“Behind the Jumps: The Shocking Secrets of Evel Knievel’s Reckless Pursuit of Fame”
It didn’t take long for Knievel to realize he was the star of the show. In 1966, one year after the troupe formed, he ditched the other members because apparently, it was just “too much trouble to have employees.”
It Was A Big Crash That Made Evel Knievel A Household Name
In 1968, Knievel jumped the fountains in front of Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas as a publicity stunt for the hotel. Unfortunately, he sailed 151 feet in the air and cleared the fountains, but had a horrific crash at the end. He ended up breaking his pelvis, hip, multiple ribs, and was in a coma for 29 days.
The failed jump was broadcasted on ABC and made him a household name. It seems like Knievel’s greatest asset was his failures.
He Doesn’t Actually Know How Far He Can Jump
Even after a career spanning decades and numerous successful jumps, Knievel still claims not to know how to gauge a jump. He has admitted that every stunt he did was his own “guesstimate.” Knievel even went as far as to admit that he doesn’t understand the science or math behind the daredevil jumps.
In other words, the world’s greatest motorcycle stuntman had absolutely no idea what he was doing, and he still pulled it off.
Making Money Move
At the height of his career, Knievel was earning $25,000 per jump. Adjusted for inflation in today’s money that’s about $162,000 per jump. And from 1972-1975 he was averaging one stunt per week.
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