Set Design Analysis - Godfather of Harlem
Part 1: Analyzing the set of the Godfather of Harlem, historically inaccurate furniture, history of Lenox Terrace in Harlem.
Season 1 of Godfather of Harlem is set in 1963. In Senator Powells office, he sits in an Eames Eames Soft Pad chair. This chair was not designed until 1969, several years later. The historically accurate chair for this set would have been the Eames Aluminum Chair which was designed in 1958.
Clip from Godfather of Harlem - Season 1 Episode 7: Masters of War
Both chairs are very similar as they are designed by husband and wife duo, Charles and Ray Eames. Both are also considered classic designs and are still sold today through Herman Miller.
Directly across from Senator Powell (played my Giancarlo Esposito), Bumpy Johnson (played by Forrest Whittaker) is accompanied by a church member. They both sit in the Saarinen Executive Chair, another classic Mid-Century design. This one was designed in 1946 by Eero Saarinen and remains a popular chair today as well.
The set design throughout the series is very detailed and this was the only slip up I noticed throughout all three seasons so, Kudos to the set designer! They even featured Lenox Terrace in Harlem, where Bumpy Johnson lived with his family in the penthouse. Bumpy Johnson actually lived here in real life too!
Clip of Bumpy Johnsons wife walking into Lenox Terrace
Lenox Terrace is a luxury complex in Harlem that would have been brand new when Bumpy was living there. The complex is made of 6 Modernist style towers with the first one being completed in 1958. Several well-known Black people in the entertainment industry lived here. Including Mahalia Jackson and Miles Davis.
Stay tuned for part 2 which will be a set design analysis of Bumpy Johnsons penthouse!