Thum explains: "The use of permanently bright metal was of greatest aid in the carrying of rising lines and the diminishing circular forms in the roof treatment, so as to accentuate the gradual upward swing until it literally dissolves into the sky...."[24][37] Stainless steel producers used the Chrysler Building to evaluate the durability of the product in architecture.

At some distance into each main entryway, there are revolving doors "beneath intricately patterned metal and glass screens", designed so as to embody the Art Deco tenet of amplifying the entrance's visual impact.

[39][40] The 31st floor also contains a gray and white frieze of hubcaps and fenders,[41][5] which both symbolize the Chrysler Corporation and serves as a visual signature of the building's Art Deco design.

[41][48] The entire crown is clad with Nirosta steel, ribbed and riveted in a radiating sunburst pattern with many triangular vaulted windows, reminiscent of the spokes of a wheel.

The central image of the mural is a "muscled giant whose brain directs his boundless energy to the attainment of the triumphs of this mechanical era", according to a 1930 pamphlet that advertised the building.

The mural's Art Deco style is manifested in characteristic triangles, sharp angles, slightly curved lines, chrome ornaments, and numerous patterns.

[82] The decoration of the cabs' interiors was also a nod to the Chrysler Corporation's vehicles: cars built during the building's early years had dashboards with wooden moldings.

[67][90] The Interborough Rapid Transit Company, which at the time was the operator of all the routes serving the 42nd Street station, originally sued to block construction of the new entrance because it would cause crowding,[91] but the New York City Board of Transportation pushed to allow the corridor anyway.

[109][98] For fifty cents visitors could transit its circumference through a corridor with vaulted ceilings painted with celestial motifs and bedecked with small hanging glass planets.

[133][134] The rivalry influenced the design of the future Chrysler Building, since Severance's more traditional architectural style would otherwise have restrained Van Alen's more modern outlook.

[140] Van Alen's original design for the skyscraper called for a base with first-floor showroom windows that would be triple-height, and above would be 12 stories with glass-wrapped corners, to create the impression that the tower was floating in mid-air.

The new design was much more conservative, with an Italianate dome that a critic compared to Governor Al Smith's bowler hat, and a brick arrangement on the upper floors that simulated windows in the corners, a detail that remains in the current Chrysler Building.

[190] However, the lawsuit against Chrysler markedly diminished Van Alen's reputation as an architect, which, along with the effects of the Great Depression and negative criticism, ended up ruining his career.

[217][219] In early 1978, Mass Mutual devised plans to renovate the facade, heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, elevators, lobby murals, and Cloud Club headquarters for $23 million.

[220][224][221] At a press conference announcing the renovation, mayor Ed Koch proclaimed that "the steel eagles and the gargoyles of the Chrysler Building are all shouting the renaissance of New York".

[229]The building was sold again in August 1979, this time to entrepreneur and Washington Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke, in a deal that also transferred ownership of the Los Angeles Kings and Lakers to Jerry Buss.

The new owners hired Kenneth Kleiman of Descon Interiors to redesign the lobby and elevator cabs in a style that was much closer to Van Alen's original design.

[248] That March, the media reported that Aby Rosen's RFR Holding LLC, in a joint venture with the Austrian Signa Group, had reached an agreement to purchase the leasehold[249][250] at a steeply discounted $150 million.

[59] Rosen sought to renegotiate the terms of his ground lease with Cooper Union in 2020,[257] and he evicted storeowners from all of the building's shops in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to renovate the retail space.

[252][264] The New York Times reported that employees had complained about pest infestations, fountains with brown water, weak cellular reception, elevator delays, and poor natural lighting.

[26] Lewis Mumford, a supporter of the International Style and one of the foremost architectural critics of the United States at the time, despised the building for its "inane romanticism, meaningless voluptuousness, [and] void symbolism".

"[191][290] The architectural professor Gail Fenske said that, although the Chrysler Building was criticized as "too theatrical" at the time of its completion, the general public quickly took a liking to "the city's crowning skyscraper".

Architect Robert A. M. Stern wrote that the Chrysler Building was "the most extreme example of the [1920s and 1930s] period's stylistic experimentation", as contrasted with 40 Wall Street and its "thin" detailing.

[61] Architectural critic Ada Louise Huxtable stated that the building had "a wonderful, decorative, evocative aesthetic", while Paul Goldberger noted the "compressed, intense energy" of the lobby, the "magnificent" elevators, and the "magical" view from the crown.

[296] Anthony W. Robins said the Chrysler Building was "one-of-a-kind, staggering, romantic, soaring, the embodiment of 1920s skyscraper pizzazz, the great symbol of Art Deco New York".

[304] Its distinctive profile has inspired similar skyscrapers worldwide, including One Liberty Place in Philadelphia,[305] Two Prudential Plaza in Chicago,[306] and the Al Kazim Towers in Dubai.

[309] While seen in many films, the Chrysler Building almost never appears as a main setting in them, prompting architect and author James Sanders to quip it should win "the Award for Best Supporting Skyscraper".

[299] The Chrysler Building appears in the background of The Wiz (1978); as the setting of much of Q - The Winged Serpent (1982); in the initial credits of The Shadow of the Witness (1987); and during or after apocalyptic events in Independence Day (1996), Armageddon (1998), Deep Impact (1998), Godzilla (1998), and A.I.

[264][315] The building is mentioned in the number "It's the Hard Knock Life" for the musical Annie,[316] and it is the setting for the post-game content in the Squaresoft video game Parasite Eve.

[321] According to one account, Bourke-White wanted to live in the building for the duration of the photo shoot, but the only person able to do so was the janitor, so she was instead relegated to co-leasing a studio with Time Inc.[296] In 1930, several of her photographs were used in a special report on skyscrapers in the then-new Fortune magazine.