I can't not mention the US Bank Tower in Downtown Los Angeles only because it is the tallest building west of the Mississippi, so here's the quick and dirty and this beautiful building:
When completed, became the tallest building on the Pacific coast, surpassing Columbia Center in Seattle. It is the tallest building in the United States west of the Mississippi River. The building was designed to withstand an earthquake of 8.3 on the Richter Scale (that's important in California!). The highest helipad in the world is on the roof. From the 53rd floor up, horizontal forces caused by wind or earthquakes are dampened by two struts, which are each one floor high.
So there you have it!
But if you want my most favorite building in Los Angeles, it is the historic Bradbury Building, also in Downtown LA.
According to LA Conservancy:
The Bradbury Building is the oldest commercial building remaining in the central city and one of Los Angeles' unique treasures. Behind its modest, mildly Romanesque exterior lies a magical light-filled Victorian court that rises almost 50 feet with open cage elevators, marble stairs and ornate iron railings.
The history of the Bradbury Building's creation is as dramatic as its interior architecture. Lewis Bradbury, a mining and real estate millionaire, commissioned well-known local architect Sumner Hunt to create a spectacular office building. Although not conclusively proven, local legend has it that Bradbury, disappointed with Hunt's plan, turned to a young draftsman in Hunt's firm, George Wyman, to design the building. Wyman, who was not trained as architect, created a design that was influenced by Edward Bellamy's 1887 utopian novel Looking Backward. Wyman later went on to become a trained architect, but never achieved any further distinction.
The building was re-habbed in 1990 by iconic LA developer Ira Yellin (deceased), whose former business partners still keep their offices in the building. Kind of cool.
Oh yeah, the best part of the building? The old-time, caged elevator operated by a full-time attendant!
Some links:
US Bank Tower [Emporis]
Bradbury Building [LA Conservancy]
Bradbury Building [Wikipedia]
Bradbury Building [Emporis]
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