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Now then, most of the time a ride in an elevator is socially neutral. 

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Talking stops or there's little eye contact as well, 

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and the ride is generally over in about a minute or two. 

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Now imagine being stuck in an elevator for more than an hour with 27 other people. 

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As Jeanne Moos tells us, you don't have to imagine it; It's on the Internet.

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When those doors close, do you sometimes wonder what you would do if they didn't reopen? 

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Would you kick and slap them? 

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Would you beat on them and bang against them? 

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Scream for help into the intercom and push some more? 

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Now imagine there were 28 of you, coughing uncomfortably, trying to kill time.

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Hey, what's your favorite song?

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Help me.

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No, this wasn't some Manhattan skyscraper. 

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It was underground at the 181st Street subway station, 

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a station so deep they need elevators -- elevators with a reputation for breaking down.

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We tried to talk, but we were very scared.

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And very hot. 

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The video was shot by Isabel Demarco, 

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an Italian who came to New York two weeks ago to study English. 

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It was the English of a fireman she heard about an hour after getting stuck.

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Hey, listen, I'm gonna come in with you guys.

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Dangling legs more welcome than a shapely Rockette's, 

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a voice comforting a little girl whose face we've obscured. 

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She'd had a panic attack.

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Sweetie, it's alright. It's OK. We're here. You'll be OK. 

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Five more minutes, you and your mom will be the first two to leave. 

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Anybody else? I need the young and the old.

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An hour and a half is bad, 

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but that's nothing compared to the guy who spent almost two days stuck in an elevator 

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with nothing to eat but a pack of Rolaids and no water.

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Thirty-four-year-old Nicholas White was working late at his Manhattan office 

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when he took the elevator up from a smoking break and got stuck.

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It was 11 o'clock on a Friday night. 

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He wasn't rescued 'til 4 p.m. Sunday. 

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He reportedly got a six-figure settlement from the building, and David Letterman parodied his video.

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But at least elevators don't discriminate. Even pop stars like the Jonas Brothers get stuck in them.

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This is like my worst nightmare.

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They got trapped after a concert. It took more than half an hour to get them out.

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But sometimes the call of nature comes before the rescuers. 

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Nicholas White pried open the doors and relieved himself down the elevator shaft. 

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As for that little girl...

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I've got to pee!

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Despite her dance of desperation.

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No I can't!

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Oh, yes she could and did, but whatever you do, learn from Letterman.

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It helps if you press the button, idiot.