Intrepid Personalities

From The New Yorker’s archive: a selection of pieces on intrepid adventurers and remarkable feats. View in browser | Update your preferences Intrepid Personalities In 1989, Wallace White profiled Sylvia Earle, the renowned marine biologist and deep-sea diver, in The New Yorker. At the time, Earle was the world’s best-known marine scientist; her dive to twelve hundred and fifty feet in a Jim suit, near Oahu, set a women’s depth record and earned her the nickname Her Deepness. She also became legendary for her fearlessness—at one point delivering a sharp kick to the snout of a shark that happened to swim a bit too close while she was scuba-diving. Earle’s bold, enterprising nature has influenced several generations of female explorers. This week, we’re bringing you a selection of pieces on intrepid adventurers and remarkable feats. In “The Man Who Walks on Air,” Calvin Tomkins writes about the high-wire artist Philippe Petit and contemplates his astonishing acts of wire walking. In “No Obstacles,” Alec Wilkinson explores the birth of parkour, in France. In “Musher,” Susan Orlean profiles Susan Butcher, who, in 1986, became the second woman to win the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, in Alaska. Francis Steegmuller examines the fascinating career of a trapeze artist who served as a muse for Jean Cocteau, and Mark Levine reports on the striking exploits of the skateboarder Tony Hawk. Namwali Serpell revisits the legacy of a Zambian schoolteacher and “Afronaut” who dreamed of bringing his country into the space race. In “The White Darkness,” David Grann chronicles Henry Worsley’s arduous and monumental treks across Antarctica. Finally, in “Top of the World,” Lauren Collins recounts the life of Barbara Hillary, the first African-American woman to reach both the North and South Poles. Taken together, these pieces offer an intriguing look at the lives of those who dare to venture beyond the ordinary. — Erin Overbey, archive editor From The New Yorker’s Archive Profiles Her Deepness Sylvia Earle’s underwater explorations. By Wallace White | June 26, 1989 Onward and Upward with the Arts The Man Who Walks on Air Philippe Petit is about to perform the greatest show of his life. Is it art? By Calvin Tomkins | March 29, 1999 The Sporting Scene No Obstacles Navigating the world by leaps and bounds. By Alec Wilkinson | April 9, 2007 The Talk of the Town Musher Susan Butcher, Iditarod champion. By Susan Orlean | October 5, 1987 Onward and Upward with the Arts An Angel, a Flower, a Bird How Barbette and his trapeze once dominated vaudeville. By Francis Steegmuller | September 20, 1969 The Sporting Scene The Birdman Tony Hawk—part Michael Jordan, part Evel Knievel—is the star of a multimillion-dollar industry that still can’t shake its outlaw image. By Mark Levine | July 18, 1999 Culture Desk The Zambian “Afronaut” Who Wanted to Join the Space Race At the height of the Cold War, a schoolteacher launched the Zambian Space Program with a dozen aspiring teen-age astronauts. Was he unfairly mocked? By Namwali Serpell | March 11, 2017 A Reporter at Large The White Darkness At fifty-five, Henry Worsley began a solitary trek across Antarctica. It became a singular test of character. By David Grann | February 5, 2018 Culture Desk Top of the World A seventy-five-year-old explorer returns from the North Pole. By Lauren Collins | May 21, 2007 This e-mail was sent to you by The New Yorker. To insure delivery, we recommend adding newyorker@newsletters.newyorker.com, to your contacts, while noting that it is a no-reply address. Please send all newsletter feedback to tnyinbox@newyorker.com. For more from The New Yorker, sign up for our newsletters, shop the store, and sign in to newyorker.com, where subscribers always have unlimited access. Contact us with questions. View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2020. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.