| 2121 Avenue of the Stars | |
|---|---|
%2c_Sept._2024.jpg) September 2024 | |
 | |
| Alternative names | 20th Century Studios Plaza |
| General information | |
| Type | Commercial offices |
| Architectural style | Postmodern |
| Location | 2121 Avenue of the Stars,Century City, California |
| Coordinates | 34°03′19″N118°24′46″W / 34.055282°N 118.412804°W /34.055282; -118.412804 |
| Current tenants | 20th Century Studios |
| Construction started | 1985 (1985) |
| Completed | 1987 |
| Owner | Irvine Company LLC |
| Height | |
| Roof | 150 m (490 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 34 |
| Floor area | 90,115 m2 (969,990 sq ft) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Scott Johnson |
| Developer | Marvin Davis |
| Structural engineer | John A. Martin & Associates |
| Main contractor | Al Cohen Construction |
| References | |
| [1][2][3][4] | |
2121 Avenue of the Stars, formerly known asFox Plaza, is a 34-story, 493-foot (150 m)skyscraper inCentury City,Los Angeles,California.[5] It is owned by theOrange County–basedIrvine Company.[6]
Fox Plaza was developed by billionaireMarvin Davis, on land he had retained after selling the adjacent 20th Century Fox Studio toRupert Murdoch in 1985. The tower was completed in 1987.[7] Its principal designarchitect wasScott Johnson, Founding Design Partner of Johnson Fain.
Former PresidentRonald Reagan had his offices on the 34th floor of the building for several years after leaving public office.[8]
In 1988, Davis sold his 50% stake in Fox Plaza to 20th Century Fox, which was one of the building's primary occupants.[9] It resold it that same year toLa Salle Partners for $320 million.[10]
In 1997, Davis bought the building back from La Salle, for $253 million.[11]
In 2000, Davis sold the building again, to billionaireDonald Bren'sIrvine Company, for $350 million.[12]
As of 2019, the 34th floor was occupied by20th Century Studios.[13]
In 2024, Chicago-based law firm Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP moved into two floors on the property.
The outer exterior of the building contains rust-red granite and glass panels.
Fox Plaza features a uniqueHVAC system where a large vertical air shaft is located in the core of the building. The air shaft begins below the building as an outdoor, cooler air intake pushing air to each floor's fan room, and on the roof is located an exhaust for stale air. Such system design utilizesstack effect.[14][15]
In a 2018 tour forVariety, thechief engineer of the building noted how the Fox Plaza has a large number ofredundancies in its design, and he speculates that it's because it was intended to be used as afilming location.[16]
The building has been featured in at least four major motion pictures released by Fox. Its most famous appearance was in the 1988 action filmDie Hard, where, while still under construction, it portrayed the fictionalNakatomi Plaza (also known as Nakatomi Tower), a building owned by a fictional JapaneseKeiretsu corporation.[16] The damaged version of the tower was made via ascale model special effect. In 2018, to celebrate the film's 30th anniversary, a screening was held outside with the building in the background.[17]
The plaza and a neighboring building are the main setting for the 1994 comedyAirheads where fictional radio station KPPX is located.[18][19] Fox Plaza was also one of the buildings brought down at the end ofFight Club.[20] The building plays an important role in theBrooklyn Nine-Nine episode "99", in which detectiveJake Peralta insists on visiting the building due to its role inDie Hard and causes his squad to miss their return flight toNew York City.[21]
The building can also be seen from the InterContinental hotel pool across the street in the "Sunblock 5000" TV ad inRobocop 2 (1990).
The building as the Nakatomi Plaza fromDie Hard appears in the 2024 filmDeadpool & Wolverine, where it was pruned and sent to theVoid by theTime Variance Authority and can be seen during the battle betweenDeadpool andWolverine.[22]
An unusual example of vertical air distribution at the core is shown in Fig. 10. The Fox Plaza, Los Angeles, office building's unique features include both fan rooms on each floor and a large central vertical air shaft. This air shaft begins at the bottom as a fresh air intake to each floor and tapers to become, at the top, an exhaust (heated) air outlet from each floor. Thus, the stack effect is utilized to help supply fresh and exhaust stale air from a large building, with help from small supply fans at each floor.
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