History
Julian Price, president of Jefferson Standard Life Insurance, asked New York City architect Charles C. Hartmann to design his company's new headquarters. Price paid for the building in full because he did not believe in debt. The Jefferson Standard Building copied the Equitable Building in its use of a U-shape allowing more light and air into more of the building. The exterior is terra cotta and granite. Architectural styles include Neo-Gothic, Neo-Classical and Art Deco. The terra cotta tile facade incorporates Beaux-Arts and Romanesque characteristics. Above the doorway is a bust of Thomas Jefferson, for whom the company was named, with Buffalo nickels on either side of ground floor windows to represent thrift and economy.
In 1930, Jefferson Standard gained a controlling interest in Pilot Life Insurance Co. In 1967, Pilot Life Insurance Co. and Jefferson Standard became Jefferson-Pilot Corporation, and 800 Pilot Life employees moved into the Jefferson Standard Building and its 20-story addition in 1990. Jefferson-Pilot merged with Lincoln Financial Group in 2006. The buildings remain the headquarters for the company's life insurance operations, though the company headquarters moved to Philadelphia.
In October 2009, a limited edition cover of Acme Comics G-Man Cape Crisis #2 showed the 1990 Lincoln Financial insurance division headquarters (formerly the Jefferson-Pilot Building), with G-Man fighting the Acme Bat. Chris Giarusso drew the cover, which recalled Superman fighting Spider-Man in 1976. A special appearance by Giarusso at the Greensboro Acme Comics store marked the cover's release on October 24. Also present were Gregg Schigiel (whose work includes SpongeBob SquarePants), Jacob Chabot (Mighty Skullboy Army), Brian Smith (Stuff of Legend) and Art Baltazar (Tiny Titans).
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