Philippe Petit, Date of Birth, Place of Birth

    

Philippe Petit

French high-wire artist

Date of Birth: 13-Aug-1949

Place of Birth: Nemours, Île-de-France, France

Profession: sport cyclist, tightrope walker, acrobat, magician, circus performer

Nationality: France

Zodiac Sign: Leo

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About Philippe Petit

  • Philippe Petit (French pronunciation: ?[filip p?ti]; born 13 August 1949) is a French high-wire artist who gained fame for his high-wire walk between the towers of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, 1971 as well as his high-wire walk between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, on the morning of 7 August 1974.
  • For his unauthorized feat 400 metres (1,312 feet) above the ground – which he referred to as "le coup" – he rigged a 200-kilogram (440-pound) cable and used a custom-made 8-metre (30-foot) long, 25-kilogram (55-pound) balancing pole.
  • He performed for 45 minutes, making eight passes along the wire.
  • The following week, he celebrated his 25th birthday.
  • All charges were dismissed in exchange for him doing a performance in Central Park for children. Since then, Petit has lived in New York, where he has been artist-in-residence at the Cathedral of St.
  • John the Divine, also a location of other aerial performances.
  • He has done wire walking as part of official celebrations in New York, across the United States, and in France and other countries, as well as teaching workshops on the art.
  • In 2008, Man on Wire, a documentary directed by James Marsh about Petit's walk between the towers, won numerous awards.
  • He was also the subject of a children's book and an animated adaptation of it, released in 2005.
  • The Walk, a movie based on Petit's walk, was released in September 2015, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Petit and directed by Robert Zemeckis. He also became adept at equestrianism, juggling, fencing, carpentry, rock-climbing, and bullfighting.
  • Spurning circuses and their formulaic performances, he created his street persona on the sidewalks of Paris.
  • In the early 1970s, he visited New York City, where he frequently juggled and worked on a slackline in Washington Square Park.

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