Tightrope walker highlights stunt at Twin Towers, 50 years later

Famed French tightrope walker Philippe Petit celebrated the 50th anniversary of his famous walk between New York’s Twin Towers with a performance in a Manhattan cathedral, accompanied by live music from Sting.

On August 7, 1974, Petit walked between the spires of the World Trade Center skyscrapers, 1,310 feet (410 meters) high.

A photographer captured the feat with the New York skyline in the background as Petit – without a harness – made the crossing.

Petit, now 74, partially recreated his gravity-defying stunt on Thursday at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, about seven miles (11 kilometers) north of the former Twin Towers, which were destroyed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

“Of course, my illegal walk between the towers was the most important moment of my life at the time. And when I look back now, I have done about 100 tightrope walks all over the world,” Petit told AFP.

During the reconstruction, Petit was met by a police officer as he completed his walk.

The New York Timeswho called Petit’s walk through the Twin Towers the “art crime of the century,” reported that in 1974, after 45 minutes of “kneeling and other stunts,” Petit turned himself in to waiting police.

He was charged with disturbing the peace and trespassing, but the charges were dropped in exchange for a free performance in a city park.

The feature film The walkstarring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and the Oscar-winning documentary Man on wire tell the story of the famous stunt.