He is a designer and manufacturer of commercial antennas, a competent welder and electrician and, above all, an able climber. He has made more than 100 trips to the top of the Empire State since the early 1970s. To maintain his reputation and business relationship with the Empire State Building, Mr Silliman had to get the work done in the appointed time - two days. The weather had to be ignored and fear left on the ground. But you have to remember that a television station isn't making money when all you're seeing is a black screen.
Time is of the essence here.
While the building was erected ahead of schedule over one year and 45 days, only two ironworkers fell to their deaths. No window washer has ever fallen. The tower begins above the 105th storey, the original mooring mast for dirigibles and 381 metres from the ground. The crow's nest, barely more than a metre wide, has no railings. A fall from there is a straight plummet to certain death.