Showmanship and Mass Frenzy: Blondin’s Niagara Stunt
A fun post that had me smiling at some of the Blondin’s antics.
On the 30th of June 1859, French acrobat Charles Blondin crossed Niagara Falls on a tightrope. “About 25,000 thrill-seekers arrived by train and steamer and dispersed on the American or Canadian side of the falls (…) Both banks grew “fairly black” with swarms of spectators, among them statesmen, judges, clerics, generals, members of Congress, capitalists, artists, newspaper editors, professors, debutantes, salesmen and hucksters. Vendors hawked everything from lemonade to whiskey, and Colcord [his manager] gave tours to the press, explaining the logistics of what the Great Blondin was about to attempt. A light rope, not even an inch thick, had been attached to one end of his hempen cable so it could be conveyed across the Niagara River (…) Shortly before 5 p.m., Blondin took his position on the American side, dressed in pink tights bedecked with spangles. The lowering sun made him appear as if clothed in light…
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