MYRON HENRY GOLDFINGER, FAIA (1933-2023)
Goldfinger grew up in Atlantic City NJ, before the casinos came. He was inspired by the design of houses in the Marvin Gardens neighborhood, the rich part of town - and his father the mailman, who had very neat lettering. Goldfinger graduated Atlantic City HS in 1950 and from the University of Pennsylvania in 1955, studying under Louis Kahn. He served in Army for two years designing cabinetry at the Pentagon. He concurrently worked in the evenings at McLeod and Ferrera. In 1957, he moved to New York where his neighbor was actress Veronica Lake. When he went to Europe in 1958, architect Richard Meier subleased his apartment, and according to Goldfinger, destroyed two lamps and never paid him back. Goldfinger worked for landscape architect Carl Linn; Skidmore Owings Merrill, which he hated because it was such a large office; Philip Johnson in the Seagram building roughly 1963-1965, a job he loved, working on the ticket booths for the 1964 World's Fair and Dunbarton Oaks Museum. Johnson introduced him to Sybil Maholy-Nagy helped him teach at Pratt Institute, where he taught about 11 years.
In 1966, he went on his own and started doing remodels around New York City out of an I. M. Pei apartment in Kips Bay Towers with wife June. Their neighbor was architect Bernard Radowsky, author of Architecture Without Architects. He has exhibited at MOMA and his family still has the apartment in Kips Bay Towers as of 2024.
June Goldfinger is an international designer and manufacturer, working in 17 countries in multiple platforms including home furnishings and fashion. She was Myron's partner in life and in business. Myron Goldfinger wrote that June "permitted me complete freedom in the design of our home some 25 years ago. June has also been my best critic and supporter through the years, and has complemented my architecture by carrying through the interior design with her superb taste and creative spirit."
Goldfinger wrote the 1969 book Villages in the Sun (Praeger version, later Rizzoli version). Lou Kahn wrote the preface. He is also the author of Images of the Southwest; The Goldfinger Caribbean; and Myron Goldfinger: Architect. June Goldfinger co-authored his publications and managed all his magazine appearances. Links are full versions courtesy of the family.
2023
Myron Goldfinger Interview courtesy of Mainspring Narrative
Films
There's another well-known architect, Hungarian Erno Goldfinger, and a famous James Bond villain, Auric Goldfinger. James Bond author Ian Fleming was mad at Erno for bulldozing Victorian homes to put up Modernist houses and named his villain Goldfinger. Erno sued Fleming and they settled out of court, Fleming got to keep the name in the book, Erno got paid, and Fleming later said he was going to rename the book Goldprick.
Alan Dunn's RECORD cartoon based on Goldfinger's Waccabuc NY house.
1965 - The Alex and Freida Herskovitz House, 285 Riviera Drive, Beach Haven NJ. Goldfinger's first complete house. Photos by Larry Mersel. Featured in Architectural Record Vacation Houses of 1970; Architectural Record, June 1967. Built by Ullman and Silvermaster. Article. Sold in 2006 to Bonnie Clarke and destroyed for a new house.
Around 1966 - The Birenbaum Remodel, Brooklyn Heights NY. Built. Status unknown.
Around 1969 - The Anthony and Nina Petrocelli House, 109 Surfside Drive, Bridgehampton NY. 2800 sf. Photos by Norman McGrath; built by Don and George Harse. Article. Sold around 1993 to Pearl and Bernard (Buddy) Siskind who did a renovation by Preston Phillips, bottom photo. Featured in the New York Times, 9/3/1995. Additional building on property added around 2002. Sold in 2007 to Surfside LLC.
1969 - The Ulrich (Rick) Haynes Jr. and Yolanda Toussaint Apartment Renovation, Bed-Stuy area, New York NY. Haynes purchased a 5-story townhouse, which Goldfinger turned into a two-story duplex for the owner with apartments for rent. Photos by Norman McGrath. He was the US Ambassador to Algeria. Status unknown.
1969 - The Myron and June Goldfinger Renovation, Kips Bay Towers, Apartment 21K, 333 East 30th Street, New York NY. Building designed by I. M. Pei. Still owned by the Goldfingers in 2024.
1970 - The Myron and June Goldfinger House, Mead Street, Waccabuc NY. Commissioned in 1968. Featured in Architectural Record Houses of 1971; New York Times; House and Garden; Architectural Digest, October 2007. This house catapulted Goldfinger onto the national radar. Built by John Sutton; photos by Myron Goldfinger and Norman McGrath. There's also a separate studio building. Goldfingers still owners as of 2024.
1970 - The Laura Blau House, 337 Pea Pond Road, Bedford NY. There was an addition by Goldfinger, unbuilt. Deeded around 1984 to Laura Blau, still owner as of 2024.
1971 - aka Boxes in the Sky, New York NY. Unbuilt. A prototype of an urban living environmental structure for New York "composed of sections which could be bought by individual tenants. The sections would be plugged into a utitlity core for services. These re-inforced concrete modules could be added to the structure or removed."
1972 - The John and Caryn McCaffrey House, 16 Lower Lakeshore Drive, Katonah NY. About 3 acres. Top photos by Norman McGrath. Goldfinger had an expansion plan, but the clients later chose architect Robert Damora in 1990, bottom two photos. Sold in 1981. Sold in 2014. Sold in 2018 to Janette and Marc Bender.
Around 1972 - The Heine Townhouse Remodel, New York NY. Status unknown.
1972 - The Ivo (Gino) and Ksenija Matkovic House, 38 Forest Drive, Sands Point NY. Built for June Goldfinger's parents. Featured in House Beautiful, August 1973. MOMA included the house in their 40 Years of Architecture exhibition. Sold in the early 1990s to Blossom Miller, later 38 Forest LLC Trust.
1972 - The Joel and Patricia Ellis House, aka Diamond House, 24 Prospect Hill Road, Stockbridge MA. 900sf. Commissioned in 1971. Destroyed.
1974 - The Elaine Proll House, 35 Ross Road, Livingston NJ. Two additions by Goldfinger. Still owned by Proll as of 2023.
Around 1974 - The Ira Marcus Carriage House Renovation, aka Carrimor Estate, 81 Girdle Ridge Drive, Katonah NY. Goldfinger also designed a restaurant for Marcus. Featured in House Beautiful, May 1974. Conversion of a 1905 stable/carriage house. Sold in 2013. Was renovated and much of Goldfinger's color and texture choices changed. Won a 1976 AIA National Honor Award.
1975 - The Barbara and George Switzer House, 19 Warewoods Road, Saddle River NJ. Sold in 1995 to Vladimir and Alicia Zwass. Featured in House Beautiful, March 1979. Zwass still owners as of 2022.
1975 - The Roberta Flack Apartment Renovation, The Dakota Apartment 78, 1 West 72nd Street, New York NY. Sold in 2018 and merged with an adjacent unit.
Around 1975 - Beachfront Condominium, Vanderbilt Beach FL. Proposed design for Canal-Randolph Corporation.
1976 - The Ira Marcus House, 31 Wasque Avenue, Edgartown MA. On Martha's Vineyard. Local residents and the Edgartown Town Council fought the design. Featured in Architectural Record Houses of 1978. Built by K. T. Galley; structural, Richard Balser. Sold in 1994 to Paul Bleicher and Julia Greenstein.
1977 - The Seymour Jaslow House, aka Rocky Way House, 1 Rocky Way, West Orange NJ. Sold to Cynthia Onore and Stanley Karczewski. Sold in 2014 to Marina Parmet.
1977 - The Norman and Molly McGrath House, 211 Couch Road, Patterson NY. Structural engineer, Richard Balser; built by Andron Construction; mechanical, George Casper. McGrath is a famous architectural photographer. Featured in Architectural Record, August 1979. Sold in 2022 to Michael Unsicker and Magda Dlugosz, both architects based in New York City.
1977 - The Alfred (Al) Taubman House, 958 North Lake Way, Palm Beach FL. Unbuilt. Taubman later hired Richard Meier, who completed a house on the site.
Around 1977 - The Michael and Judith Steinhardt Penthouse Apartment, 1158 5th Avenue, New York NY. Sold in 2022 to Gregory (Greg) and Marina Olafson.
1978 - The B. Giles Brophy House, 227 Oneck Lane, Westhampton Beach NY. Sold to Milton and Carolyn Merl. Pool and a porch added in 1996. Merl still owners as of 2022.
1978 - 55 Florence Drive, Chappaqua NY. 2679 sf. Sold to Andrea Moss. Sold in 2012 to Andrew and Marlene Lippman, who did a renovation. For sale in 2024.
1978 - The Gilbert and Marsha Schulman House II, aka Millennium House, 12 Phillips Lane, Montague NJ. 60 acres. Plus a horse building. Featured in Process Architecture 18; Architectural Digest, April 1980; Interiors, April 1999. Photos by Norman McGrath. Featured in ads for MTV, Prada, and Neiman Marcus. Sold to Charles and Evelyn Cammaroto. Sold to Evelyn Londe. Went into foreclosure. Sold in 2017 to John Massari. Seriously deteriorated, bottom photos. Sold in 2022 to Frank Zuccarello, who plans a restoration.
Around 1978 - The Robert Stigwood Apartment, 145-146 Central Park West 2627C, New York NY. Three floors in the Penthouse South Tower. Goldfinger was then banned by the Landmarks people for putting glass walls in the classical San Remo building. Sold in 1990 to Demi Moore and Bruce Willis. Remodeled by another architect. Sold in 2017 to the M2 Trust.
1979 - The Steven Rose House, 1 Station Lane, Nyack NY. Goldfinger hired a helicopter to do his own aerial photos. Sold in 1999 to Evelyn Wasserman, still owner as of 2019. Has been remodeled, not by Goldfinger.
1979 - The Robert Siegel House, aka Bomadesu, 162 Ware Road, Wilmington VT. 10.2 acres. The client was Goldfinger's accountant, not Robert Siegel the architect. Sold to the Spivaks. Goldfinger wanted everyone to know he did *not* design the garage. The roof collapsed at some point and the house was repaired. Sold in 2020 to Robert Dominic-Pavia Jr. Sold in 2024.
1979 - The Preston and Evelyn Turco House, 28 West Patent Road, Bedford Hills NY. 4.3 acres. Sold in 2019 to Lionwalk Manor LLC. Destroyed around 2019.
1979 - The Robert and Carol Axelson Martell House, 67 Millertown Road, Bedford NY. Sold in 2014 to Peter Byungho Lee. For sale in 2024.
Around 1979 - The Alan Bresler Apartment, 61st between York and 1st, overlooking 59th Street Bridge, New York NY. The client was an investment banker. Status unknown. Do you know where it is?
Around 1979 - The Ingrid and George Teichner Apartment Renovation, 151 Central Park West, New York NY. Photos by Norman McGrath. Clad in Formica instead of paint on the walls. Sold. Status unknown.
1980 - The Herbert and Julia Zack House, aka Tennis Court House, 59 Cornwells Beach Road, Sands Point NY. Tennis court is above the garage. Sold around 1986. Goldfinger did a later remodel and addition. Article. Sold to Andrew Bodony. Sold in 1999 to Martin and Annette Lorber. Sold in 2009 to 59 Sands Point LLC. Remodel began around 2015, not by Goldfinger, then left vacant and incomplete for years. Sold in 2020 to Panagiota (Penny) Katsigiorgis who did a restoration, bottom photo.
1981 - The Fred Jaroslow House, aka Luxury Liner, 10 Vanderbilt Drive, Port Washington NY. Jaroslow was the CEO of Weight Watchers. Featured in Architectural Digest, March 1982. Photos by Norman McGrath. Sold in 2000 to Joel Greenblat. Featured in the film Wolf of Wall Street. Sold in 2020 to Peter Forman.
1981 - The Joe Sieglebaum House, 1 Carriage Hill Drive, Gladstone NJ. Sold in 2002 to Edward and Kiyomi Baird. Sold in 2018 to Mary Shay Millea.
1981 - The Nicholas Puner House, 301 Whipporwill Road, Chappaqua NY. 4 acres. Sold in 2002. Destroyed, new house built in 2003.
1983 - The Shep and Regina Porter House, aka Shinnecock Bay House, 12 Lakewood Lane, Quoque NY. Commissioned in 1981. Featured in GA Houses 22. Still owned by the Porters as of 2020.
1982 - The Jatin and Barti Shah House, 30 Beachfront Lane, New Rochelle NY. Has been renovated, not by Goldfinger, and a story added. For sale in 2024.
Around 1982 - The Philip Jodidio Sr. Apartment, aka 5th Avenue Apartment, approximately 75th Street and 5th Avenue, New York NY. The sofa, designed by Goldfinger, was so large it had to be brought in through a window. Photos by Norman McGrath. Status unknown. Do you know where it is?
1982 - The Robert and Sylvia Rachesky House, aka Architecture in Suburbia #3, 35 Deerhill Drive, Ho-Ho-Kus NJ. Deeded in 2003 to Mark and Carol Rachesky.
1983 - The Michael Chernuchin House, 17 Fir Drive, Kings Point NY. Sold to Mordechay Movtadi. Foreclosed. For sale in 2024.
1984 - The June and Myron Goldfinger Villa, Covecastles, Anguilla BWI. Damaged in a hurricane.
Around 1984 - The Gilbert and Marsha Schulman House I, 17 Farbrook Drive, Short Hills NJ. Featured in GA Houses 19. Originally titled to Gilbert Schulman's firm, it was titled to him after his indictment on fraud charges, then later to his wife who put it up for sale in 1985. Sold several times. Destroyed around 2007, new house built in 2008.
1984 - The Robert and Leslie Conason House, 1820 Meadow Lane, Southampton NY. Featured on the TV shows Royal Pains and Louie. Goldfinger also did an addition. First photo is before that addition. Sold in 2015 to Sy Jacobs and Von Rabenturn Beach Holdings LLC. For rent in 2021, $500,000/month.
Around 1984 - Spec house, Greenwich CT. Did not sell, and the developer lived in it. Status unknown. Do you know where it is?
Around 1984 - The Jack and Bertha Laboz House, 293 Amherst Street, Brooklyn NY. Still owned by Bertha Laboz as of 2021.
1985 - The Eldon Mayer House, aka Bedford Corners, 635 Byram Lake Road, Bedford NY. 7000 sf. Featured in GA Houses 22. Sold in 1995 to Jeffrey Borror. Sold in 1997 to Mitchell Cannold. Sold in 2016 to Joshua Bell, then put in a trust.
Around 1985 - The Fred and Ruth Jaroslow Apartment, 120 Central Park South, New York NY. Sold.
1985 - The Cove Castles Resort, Shoal Bay West, Anguilla, West Indies. Eight villas designed, developed, and managed by Goldfinger. Due to extensive damages from a direct hit by Hurricane Irma, the homeowners not able to agree on a recovery plan, it was closed in 2018. Brochure.
1986 - The Herbert and Julia Zack House II Renovation, 24 Plum Beach Point, Sands Point NY. Original house built in 1913. Sold in 1994 to Angelo DeCano. Sold in 2015 to Joseph Kashinsky. Sold in 2020 to Ivan and Lisa Goodstein.
1986 - The Joy Hochstadt House, 192 Cambridge Court, Bushkill PA. Original address 1347 Cambridge. Located in the Poconos within Saw Creek Estates, gated community. Commissioned around 1983. Foreclosed. Sold in 2010 to Thomas and Kathleen Farrelly who added stone to the exterior and reinforced the bridge. Sold in 2019 to Irving Vance Hunter Jr.
There is another somewhat similar house nearby, 123 Shannon, often attributed to Goldfinger but it is not his design.
1988 - The Indravadan (Saroj) Shah House, aka East Shore House, 454 East Shore Road, Great Neck NY. Still owned by the Shahs as of 2020.
Around 1988 - The Sandy and Fela Bluestein Penthouse Apartment, 1000 Park Avenue, New York NY. Goldfinger also did a later renovation there. Sold. Status unknown.
1988 - The Richard (Rick) and Barbara Lane House, 112 Premium Point, New Rochelle NY. Sold in 1997 to Lawrence Jaeger. Renovated by JBMP Architects.
1989 - 43 Sandune Court, Sagaponack NY. Originally it was quite modest in size, top three photos. Another architect greatly expanded it, bottom two photos. Sold to Philip Young. Sold in 2013 to Saul Kaplan. Sold to 007 Sandune LLC. For sale in 2023-2024.
1989 - The Jon S. and Dottie Fossel House, 187 Mead Street, Waccabuc NY. Sold in 2002 to Bradford and Bonnie Klein. Destroyed in a fire.
1989 - The Fred and Ruth Jaroslow House 2, 2 Sands Lane, Sands Point NY. Sold to Shirin Sayari and Soleymani Shabob. Sold in 2015 to Jennifer Rubell. Bottom photo by Timothy Godbold. Sold in 2022 to Jonah and Alissa Lovens.
1989 - The Leonard and Eileen Disavino House, 319 Millwood Road, Chappaqua NY. For sale in 2023.
1990 - The Raymond (Ray) Sanseverino House, 65 Carolyn Place, Chappaqua NY. Still owner as of 2023.
Around 1992 - The Michael Steinhardt Renovation, Mt. Kisco NY. Status unknown.
1992 - The Richard and Susan Madris House, Cole Drive, Armonk NY. Unbuilt.
1991 - The Stephen and Bonnie Leff House, aka Architecture in the Landscape #7, 20 Bessel Lane, Chappaqua NY. Sold in 2003 to Jain Nada. Sold in 2015 to Zhou Lijun and Jia Shengli. For sale in 2023.
Around 1991 - The Edgar Bronfman Sr. House, Anguilla, West Indies. Part of Covecastles. Damaged in a hurricane.
Around 1992 - The Robert and Sheila Johnson House, Anguilla, West Indies. Part of Covecastles. Robert Johnson saw Bronfman's and just had to have one. Damaged in a hurricane.
Around 1992 - The Leonard Blavatnik Villa, Anguilla, West Indies. Part of Covecastles. Largest of all the villas. Features a separate guest house, bottom photo. Damaged in a hurricane.
Around 1992 - The Michael Steinhardt Villa, Anguilla, West Indies. Part of Covecastles. Damaged in a hurricane.
Around 1992 - The Joseph and Carol Reich Villa, Anguilla, West Indies. Part of Covecastles. Damaged in a hurricane.
1994 - The Paul and Jackie Errera House, 9 October Hill Road, Woodbridge CT. Designed so you could drive through the bottom of the house. Sold in 2013 to Aniko Richheimer.
Around 1995 - The Steve Ross Apartment, New York NY. He was CEO of Vornado Development in New York. Unsure if built. Status unknown.
1996 - The Harris J. and Melanie Amhowitz House, 12600 East Fort Lowell Road, Tucson AZ. Sold in 2021 to the Robin Koda Trust.
1998 - The Myron and June Goldfinger House, 33 Calle Encanto, Santa Fe NM. 30 acres. Featured in Architectural Digest, October 2007; Travel Channel. For sale for the first time in 2024.
2004 - The Altamer Resort, West End Village 2640, Shoal Bay West Anguilla. Owned by Rebecca and Michael Eggleton. Three villas, 5 and 6 bedroom resort rentals. Featured in Architectural Digest, May 2005.
2008 - aka Eva House, Mead Street, Waccabuc NY. Designed for his daughter and her family.
Year unknown - The Phillip Reichman House. Status unknown.
Year unknown - The John McLaughlin House, Lower Makefield Township, Bucks County PA. Status unknown.
Year unknown - House. Status unknown.
Year unknown - The Norman Sher Addition, 2347 East 63rd Street, New York NY. Status unknown.
\
Year unknown - aka Lost House, location unknown, status unknown.
Around 1987 - The Stephen J. (Steve) and Patricia Schulte House. In the Berkshires area of MA. Goldfinger also did a penthouse apartment for them in New York City. Status unknown.
Around 1968 - The Charles Goldstein Renovaton, at the Beresford, New York NY. Status unknown.
Sources include: Architectural Record; Myron Goldfinger: Architect; Myron and June Goldfinger; Mitchell Algus.