“Thank you, God, for the amazing talent you’ve given me,” Wallenda said modestly as he approached the halfway mark on the first leg of his two record-setting walks. It was the first time Wallenda walked a tightrope blindfolded - in ’11, he performed acrobatic moves while blindfolded, on a gadget called The Wheel of Death that hung off the side of the Tropicana Casino and Resort’s 23rd floor in Atlantic City.īefore finally taking his first step on the wire in Chicago, Wallenda prayed with his “good luck charm,” as Geist’s described televangelist Joel Osteen. And, by giving viewers a full 90-minutes of walk-up blah, blah, blah before Wallenda actually took his first step for the special, which started at 7 PM ET, the network ran its biggest risks of the night – aggravating viewers out of their wits. Even so, Peacock Productions President and General Manager Sharon Scott said before tonight the telecast would have a 10-second delay. Viewer discretion is advised,” Discovery said ominously on screen before the program’s start. “There is an incredible risk involved in this endeavor. “I get goose bumps and chills thinking about it.Jo Ling Kent Joins CBS News As Senior Business And Technology Correspondent “My dream is to actually walk the wire with my great-grandfather,” he said. “I’ve trained a bit to do a headstand on the wire, but I’ve never done it publicly because I’ve always said if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it on that walk with him,” Wallenda said, explaining that he wants to use vintage film of Karl Wallenda’s walk to create the illusion of the two of them sharing the high wire. The stunt at Tallulah Falls Gorge in Georgia included two headstands on the high wire. What’s next? Wallenda has said he next wants to recreate a 1,200-foot-long high-wire walk made famous by his great-grandfather. “I was afraid when he first started, but once I saw that he didn’t hesitate and just walked, I wasn’t scared for him no more.”Ī year before Wallenda was born, his great-grandfather Karl Wallenda fell to his death during a tightrope stunt in Puerto Rico. I saw it with my own eyes,” Garner said afterward. Even grilling was prohibited.Ĭynthia Garner traveled 90 miles from Belvidere, Illinois, with her husband Johnny to watch the event. Residents of Marina City were asked not to use laser pointers, camera flashes or drones that could interfere. Months of preparations have meant helicopters lifting cable to the rooftops, road closures and clearances from the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. Just two days earlier, the city had been beset with gusty winds, snow, hail and driving rain. “Yes there’s some wind, yes it’s cool, but it’s not unbearable,” he said. Two of his previous televised tightrope walks - over the brink of Niagara Falls in 2012 and across the Little Colorado River Gorge in 2013 - drew about 13 million viewers each.Īt around 6:40 p.m., just minutes before the anticipated start of his high-wire feat, Wallenda, who lives in Florida, said the chilly conditions in Chicago would not stall him. Journalists covering Sunday’s event signed waivers relinquishing their right to claim emotional distress if they witness a catastrophe. Chicago city officials ignored a state law requiring safety nets for aerial acts higher than 20 feet, saying the law wasn’t intended for “elite” performers. The Discovery Channel used a 10-second delay for the broadcast, which would have allowed producers to cut away if anything went wrong.
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