At the core of every great metropolis are the places that capture its spirit. More than just iconic landmarks, these are the destinations where you can practically feel the steady heartbeat of the city, no matter the season. Few such places embody New York City quite like Rockefeller Center, and for that, we have a long list of influential women to thank. From the philanthropist and visionary Abby Aldrich Rockefeller to comedic powerhouses like Tina Fey and Gilda Radner, Rockefeller Center has long been home to inspirational women determined to move the needle forward.

Today, Rockefeller Center brims with style, commerce, entertainment, and connectivity as a result of these remarkable women. Their spirit of innovation is palpable in every building, plaza, and green space, bringing the grounds to life with the kind of vibrancy you can only find in NYC. Here, we honor 16 trailblazers in art, journalism, and showbiz, whose celebrated achievements at Rockefeller Center have helped make New York, well, New York.

Louise Bourgeois

An internationally renowned sculptor, the Parisian-born Bourgeois created her Maman and Spiders installation for Rockefeller Center in 2001, a piece she said honored her mother. Her first retrospective took place at MoMA in 1982, and she also spent decades advocating as an artist for LGBT rights.

Sue Simmons

From 1980 to 2007, Simmons brought intelligence, personality, and wit to NYC news as the co-anchor of Live at Five on NBC. Together with Chuck Scarborough, she set the record for longest-running anchor duo in New York history. She later co-anchored the 11 o'clock news until 2012.

Dorothy Inez Parker

The Rockefeller Foundation goes hand in hand with Rockefeller Center, and Parker — a doctorate-holding botanist, librarian, and author — served the organization from 1945 to 1970, helping to establish agricultural and medical libraries in Mexico, Colombia, India, and other countries. She became associate director of the Foundation's Agricultural Sciences department in 1963 and continued to consult on its projects following her retirement.

Hildreth Meière

If you've ever admired the three medallions gracing the exterior of Radio City Music Hall, you know the Art Deco work of Hildreth Meière. A specialist in mosaics, she designed pieces that also adorn St. Patrick's Cathedral and Temple Emanu-el.

Rosemary Novellino-Mearns

Dancer and advocate Novellino-Mearns served as captain of the Radio City Music Hall Ballet Company in the 1970s. When the theater faced demolition in 1978, she organized to preserve the priceless landmark and won. Her book about it, Saving Radio City Music Hall: A Dancer's True Story, was published in 2015.

Bonnie Cashin

An early breakthrough came for this fashion iconoclast when she designed the costumes for the Roxyettes, as the Rockettes were first known. After her work was discovered by the editor of Harper's Bazaar, she became a major force at several fashion houses and the founding designer of Coach in the 1960s.

Rachel Maddow

The thoughtful, agile, Emmy award-winning host of The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC first got into broadcasting by winning a contest on the Massachusetts radio station WRNX. An author and nightly political commentator, she was the first openly gay news anchor in prime time.

Ellia Park

The acclaimed restaurateur is one-half of the duo behind Michelin-starred restaurants Atoboy and Atomix, and the recently opened NARO at Rockefeller Center. While her husband JP creates each restaurant’s culinary program, Ellia heads front-of-house operations. She’s also the co-founder and CEO of Na:eun Hospitality.

This article was first published in The Center Magazine on November 10, 2016; it has since been edited and updated.