“Behind the Jumps: The Shocking Secrets of Evel Knievel’s Reckless Pursuit of Fame”
Knievel ended up going to the White House with a pair of elk antlers for President Kennedy as a gift. He never did meet JFK, but after yelling at some congressmen on Capitol Hill, they changed the hunting laws in Yellowstone Park.
He Holds The Guinness World Record For Most Broken Bones
Unsurprisingly, Knievel is the proud owner of a world record that absolutely no one else would want to break. By 1975, Knievel had crashed more than 20 times and suffered 433 broken bones or fractures. Those fractured bones include his skull, back, pelvis, nose, hips, and both arms.
Knievel’s son claims it was much less and that his father only ever broke 40 or 50 bones. Knievel himself says he only broke 35 bones.
His First Stunt Was A Failure
For his first stunt, Knievel agreed to try and jump over two lions and a box of snakes in order to save a local Honda dealership. The turnout was huge and thousands watched Knievel dramatically fall into and break open the box of snakes.
The angry snakes inside the box started moving towards the crowd and hundreds of shocked fans went home and told everyone about the stuntman called Evel Knievel.
He Didn’t Want His Name To Sound Bad
After a police chase in 1956, Knievel ended up in jail beside a man named William Knofel. During his night in jail, the two talked and Knofel said his nickname was “Awful Knofel.”
Post Comment