West 47 St, Midtown

West 47th has its run through midtown from 5th to 7th (the rest of 47th in midtown is East 57th). In these two blocks of the street, you will be hard pressed to be able to walk 10 feet and not fun into a jewelry or diamond shop. Seriously. They're everywhere on this street. The business is dominated by Orthodox Jews and is one of the biggest diamond centers in the world. This stretch of neighborhood is actually called the Diamond District because of the volume of rocks that run through this block. There's really nothing else on this block but that.
The block across 6th Avenue used to have a ton of hotels that catered to vaudeville stars back when the Palace was around. The Palace was the major Vaudeville theatre that featured people such as the Marx Brothers and WC Fields. It also held the premiere of Citizen Kane as well as theatre premieres of Les Cages Aux Folles, Beauty and the Beast and Aida. It's now the Doubletree, sadly. And, all the great hotels where the likes of Jack Benny, George Burns, and Lenny Bruce all lived are now businesses. How's that for irony? There are a couple of little restaurants on the block but nothing I would travel too far to visit. It's pretty uneventful now but some of the buildings are nice.
I wouldn't live on West 47th unless I lived here for free . . and, even then, I don't know. It's too commercial, there's no neighborhood vibe, and it's pretty dirty / loud around here. If you need diamonds, I guess, then go here. Otherwise, it's a pass.