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The Falls in entertainment and popular culture
In October 1829, Sam Patch, who called himself The Yankee Leaper, jumped over the Horseshoe Falls and became the first famous person to survive the thrust. This began a long tradition of daredevils trying to go over the Falls and survive. In 1901, 63-year-old Annie Edson Taylor was the first person to go over the Falls in a barrel, she survived almost unharmed. Since Taylor's historic ride, 14 other people have intentionally gone over the Falls in or on a machine. Some have survived unharmed, but others have drowned or been severely injured. Survivors of such stunts face charges and stiff fines, as it is illegal, on both sides of the border, to attempt to go over the Falls. Magician David Copperfield more recently added his name to the list of these daredevils, successfully travelling (or perhaps, appearing to travel) over the Falls in 1990.
Other daredevils have made crossing the Falls their goal. Starting with the successful passage by Jean François "Blondin" Gravelet in 1859, tightrope walkers have drawn large crowds to their exploits. Their wires ran across the gorge, near the current Rainbow Bridge, not over the waterfall itself. Englishman Captain Matthew Webb, the first man to swim the English Channel, drowned in 1883 after unsuccessfully trying to swim across the whirlpools and rapids downriver from the waterfall.
In what some called the "Miracle at Niagara", Roger Woodward, a nine-year-old American boy, was swept over the Horseshoe Falls protected only by a life preserver in July, 1960. He was plucked from the roiling plunge pool beneath the Horseshoe Falls by the crew of the Maid of the Mist boat. His survival, which no one thought possible, made news throughout the world.
Kirk Jones became the first person to plunge over the Horseshoe Falls without a flotation device on October 20, 2003. While it is still not known whether Jones was determined to commit suicide, he survived the 16-story fall with only battered ribs, scrapes, and bruises.
No human has ever survived a thrust over the American Falls, due to the numerous boulders and the relatively weak current. All survivors and stunters have passed over the Horseshoe Falls, where there are fewer boulders and the current can "throw" a person farther away from the brink and (hopefully) avoid the boulders.
Already a huge tourist attraction and favorite spot for honeymooners,
Niagara Falls visit rose sharply in 1953 after the release of Niagara, a movie
starring Marilyn Monroe. Later in the 20th century, the falls was a featured
location in 1980's movie Superman II, and was itself the subject of a popular
IMAX movie. Much of the episode Return of the Technodrome in the 1987 Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon series take place near the Niagara Falls and its
hydroelectric plant. The waterfall, or more particularly, the tourist-supported
complex near the Falls, was the setting of the short-lived American television
show Wonderfalls in early 2004. With the recent influx of supplementary international
tourists, annual visits exceed 14 million in 2003.
Seeing
the Falls
Peak numbers of visitors take place
in the summertime, when Niagara Falls are both a daytime and evening attraction.
From the Canadian side, floodlights illuminate both sides of the Falls for several
hours after dark (until midnight).
From the American side, the American Falls can be viewed from walkways along Prospect Park, which also features an observation tower. Nearby, the Cave of the Winds trail leads hikers down some three hundred steps to a point beneath Bridal Veil Falls. The Niagara Scenic Trolley offers guided trips along the American Falls.
On the Canadian side, Queen Victoria Park features manicured gardens, platforms offering spectacular views of both the American and Horseshoe Falls, and underground walkways leading into observation rooms which yield the illusion of being within the falling waters. The observation deck of the nearby Skylon Tower offer the highest overhead view of the Falls, and in the opposite direction gives views as far as distant Toronto.6 With the Konica Minolta Tower, it is one of two towers in Canada with a view of the Falls. Along the Niagara River, the Niagara River Recreational Trail runs the 56 km (35 miles) from Fort Erie to Fort George, and include many historical sites from the War of 1812.
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