Fwd: GCT question

[Linda Karas]

AND just for fun (and the importance of being right), I reached out to a contact at Beyer Blinder Belle. Here's his reply. 

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Frank Prial <fpr...@bbbarch.com>
Date: Tue, Jun 16, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Subject: RE: GCT question
To: Linda Karas <llk...@gmail.com>

Hello Linda, nice of you to reach out and no bother at all.  I’ll take any opportunity to talk about my favorite building, and I especially enjoy setting the historical record straight whenever possible!

 

You are – mostly – correct.  The mural visible today was painted in 1944-45 on fiberboard panels that were cemented and pinned directly to the plaster surface of the original mural, which had deteriorated beyond repair since its completion in 1913.  The current mural matches the constellation composition of the original but differs in painting style which had changed over the decades.  During the planning of the big 1990s restoration project, some historians suggested restoring the original mural, but an investigation determined that removal of the 1940s panels would further destroy what little of the original remained beneath.  So the decision was made to acknowledge and restore the artistic and historic significance of the visible 1945 version.

 

For the full story, I’ve attached a chapter of GCT’s Historic Structure Report which you might find interesting and which you can send to your colleague to prove you won the bet!

 

Best regards

 

Frank

 

 

Frank Prial AIA

Architect

From: Linda Karas <llk...@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, June 15, 2026 2:43 PM
To: Frank Prial <fpr...@bbbarch.com>
Subject: GCT question

 

Hi Frank...

 

I am one of the Grand Central docents who attended a fabulous lecture you gave us back around 2019. So sorry to bother you, but I'm looking for a definite answer to a question that you'd know for sure. 

 

Is there a false ceiling in the Grand Concourse? I always thought yes, the original was replaced with a replica a foot or two below the original because of leaks that damaged the mural. 

 

But yesterday, one of my fellow docents said I was wrong, that what we see in the concourse is absolutely original. 

 

Again, sorry to bother you, but an answer would be greatly appreciated. 

 

Thank you, 

 

Linda Karas