits abandoned two miles southwest of downtown. While plans have been proposed over the years to save the building and put it to use, no plans have come to fruition. The site has been used recently in major motion pictures.
John K. King Used and Rare Books Building:
After operating for years out of storefronts in Dearborn and Detroit, John K. King bought the Advance Glove factory in 1983 at the western edge of downtown Detroit. King wrote his name in big bold letters across the four-story building’s façade and filled all four floors of the former factory with books. Eventually the volume of books outgrew even the former factory, literally overflowing into the adjacent Otis Elevator Building. And it didn’t stop there; King now has multiple stores in the Detroit Metro Area, as well as a virtual storefront on the World Wide Web.
GM Renaissance Center:
The GM Renaissance Center, or the “RenCen” as it is known by Detroiters, is a group of seven skyscrapers built in the 1970s and 80s. Conceived by Henry Ford II and financed mainly by Ford Motor Company, the RenCen was built in an effort to revitalize Detroit after the turbulent 60s. Big enough to rate its own zip code, the RenCen consists of a central, circular tower surrounded by four 39-story towers. Two additional towers were added in 1981 in the second phase of the project. In an ironic twist of ownership, the RenCen was purchased by General Motors in 1996 for use as its global headquarters.
Spirit of Detroit Statue:
Considered the symbol of Detroit, the 26-foot statue sculpted by Marshall Fredericks in the 1950s depicts a seated man holding a sphere in one hand and a family group in the other. Located by the City-County Building at the base of Woodward, the statue’s plaque reads, “Through the spirit of man is manifested in the family, the noblest human relationship.”
Rusting green over the years, the bronze statue eventually developed the alias “Jolly Green Giant.” With the new moniker, the statue seemed to come to life. For instance, one night around St. Patrick’s Day, or thereabouts depending on the account, the Green Giant apparently paid a visit across Woodward Avenue to the nude ballet dancer depicted in Manzu’s Step of the Dance sculpture. While no one actually saw the Jolly Green Giant during his night-time escapades, green footprints were found on the pavement the next morning linking the two statues.
The Jolly Green Giant was caught in the act, however, when he donned a Red Wing’s jersey in celebration of the team’s Stanley Cup win in 1997. It’s now a tradition for the bronzed man to wear the jersey whenever the Red Wings are victorious.
