Avengers Tower is one of the most iconic locations in both the comics and the MCU. Though the films have seemingly left it behind (for someone else to take over, perhaps), the tower remains a fixture in the comics, despite being blown up and knocked down.
Whether it's the comic or film version of Avengers Tower - or Stark Tower as it's properly known - it houses a lot within its glittering structure. Not all of it is awesome gadgetry, though. Some of it formulates a unique and compelling history. Here are ten secrets about Avengers Tower fans never knew.
10 Replaced The Mansion
Avengers Tower is a relatively recent invention as far as the comics go. The tower first appeared in 2005, after the team's former base, Avengers Mansion, was destroyed in a mishap involving Scarlet Witch - this happened a lot back then - during Avengers: Disassemble. Stark of course rebuilt the mansion, but at the time, relocated Avengers HQ to the top three floors of his Manhattan skyscraper. This became something of a permanent solution and inspired the MCU to focus on the tower over the mansion.
9 Location, Location, Location
The Stark Tower Complex occupies some prime real estate in Midtown Manhattan. The complex is ten blocks north of the Baxter Building, home and headquarters of the Fantastic Four. Avengers Tower lies in the general area of Columbus Circle, putting it on the edge of Central Park, on the west side of the island. In the movies, the tower is in the same general area but seems to exist on the precise spot of the Met Life Building (more on that later).
8 S.H.I.E.L.D. Takeover
The role of the tower evolved with the Avengers. After the implementation of the Superhuman Registration Act, Tony Stark partnered up with S.H.I.E.L.D. for the Fifty State Initiative. When the tower nearly collapsed during World War Hulk, the spy organization helped rebuild, and as a result, took over control of the building. This got even more complicated when Norman Osborn of all people took over S.H.I.E.L.D. and renamed it H.A.M.M.E.R., giving him control of the tower. It changed a few more times before coming back to the Avengers.
7 First Self-Sustaining Building
In the movies, the tower distinguishes itself in its iconic, fluid design. Another way it stands out from the crowd of skyscrapers is that it's the first self-sustaining building in New York City. Rather than hook the building up to the power grid, Tony Stark runs the tower off an arc reactor similar to this own.
This is a great thing for the environment but was bad for property values in the end, because Loki used this feature of the tower to open a portal in space and time. Chitauri warriors came through it and wrecked house all over the city.
6 Children's Hospital
The Avengers actually only take up the top three floors of the tower, leaving the rest of the 93-story building to other concerns. Among the other entities that occupy the complex are a substance abuse clinic, not surprising given Iron Man's history, and a children's hospital. The Maria Stark Memorial Children's Hospital, named after Tony's mother, reflects the character's philanthropic interests, even if sometimes he seems like he has more important things to do (saving the world probably counts).
5 Place To Hang Your Head
Eagle-eyed viewers of the MCU notice a lot of easter eggs, but at the end of the first Avengers movie, they may have noticed that in Tony Stark's plan for the tower, he included sleeping quarters for all the Avengers. In addition to being the home for many of them, the tower also houses a communications room, library, forensics laboratory, war room, and hangars for various Quinjets and helicopters. Probably hard to sleep with all that stuff taking off, though.
4 Spider-Man Lived There
Another prominent resident at Avengers Tower was Spider-Man. Peter Parker moved in after he sided with Tony Stark during Civil War. He revealed his identity in the process, and his home was destroyed by enemies who took advantage of the fact. Peter moved his entire family into the safety of the tower, including Mary Jane and Aunt May, but then they got evicted when he came to his senses and ultimately sided with Captain America in the whole affair over the Superhuman Registration Act.
3 Met Life Building
In the movies, Avengers Tower occupies the same spot as the real-world Met Life Building in Manhattan. Effects artists accomplished this by basically mapping the top half of the tower over the existing structure, indicating that Stark built over the former building to create the new one.
The tower is visible in the skyline of just about every movie that takes place in New York City and was featured in the promotional art of the Netflix Marvel roster of shows, but the building itself never made an appearance in any of them.
2 Three Towers In The Comics
The comic book tower exists in a different location in Manhattan and has had a couple of different configurations over the years, thanks to its many (and unfortunate) demolitions. The most consistent plan of the complex involves three towers, not one. Avengers Tower is the primary tower but is flanked by two smaller ones. The North Building rises fifty-five stories, while the South Building rises to thirty-five. Combined, the Stark Complex represents one of the larger office plans in the city,
1 Sentry Watchtower
The tower has sometimes been even taller than usual, which probably makes people who keep track of the world's tallest buildings pretty frustrated. When the Sentry joined the team, his Watchtower came with him. The unusual and slightly metaphysical structure fixed right on top of the main tower of the complex and remained there until Sentry's death a few years later. After that, Heimdall's observatory replaced it, extending the height of the building even higher, and creating a connection between Earth and Asgard.