Roarke Industries was the main umbrella under which all of Roarke’s various business interests resided. It was the main company Roarke owned, and every other company he owned is a subsidiary of Roarke Industries.
According to the data that Eve looked up on Roarke in Naked in Death, Roarke Industries/Enterprises was established in 2042.
Main Branches were housed in New York (at 500 Fifth Avenue), Chicago, New Los Angeles, Dublin, London, Bonn, Paris, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Milan, Sydney. Off Planet branches: Station 45, Bridgestone Colony, Vegas II, Free-Star One.
Interests included real estate, import-export, shipping, entertainment, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and transportation.[1]
See the following link for a list of companies that Roarke Owned
Description[]
Roarke Industries, New York, was slick, shiny, and sleek; the building itself spread one hundred fifty stories into the Manhattan sky. It was an ebony lance (Roarke Industries’ YANNI), glossy as wet stone, ringed by transport tubes and diamond-bright skyways.[2]
Inside, the main lobby took up a full city block, boasting three tony restaurants, a high priced boutique, a handful of specialty shops, and a small theater that played art films. The white floor tiles were a full yard square and gleamed like the moon. Clear glass elevators zipped busily up and down, people glides zigzagged left and right, while disembodied voices guided visitors to various points of interest or, if there was business to be conducted, the proper office.[3]
The elevator opened (on the top floor, where Roarke’s office is located[4]) into a silent, white carpeted foyer the size of a small home. There were lush green plants – real plants: ficus, palm, and what appeared to be dogwood flowering off season. There was a sharp spicy scent from a bank of dianthus, blooming in shades of rose and vivid purple. The garden surrounded a comfortable waiting area of mauve sofas and glossy wood tables, and lamps that were surely solid brass with jewel colored shades.[5]
In the center of this was a circular workstation, equipped as efficiently as a cockpit with monitors and keyboards, gauges and tele-links. Two men and a woman worked at it busily, with a seamless ballet of competence in motion. She was led past them (by Caro) into a glass-sided breezeway. A peek down, and she could see Manhattan. There was music piped in she didn’t recognize as Mozart.[5]
Roarke's office had a soaring, three-sided view of New York, a lofty ceiling with pinprick lights, vibrant tones of topaz and emerald in the thickly cushioned furnishings, and an ebony slab desk.[6]
The room was as big as a heliport, with all the amenities of a first-class hotel: automated service bar, a padded relaxation chair complete with VR and mood settings, and an oversize wall screen. To the left, there was a full bath including whirl tub and drying tube. All the standard office equipment, of the highest high-tech, was built in.[7]
Interesting Facts[]
- Working conditions that were found in all of his companies, factories, subsidiaries, and offices throughout the world and its satellites were unquestionably high. He preferred a higher overhead, which tended to keep those who belonged to him comfortable, loyal, and productive.[8]
- Roarke Industries is green and does not manufacture unrecycled paper; "Just our little contribution to environmental responsibility, which also earns a healthy tax break in most markets."[9]
- Roarke used scouts, as he called them, that brought potential employees to his attention.[10]
- Roarke Industries sponsored a scholarship, and donated lab equipment from time to time, to Columbia University.[11]
- Eve’s reserved parking slot was Level One, Slot Two. Presumably Roarke had Slot One.[12]
YANNI[]
- Building Headquarters
- Roarke Industries was described as an ebony lance, glossy as wet stone, ringed by transport tubes and diamond-bright skyways;[2] tall and polished ebony;[13] a big, black tower[14] ... or ... Peabody glanced up as Eve swung toward the underground parking beneath a spearing white tower on Fifth. “Isn’t this one of Roarke’s buildings?” .... “... This is his main office.”[15]
References[]
- ↑ Naked in Death (ISBN 0-425-14829-7), pp. 19-20
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Naked in Death (ISBN 0-425-14829-7), p. 86
- ↑ Naked in Death (ISBN 0-425-14829-7), pp. 86-87
- ↑ Naked in Death (ISBN 0-425-14829-7), p. 87
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Naked in Death (ISBN 0-425-14829-7), p. 88
- ↑ Naked in Death (ISBN 0-425-14829-7), pp. 88-89
- ↑ Naked in Death (ISBN 0-425-14829-7), p. 89
- ↑ Seduction in Death (ISBN 0-425-18146-4), p. 177
- ↑ Imitation in Death (ISBN 0-425-19158-3), p. 51
- ↑ Ritual in Death (ISBN 978-0-425-22444-1), p. 36
- ↑ Kindred in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15595-6), p. 98
- ↑ Echoes in Death, Chapter 11
- ↑ Rapture in Death (ISBN 0-425-15518-8), p. 64
- ↑ Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), p. 106
- ↑ Immortal in Death (ISBN 0-425-15378-9), p. 100