New Evel Knievel documentary

[megojim]

sounds pretty cool , even though it may serve to taint his image a little . . . . we all know he was no angel . . .
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment...ntcmp=features

[megojim]

excuse my butchered thread title please, typing too fast at work . . . .

[Red Hulk]

One of my childhood heroes.

[mego maniac mark]

Thanks for the heads up Jim I set it to record tonight

[MIB41]

Thanks for the news! I've got my DVR set to record. Yeah, I've read and watched allot of documentaries on this childhood hero of mine. But I realized very early on, he was a person you wanted to admire from a distance. He was definitely not a guy to be trifled with. He had some deep rooted issues. But he was definitely cut from a different breed.

[HardyGirl]

Oh wow...late to the party, but I can record the encore!

If I knew Evel personally, I probably wouldn't have liked him very much...but as a fan, I loved his showmanship. I wonder how successful he'd be in this day and age? I know his son Robbie was following in his dad footsteps, but never had the popularity and infamy Evel achieved.

[MIB41]

I think what really gave him his notoriety was his ability to make these jumps with bikes that were not remotely engineered to achieve those feats. Bikes back then weighed about a half ton, where as today a bike can weigh well under 150 lbs. I think his son has covered all of the jumps he crashed on. But Robbie was able to use much lighter and better crafted bikes that his dad never had available. It was a different time where he did allot with nonexistent technology. He had incredible nerve.

[palitoy]

I saw a British doc a few years ago that Evel appeared in. It certainly didn't pull any punches on his dark side and Evel himself decided he was done while filming and politely asked the crew to leave.

As a kid, i desperately wanted the Ideal stuff but my mom was dead set against toys of that &*^%%$! At the time, I just thought she didn't like the whole daredevil aspect but now I suspect it was his public behaviour she did not enjoy.

[EmergencyIan]

Did any of you see this last night? I just now saw the thread.


- Ian

[HardyGirl]

I saw most of it. Since the encore was on just after midnight, I was pretty sleepy, so I kept nodding off. But I recorded it, so I can watch it later.

Did any of you see this last night? I just now saw the thread.


- Ian

[jds1911a1]

Discovry has shown it a few times Monday and Tuesday so check your TV guide it will likely replay again on Friday or over the weekend. It was pretty good. what I had never heard before was that he didn't "understand" the physics of the jump it was always a guess for him - hence why he had such spectacular failures, where most stunt men "learn" they have to hit the ramp at a certain speed and be at a certain speed at the end hold their body "just so" to make the math of the jump work (like the car flip in The man with the golden gun)
The Ideal PR guy was interviewed and they talked about the fact that the toys made him the lions share of his money and when ideal pulled the plug - due to his arrest for beating up the guy- it really hurt him where he felt it in his lifestyle.

Today his antics would have made him a reality show sensation.

I loved him then and still do. I hope it helps Figures sell more of their reissuses.

[Earth 2 Chris]

I was a young pup during the tail-end of Evel's heyday, but I did have the stuntcycle set, and remember seeing him on TV. Years later a neighbor gave me a huge EK chopper ride-on. It wasn't until years later that I learned of his rather volatile temper and legal troubles.

I'd like to see this. I'll have to find it.

Chris

[EmergencyIan]

Sounds like a must-see to me, as well.


- Ian