Man on Wire

- Philippe Petit, a 20-year-old Frenchman, dared to walk across a high wire from tower to tower of the World Trade Center on August 7, 1974.

- As a child, Philippe loved to climb, nobody could stop him.

- At the age of 17, helped by his unconditional friend, Jean-Louis Brondeau, and his lover Annie Allix, he put his wire on the top of the Notre Dam Cathedral where he walked for almost an hour. Likewise, he walked over the Harbor Bridge in Sidney.

- One day while waiting at the doctor’s office he saw a wonderful project: they were going to build 2 of the highest towers in the world. Amazed by the magnitude of the construction, he promised himself he was going to walk across the World Trade Center.

- Climbing was something that pleased him enormously. Petit knew his dream was probably the end of his life, but as he said, “It’s a wonderful thing to die in the exercise of your passion.”

- Philippe was a strict, ambitious and creative man. He loved freedom and autonomy.


- When people asked Petit for a reason for his actions he said, “There is no why. When I see a beautiful place to put my wire, I can’t resist it.”

- Policemen tried to arrest Philippe at the top of the towers; however, he walked forward and backwards while watching the city. He even laid down on the wire to enjoy the blue sky.

- Philippe’s friends first rejected to help him with his plan. They didn’t want to be liable for the death of his friend.

- Philippe was arrested after he got down of his wire. He was then checked by a doctor to prove he was mentally fine.

- Petit’s story was a fairy tale. He recognized it was clearly out of human scale walking across a wire from tower to tower, but something inside him pushed him to do it.

Paola Beltran