Famed Canadian tightrope walker Jay Cochrane, whose high-wire exploits earned him the nickname "Prince of the Air," has passed away in St. Catharines, Ont.

He was 69 and died shortly after 7 p.m. ET Wednesday, according to his longtime publicist, Mark Phillips.

The six-time Guinness World Record holder skywalked all over the world. He was recently diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer, which would eventually take his life.

Cochrane was born in Saint John but grew up in the Ontario towns of North Bay and Sudbury, before eventually settling in Florida.

In one of Cochrane's most memorable feats, in 1972, he crossed a 91-metre-long wire at the Canadian National Exhibition 41 times back and forth, walking a total distance of more than 3.7 kilometres.