George Polley
George Gibson Polley was an
American pioneer of (the then-unnamed act of)
buildering, or climbing the walls of tall buildings, earning him the nickname "Human fly".
According to himself, he began his climbing career in 1910 when an owner of a clothing store promised him a suit if he would climb to the roof of the building. He succeeded.
Over his career Polley climbed over 2000 buildings. In 1920 he climbed the
Woolworth building but was arrested for climbing without official permission. He could spice up his performance by pretending to slip and fall from a windowsill to another.
George Polley died at the age of 29 due to
brain tumor.
