Ducat Media for the Museum of the City of New York.

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TKTS Booth

Prior to the Lindsay administration, theatergoers couldn’t buy half-priced theater tickets on the day of a performance. The Times Square reduced-price ticket booth (TKTS), featuring last-minute bargain tickets, was an innovation of the Lindsay administration. Before the booth was erected, a theatergoer would have to go from box office to box office in the Theater District to find out what tickets were available. The mayor himself was an avid theatergoer and sometime performer and even became the chairman of the Lincoln Center Theater after he left office. Lindsay strongly advocated the creation of TKTS to increase the demand for tickets and attendance at the theaters. Not all theater owners, however, were pleased with the practice of discounting,

The current TKTS booth and its adjacent grandstand and plaza have become the Theater District’s symbol as well as its centerpiece.