39 Amazing Vintage Photos of Celebrities in Their New York City Apartments

• Audrey Hepburn
• Yoko Ono
• Helen Gurley Brown
• Babe Ruth
• Tony Bennett
• Eleanor Roosevelt
• James Baldwin
• Lauren Bacall
• Shirley MacLaine
• Bette Midler
• Lorraine Hansberry
• Art Blakey
• Eileen Fulton
• Lillian Gish
• Diahann Carroll
• Marilyn Monroe
• Joe DiMaggio
• William S. Burroughs
• Gloria Vanderbilt, Anderson Cooper, and Carter Vanderbilt Cooper
• Cornelia Sharpe
• Louis Armstrong
• Barbra Streisand
• Joe Namath
• Truman Capote
• Gloria Swanson
• Anne Bancroft
• Estée Lauder
• Julie Newmar
• Eddie Albert
• Philippe Halsman
• Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward
• Steve and Eydie
• Kim Hunter
• Ed Sullivan
• Grace Kelly
• Sid Caesar
• Debbie Harry and Chris Stein

All different kinds of famous people have called New York City home over the years—from artists to actors and politicians to athletes. Some of them lived the glamorous life in sky-high penthouses, but many started out in far humbler abodes. We’re taking you inside the apartments of some of NYC’s most illustrious residents of the past century—from luxurious Upper East Side digs to artsy spots in the Village.

Audrey Hepburn

Actress Audrey Hepburn arranges flowers in her New York apartment in 1954. Her film Sabrina would debut later that year.

Yoko Ono

Since 1973, multimedia artist Yoko Ono has resided in New York’s iconic Dakota building on Central Park West. Here, she’s pictured in the apartment in 1980, one year to the day after the murder of her husband, John Lennon.

Helen Gurley Brown

Businesswoman Helen Gurley Brown—she served as editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan and penned the groundbreaking Sex and the Single Girl in 1962—looks pretty in pink in her Central Park West home in 1979.

Babe Ruth

Baseball star Babe Ruth lived in multiple New York City apartments during his tenure as a New York Yankee and afterward. In 1935, the year he retired from baseball, he had a beer cooler inside his home, as well as plenty of baseball memorabilia.

Tony Bennett

Queens-born crooner Anthony Dominick Benedetto, better known as Tony Bennett, lived with his first wife and eldest son in the Riverdale section of the Bronx. The building was reportedly the Briar Oaks, a luxury co-op.

Eleanor Roosevelt

Dancer and civil rights activist Lena Horne visits former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. At the time, Roosevelt lived at 55 East 74th Street, a townhome she co-owned with her friend, Dr. David Gurewitsch, and his wife, Edna.

James Baldwin

Writer James Baldwin was born and raised in Harlem, but lived all across New York City during his life. This photo was taken in 1963, the year he published The Fire Next Time.

Lauren Bacall

From 1961 until her death in 2014, actress Lauren Bacall lived at the Dakota on the Upper West Side. Here, she’s pictured in her apartment with her son, Sam Robards.

Shirley MacLaine

Leading lady Shirley MacLaine has had a seven-decade career spanning acting, singing, dancing, and even writing. Here, she’s pictured in her New York City apartment, circa 1979.

Halston

In 1987, designer Halston hosted the Benefit for the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance at his home. Here, he (far left) is pictured with Jerry Robbins, Liza Minnelli, Martha Graham, and Mikhail Baryshnikov (left to right). See his apartment, featured in House Beautiful in 1977, here.

Bette Midler

Before moving into an Upper East Side penthouse, the singer and actress lived on Barrow Street in the artsy Greenwich Village. She moved to New York from Hawaii, where she was born, in 1965; this photo was taken a decade later.

Lorraine Hansberry

Playwright Lorraine Hansberry, the first Black woman to have her play (A Raisin in the Sun) performed on Broadway, reclines in her Bleecker Street apartment. Today, the home is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Art Blakey

Jazz drummer Art Blakey, the bandleader of the Jazz Messengers, lived on West 45th Street in 1978. He was renowned for his “hard bop” style of bebop.

Eileen Fulton

For some 50 years, actress Eileen Fulton (born Margaret Elizabeth McLarty) starred on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns. Living in New York, she also took on theater roles throughout her career.

Lillian Gish

Actress Lillian Gish invites friend and fellow actress Helen Hayes to tea in her home in 1977. Gish lived in many of the city’s iconic hotels before moving into her late mother’s apartment in 1948.

Diahann Carroll

Diahann Carroll was the first Black woman to win the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical (for No Strings, in 1962). Here, she’s interviewed by reporter Charles Justice in her Central Park West apartment.

Marilyn Monroe

Photographers swarmed actress Marilyn Monroe in her Sutton Place apartment in 1956, when her fiancé, playwright Arthur Miller, testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee. She would marry Miller later that year.

Joe DiMaggio

The baseball star, who played for the New York Yankees his entire career, is pictured here with his first wife, Dorothy, and their son, Joe DiMaggio Jr., in their New York apartment. He later married Marilyn Monroe.

William S. Burroughs

Writer William S. Burroughs lived at 222 Bowery on Manhattan’s Lower East Side in an apartment dubbed “The Bunker” (for obvious reasons, per this photograph). He’s pictured with actor and filmmaker Dennis Hopper (right) here.

Gloria Vanderbilt, Anderson Cooper, and Carter Vanderbilt Cooper

Socialite Gloria Vanderbilt, pictured here with her sons Anderson Cooper and Carter Vanderbilt Cooper, was famous for her over-the-top decor style. This photograph shows the trio sitting in their family apartment in the UN Tower in 1976.

Cornelia Sharpe

Actress and model Cornelia Sharp poses during a 1975 photoshoot in her New York apartment. That year, she starred in the film The Reincarnation of Peter Proud.

Louis Armstrong

Born in New Orleans, jazz musician Louis Armstrong moved to New York in 1924. Here, he’s pictured with his fourth wife and native New Yorker, Lucille, at their home in Corona, Queens, in 1970.

Barbra Streisand

The actress and singer is photographed with lawyer and activist Bella Abzug, for whom Streisand was hosting a party in her New York City apartment. Streisand lived at the Ardsley on Central Park West for 30 years.

Joe Namath

New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath rests in his Upper East Side apartment in January 1968, while recovering from an injury. He retired from football a year and a half later.

Truman Capote

Journalist Barbara Walters interviews writer Truman Capote in his New York home in 1967. For years, he lived in 860 United Nations Plaza, a popular spot for celebrities in the 1960s.

Gloria Swanson

Actress Gloria Swanson sits for a portrait in her apartment in 1965. By this point, she had largely retired from film, but still appeared on television and the stage.

Anne Bancroft

A photographer captures Anne Bancroft in her Greenwich Village apartment after she won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1963, for her role in The Miracle Worker.

Estée Lauder

Beauty executive Estée Lauder poses in her New York townhouse in 1962. She was born in Corona, Queens, in 1906; in 1998 she was included on Time magazine’s list of the 20th century’s most influential business geniuses. She was the only woman on the list.

Julie Newmar

Actress, singer, and dancer Julie Newmar had quite the view from the terrace of her Beekman Place apartment. This photograph was taken in 1960; later that decade, she would go on to star in Batman as Catwoman.

Eddie Albert

Actor Eddie Albert sits for a portrait with his family during the TV program Person to Person in 1960. He moved to New York in 1933, pursuing a future in entertainment after the stock market crash ended his business career.

Philippe Halsman

Here, the cameras are turned on Philippe Halsman, the portrait photographer famous for shooting 101 covers for Life magazine. He immigrated to New York from the city of Riga (then part of the Russian Empire and now part of Latvia) and received his visa through family friend Albert Einstein (FYI: Halsman took the famous portrait of the scientist with his tongue out).

Dagmar

Known mononymously as Dagmar, actress Virginia Ruth “Jennie” Lewis was one of the first major female stars of television. Here, she’s photographed in her Central Park South home in 1959.

Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward

Actors Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward met while starring together in the Broadway show Picnic and they married in 1958. They pose in their 11th Street home with some of their awards.

Steve and Eydie

Vocalists Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé, known by their duo name Steve and Eydie, married in 1957. Here, they’re pictured in their home on 57th Street in 1958.

Kim Hunter

Born in Detroit, actress Kim Hunter is pictured in her New York home with her second husband, Robert Emmett, and her two children in 1956. In 1951, she won both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for her performance in A Streetcar Named Desire.

Ed Sullivan

Ed Sullivan and Mrs. John Chapman, co-chairman of the New York Newspaper women’s club entertainment committee, have a conversation in the American television personality’s apartment at the Delmonico Hotel.

Grace Kelly

Before she moved to Monaco, Grace Kelly lived in a Fifth Avenue apartment in New York. Less than a month after this photo was taken, she married Prince Rainier and earned her royal title.

Sid Caesar

Comedic actor Sid Caesar shows his silly side at home with his wife, Florence Levy, and their daughter. He’s best known for hosting the TV programs Your Show of Shows and Caesar’s Hour.

Debbie Harry and Chris Stein

Singer Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein, both of Blondie, dated and lived together in a few New York City apartments during the ’70s and ’80s. One of those apartments burned down, resulting in an iconic photoshoot.