Marquis Jets founder Jesse Itzler and his wife, Spanx inventor Sara Blakely, bought two condos, which together cost $14.7 million. Blakely has a fear of heights, and the couple reportedly hired a former Navy SEAL to suggest emergency escape plans from their 37th-floor apartment, Gross writes. The couple sold their 37th-floor unit for $30 million in August 2014.

15 Central Park West took three years and about $1 billion to construct, including the cost of the land. It was an immediate success, ringing up $2 billion in sales. Even today, the building continues to break real estate sales records.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

15 CPW architect Robert A.M Stern was inspired by the great New York apartments of the 1920s, not today's glassy towers. The building has two sections with 201 units in total, as well as a formal driveway.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Other amenities include a library, private restaurant, three-lane lap pool, and health club with private massage rooms and yoga area.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

The facade of the building is completely covered in limestone, which costs millions of dollars more than brick. The lobby is also opulent, with English oak panels, fluted marble columns, and two fireplaces. There's even a waiting room for chauffeurs.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

It's only been open for five years, but the list of well-known people who have lived or currently live at 15 CPW is astounding. Let's start with the finance folks.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Hedge-fund manager Daniel Loeb bought an eight-bedroom, 10,700-square-foot penthouse condo, paying a record-breaking $45 million back in 2005 when the building was still a hole in the ground. He reportedly outbid Carl Icahn for the unit.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein was also an early buyer. He paid $25.7 million in cash for his corner duplex back in 2006.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Former Citigroup CEO Sandy Weill bought a full-floor penthouse in the front section of 15 CPW. He paid $43.7 million for the place in 2007, then a record price per square foot, and surprised his wife with it on Valentine's Day.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

But that was nothing compared to the $88 million Weill made when he sold it to the 22-year-old daughter of Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev. She reportedly barely uses it — and Ryboloblev is now putting it back on the market.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross, New York Post

More than half a dozen Goldman Sachs execs have owned apartments at 15 CPW at some point — no surprise, since the bank helped finance the building. "Goldman Sachs executives didn't need to make phone calls or write letters to make its building desirable," Gross wrote of the so-called Goldman Effect. "The mere fact that Goldman people were buying en masse made it so."

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

Hedge-fund founder Daniel Och was another early buyer, picking up the top floor of the 43-story tower — a simplex listed at $41.25 million. He held a birthday party in the apartment before it was finished, setting up a stage on the terrace where the band Five for Fighting performed.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Israeli scientist Shlomo Ben-Haim sold his 40th-floor penthouse to a mysterious buyer for $37 million in 2012; it was later revealed to be Bob Diamond, then-CEO of Barclays Capital.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

The building's amenities and private nature are also a major draw for celebrities. Denzel Washington paid just over $13 million for his three-bedroom, four-bathroom apartment back in 2006.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

Sting bought the $26.5 million condo right next to Lloyd Blankfein's in 2008.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon and his wife paid $9.67 million for a condo in 2007. The couple sold it in 2013 for $25 million, just a little under its $30 million asking price.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

Slugger Alex Rodriguez rented a $30,000-a-month apartment there in 2010. He was "the best tenant," one broker told Gross, though building staff griped about his womanizing. Robert De Niro would later rent the same unit, which is owned by steel magnate Leroy Schechter. It's currently listed for just under $50 million.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross, Curbed NY

Actors Kelsey Grammer and Mark Wahlberg have also called the building home for brief periods. "Security is tight — and for good reason," Gross writes. "Members of the staff believe that terrorists have threatened, if not targeted, the building."

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

Techies are also represented at 15 CPW. Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang dropped a little more than $20 million for a condo in the "house" section of the complex.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

Former Google exec Omid Kordestani owns a unit on the same floor as Lloyd Blankfein and Sting. He bought his apartment in March 2008 for $29.5 million. Kordestani joined Twitter as executive chairman in October 2015.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Representing the media world, Wine Spectator publisher Martin Shanken was another early buyer. He paid $19.75 million for his half-floor penthouse.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

Sportscaster Bob Costas bought his $11 million pad in 2007; he and wife, Jill, moved in from the Time Warner Center a few blocks away.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Photos are listing and public photos of 15 Central Park West; not actual apartments.

The real-estate world has a presence in the building as well. Both Zeckendorf brothers, who developed the building, bought apartments there. They each paid $11.5 million, discounts of $3.5 million from the initial listing prices. Will later sold his for $40 million.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross

Co-developer Eyal Ofer and his brother Idan also bought into the property. Eyal wound up with a penthouse featuring a King of the World terrace that was listed for $26 million, and Idan got a $4 million discount on his $30 million pad, according to Gross.

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Source: "House of Outrageous Fortune" by Michael Gross