GET MARRIED AT THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING, VALENTINE’S DAY 2008

– The Empire State Building and Condé Nast Bridal Media’s Brides.com announce today the call for entries to couples around the world to exchange their vows and say, “I do” atop the famed Empire State Building with the exclusive planning, fashion and beauty help of Brides.com. Romance will soar to new heights as 14 couples will be selected to celebrate Valentine’s Day by marrying or renewing their vows at the Empire State Building.

To be selected, couples should visit www.brides.com/esb or www.esbnyc.com to submit their personal love stories, photos and reasons for wanting their special day to be held at the Empire State Building. Winners will be selected based upon the originality and distinctiveness of their submissions and their connections to America’s favorite building. The call for entry begins today and goes until October 31. Couples will be chosen and notified by November 19.

This year marks the first year couples from around the world can officially enter online to be chosen as one of the lucky 14 couples who will be given the wedding of their dreams at the most romantic place on the most romantic day in 2008. Weddings on Valentine’s Day have been a tradition at the Empire State Building since 1994. Since the first couples got hitched, there have been close to 200 weddings in the building.  And, last year, couples came from as far as Germany, as well as Great Britain, New York, Texas, Florida, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and New Jersey to share their special day with the Empire State.

Brides.com Editor in Chief Theresa DiMasi said, “Brides.com is thrilled to partner again with the Empire State Building for its Valentine’s Day Wedding Event for 2008. We can’t wait to see the number of submissions we get on Brides.com and where they come from all around the world. This truly is a global event.”

Brides.com editors will lend their bridal expertise to the event, styling the “wedding chapel” in the Empire State Building and helping each of the 14 couples look their best for the big moment.  The day will begin at 7 a.m. and conclude in the mid-afternoon with each couple being wed in a unique half-hour ceremony. Following their sky-high nuptials, brides and grooms will enjoy a champagne toast and receive a Brides.com gift bag valued at $500.

Brides.com was the first partner ever for the Empire State Building’s Valentine’s Day Wedding Event in 2007, and the day was officially proclaimed “Empire State Building and Brides.com Day” in New York City  by Mayor Bloomberg

Brides.com, “Your #1 Source for Wedding Ideas,” is the premier destination website within Condé Nast Bridal Media.  Brides.com’s dedicated editorial team creates original content, develops interactive tools, cultivates an engaged community and provides an array of beautiful imagery and videos to inspire the bride throughout her wedding planning process. Content is also aggregated from the three national magazines—Brides, Modern Bride, Elegant Bride—and 16 local magazines.

Soaring 1454 feet above Midtown Manhattan, the Empire State Building is the “World’s Most Famous Office Building.”  With new investments in infrastructure, public areas and amenities, the Empire State Building has attracted first-rate tenants in a diverse array of industries from around the world.  The skyscraper’s robust broadcasting technology supports all major television and FM radio stations in the New York metropolitan market. The Empire State Building was recently named “America’s Favorite Architecture” in a poll conducted by the American Institute of Architects.

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