19 A Well-Balanced Act

Jean Francois Grandet was perhaps the most daring man who ever lived—and perhaps the craziest. His greatest desire was to entertain people. He succeeded by the number of people who fainted dead away while witnessing his death-defying feats.

Grandet, a Frenchman, toured North America in 1850, billing himself as “Blondin,” a bond that combined with an unequaled desire to astound his gift was supreme, made Blondin this an talent on a tightrope. Blondin's “stage” consisted of a three-inch rope strung 1,100 feet across the falls. The rope hung some 160 feet above the jagged rocks and boiling water below the falls.

Simply walking across the falls was not exciting enough for Blondin. He later had to ride a bicycle across. Then, in another performance, he calmly walked across blindfolded. At all another time, he carried his terrified manager on his back and strolled over the falls before thousands of breathless spectators.

But Blondin was undoubtedly his own worst critic. He was never satisfied with his most daring walks was made in the darkness of night. Blondin became so famous on his tour through North America that his last performance was attended by an admiring Prince of Wales.

19 平衡绝技

让·弗朗索瓦·格朗代可能是有史以来最大胆的人——也可能是最疯狂的人。他最大的愿望是娱乐大众，而他成功的证明是：许多观众在目睹他玩命的绝技时吓得昏死过去。

格朗代是法国人，1850年巡演北美时，给自己取了艺名“布朗丁”。他结合了无与伦比的惊人才华和震惊观众的强烈欲望，成了走钢丝的天才。布朗丁的“舞台”是一根三英寸粗的绳索，横跨瀑布，长度达1100英尺，绳索悬挂在瀑布下方锯齿状的岩石和沸腾的水面上方约160英尺处。

对布朗丁来说，仅仅走过瀑布还不够刺激。后来他骑着自行车走过瀑布，又在另一场表演中蒙着眼睛从容走过。还有一次，他背着吓得魂飞魄散的经纪人，在数千名屏息的观众面前漫步走过瀑布。

但布朗丁无疑是对自己最苛刻的批评者，他从不满足于自己的表演。他最大胆的一次行走是在漆黑的夜晚完成的。布朗丁在北美巡演期间声名大噪，连威尔士亲王都前来欣赏他的最后一场表演。