Richard Lee

At 6:30 am, on May 26, 1977 George Willig, better known as the "Human Fly" started climbing up the side of 2 WTC. About 7:30am I arrived at my desk on the 69th floor of 1 WTC. Starting to sip my first coffee of the day I looked out my window at the South Tower and incredulously at a figure climbing the wall.

As I stared out the window, I heard a voice from behind me and someone with a heavy French accent asked if he could come over to watch the climber. To my surprise I recognized him immediately. It was Philippe Petit, who I watched walking the high wire between the towers a few years earlier from this same window. He "happened" to be visiting the Public Affairs Department that morning, but their windows faced East so he couldn't see the action from there. We watched for a while and then he said to me, "That guy is crazy." I turned slowly to face him, smiled a little, and all I could think of saying was, " Are you kidding me." He deadpanned he was serious.

He thought walking up the side of the building was more dangerous than walking the wire. We watched a little bit longer and then before he left I got his autograph on a buck slip, which of course I still have. What a great PA memory.