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Josh Clark
This is an iHeart podcast.
Charles W. Chuck Bryant
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Jerry
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Josh Clark
And it doesn't hurt that you're gorgeous. Okay, that's it. I'm taking you home with me.
Jerry
I mean, you can't find shoes this good just anywhere.
Josh Clark
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Charles W. Chuck Bryant
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Josh Clark
Hi everybody. Back to the stuff you should know summer movie playlist. And this one is from January 2013. It's our how stuntmen and women work episode. I think your socks are going to be knocked off by how hard these people work. For our movie viewing enjoyment. You enjoy too.
Jerry
Welcome to Stuff youf should know from howstuffworks.com.
Josh Clark
Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark. There's Charles W. Chuck Bryant. And this is stuff you should know.
Jerry
Well, Jerry had an itchy trigger finger today. Did you hear in there?
Josh Clark
Yeah, she's ready to go home.
Jerry
Yeah. She's like, come on. Three, two, one, go.
Josh Clark
You guys aren't my entire life.
Jerry
I know we like to think we are, but that is, we're like 0.1% of Jerry's life. Yeah, she's giggling in there. She's quite the adventurer.
Josh Clark
How you doing, man?
Jerry
I'm great, man. I'm ready to jump from a tall building or Roll a brand new car, man. Sorry.
Josh Clark
That's what I was gonna ask you. So I guess you did the intro for us.
Jerry
Go ahead. Let's pretend like that didn't happen.
Josh Clark
No, it's fine.
Jerry
Okay.
Josh Clark
You were just doing what? The theme from the Fall Guy starring Lee Majors, 1980s awesome TV show with probably the best truck ever featured in a TV show.
Jerry
There. That gmc, man, that thing is sweet.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
You know, dudes, recreate that truck if you. If you Google it. There's a lot of guys that have, like, made that truck for themselves.
Josh Clark
For good reason, too. It's a cool truck.
Jerry
Yeah. And it's interesting that the Fall guy points out a couple of the show itself. Points out a very important things as far as stuntmen go. One is that he had to moonlight as a bounty hunter.
Josh Clark
Mm.
Jerry
And that's kind of one of the things we'll learn, is that there's not a lot of work out there to go around, you know, like, it's tough to make it as a stuntman.
Josh Clark
Yeah. You get punched.
Jerry
And B, he's. If you look at the lyrics to that theme song, man, he is really salty about not getting the glory and the girls.
Josh Clark
Yeah, Mainly the girls and the glory. When he winds up in the. Hey, it's only hey, hey, hey.
Jerry
So the song complains about not getting glory or women. And that is one of the hallmarks, though, of the stunt person, is to remain anonymous and to be bitter about it, I guess. So very few stunt people you've ever heard of.
Josh Clark
Well, yeah, the Academy of Arts and Sciences, they give out the Academy Awards.
Jerry
Motion picture arts and Sciences. Yeah.
Josh Clark
They don't have a category for stunt people.
Jerry
Nope.
Josh Clark
Never have. And the reason some people give is because they like to maintain the anonymity. The illusion.
Jerry
Sure.
Josh Clark
That's provided by stunt people filling in as doubles for stars.
Jerry
Yeah. But you can win a. What's the award?
Josh Clark
You can win an Emmy for Best stunt coordinator.
Jerry
True. Or the Stunt Award. They have their own stunt awards.
Josh Clark
Oh, yeah. The Taurus World Stunt Awards.
Jerry
Yeah. You can win a Tory.
Josh Clark
They took a. They took a hiatus. I saw that there was 2010 and they're having stuff for 2012. Couldn't find anything about it. 2011.
Jerry
Really?
Josh Clark
Yeah. So if you know what happened to the Taurus World stunt awards for 2011, we are curious.
Jerry
Interesting.
Josh Clark
Let us know.
Jerry
So thanks for listening.
Josh Clark
So anyway, let's talk about the history of stunt people. They pretty much have only been around as long as you've had motion pictures, right?
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
There wasn't much of a need for them before then. I mean, maybe for like a show or something like that. Like a Wild Bill Hickok show.
Jerry
Oh, I guess I see your point.
Josh Clark
Call them stuntmen, but really you kind of want to differentiate because you can also say, all right, so people who ride horses on. Standing up on a horse's back, that's a stunt person, right? A guy who like is in the X Games, does extreme sports. Kids that all the kids are into these days, that's a stunt. These are by technically stunt people. What we're talking about are movie stunt people. And the whole point to their, their craft isn't to like, you know, do a 580 on a bike unless somebody asks them to. What they want to do is create what you would just take for granted. Like, oh, that guy just got clocked, right? No, he didn't actually get clocked. That was a stuntman who knows what he's doing. And that was a carefully choreographed scene that just flew right past you, but your brain still just absorbed it as that man just got punched, even though that didn't really happen.
Jerry
That's right. And we will probably slip into the word stuntman here and there instead of stunt people. Of course, there were tons and tons of stunt women, but we'll say stunt persons are stuntmen. And luckily there are women now. Back in the day, they would dress men as women to do stunts many times.
Josh Clark
Yeah, there was a lot of cross dressing back in the day.
Jerry
There was. Until they decided, hey, women are people too. And they can act and do stunts just like guys can.
Josh Clark
We can put them in danger just as much as well.
Jerry
Exactly.
Josh Clark
So there wasn't much call for stunt people for movies before movies, just by definition. Sure, don't be ridiculous. But right out of the gate, when we started making movies, we started needing people to do stunts. And the earliest people who were doing stunts were actually comedians. Slapstick comedians like Buster Keaton had a very famous early stunt.
Jerry
Steamboat Bill Jr. Is that what it was in? Yeah, the very famous. You've probably seen it in like, you know, Hollywood Legends of Screen Clips and things like that on amc. Yeah. It is the famous shot where the front facade of a house falls down and on. Well, would have been on Buster Keaton, but he is saved because the attic window or attic door was open. So it just falls all around him. And there was some careful measuring in place because if he would have been off by a few inches, he would have been dead.
Josh Clark
Yeah, and that was a real thing. Like the earliest Stunts were nothing but the real thing. Like, apparently, if you had, I don't know, somebody hanging from, like, the construction, the skeleton of a steel skyscraper.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
You needed that shot. That's what the guy did.
Jerry
Yeah. And they. Ed the grabster, wrote this one, of course. And Ed points out that back in the day, before there were, like, you know, before they called them stuntmen, they were just like, let me go find someone crazy enough to go do this.
Josh Clark
Exactly.
Jerry
And that guy. That. That guy at craft service looks crazy enough to do it, and let's go see if he wants an extra 20 bucks.
Josh Clark
Yeah. And he does.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Because back, you know, in 1902, 20 bucks was a lot.
Jerry
Sure.
Josh Clark
So as the film industry grew and grew early in the 20th century, we went from just nothing but slapstick comedies to things like westerns and action flicks. And all of a sudden, those people who really can ride on the back of a horse standing up became stunt people as well. And as stunts became more and more complex, the idea of having somebody whose job and specialty was to just do the stunt and make it look like the actor the star was doing it started to really develop.
Jerry
Yeah. And then flash forward even more. The 60s and 70s is when things really came to their own as far as stunt technology. Developing things like squibs, which we will talk about for gunshots and air rams. Is that what they're called?
Josh Clark
Yeah, it's like a. Like a pneumatic lift.
Jerry
Yes, pneumatic lift.
Josh Clark
It just shoots you up into the air, like with a human cannonball.
Jerry
Right.
Josh Clark
But, like, so if somebody. If a grenade blows up by somebody.
Jerry
And you see the dude fly through.
Josh Clark
The air and he was on a ram.
Jerry
That's right. And then other things like airbags and. And, you know, more technology with cars with the roll cages, like, it just got more and more complex.
Josh Clark
Right.
Jerry
And now, of course, you have cgi, which replaces a lot of stunts in.
Josh Clark
Many cases, not necessarily to a better effect. Like, all I have to say is Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Where it was like they suddenly cut to drawings of Harrison Ford swinging on a lasso.
Jerry
He's famous for doing his own stunts.
Josh Clark
Though he didn't do them in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
Jerry
Well, that's because he's 89 years old and he would die.
Josh Clark
He was awesome in Bruno.
Jerry
I didn't see that. Was he. Harrison Ford was in that?
Josh Clark
Yeah, for about two seconds.
Jerry
Did they do, like, gay jokes to him or something?
Josh Clark
They didn't even get that far.
Jerry
Okay.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
Did he just shut it down?
Josh Clark
Yeah, but anyway, so stunts like the. I guess throughout this progression of the field of stunt people, safety's gotten better and better, is what I think we were just trying to say. To the point now where they're not even used. It's cgi.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
But there's. There's always going to be room for stunt people.
Jerry
Oh, yeah.
Josh Clark
And the fact that it's gotten safer is much better. But there's still. There's an element of risk to it, no matter what. As Grabster points out, if a stunt didn't present some sort of risk, there'd be no need for stunt people at all. Actors would do it. Yeah, but the actors can't always do it.
Jerry
That's right. And when you want to call in a stunt person is when they either have a specific skill that they're really good at, like fake martial arts, or I mean, real martial arts, but fake hitting and kicking or fake martial arts.
Josh Clark
Like Chu Kwong, like stuff you just made up. It's a lot of, like, just front kicks in the air.
Jerry
That's what you practice. That's sword fighting, stage combat. Like we've talked about, stuff like that. They are trained to fall. They are trained to, you know, safely fall, I guess I should point out. And it just. Basically, it's a safety factor on one hand, and it's a financial factor on the other, because you can't have your main actor, actress going down with a broken leg for four weeks. So you put your stunt person in there and keep your actor all nice and safe in their trailer.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
Or you want to be shooting two things at once. So you have your second unit out there shooting the fast cars whizzing by in the car chase. Then you have your first unit shooting the actor inside the car, driving a lot slower and acting like it's really.
Josh Clark
Fast, but shouting and, like, moving the steering wheel back and forth a lot.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Maybe there's somebody rocking the car. What's that called?
Jerry
Poor man's process.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
So when you. I guess we should say this. When you're in a car, you either have a camera rig on your car where it's the real car with cameras attached to it.
Josh Clark
We've done that.
Jerry
Or the car's on a process trailer, which means a lot of these shots you see of someone driving, you're like. They're not even paying attention to the road. It's because the car's sitting on a trailer being pulled by a truck.
Josh Clark
Right. Or it's got a little rock to it.
Jerry
Little rock to it. Or you do the poor man's processes when the car is not going anywhere.
Josh Clark
And you have PAs pushing on the outside.
Jerry
Pushing on the outside. Little tricks with lighting to make it look like headlights going by.
Josh Clark
We've done that.
Jerry
It's really neat in the end to look at a scene that's poor man's process and think, wow, they're really not even moving and it looks so good.
Josh Clark
Yeah, yeah. See if you can pick it out in the Stuff youf Should Know TV.
Jerry
Series, they can probably pick it up.
Josh Clark
See? So, yeah, it's financial. It makes sense. Also, one of the other reasons people use stunt people is they come with a set of skills that the average actor doesn't have.
Jerry
A particular set of skills.
Josh Clark
Exactly. That makes them very dangerous to you. And so you can either hire a stuntman who looks like your star to carry out, like a combat scene, sort.
Jerry
Of look like your star, or you.
Josh Clark
Can teach your star, spend all this extra money and time training the star to this skill in a crash course. So it just. Most of the time, it makes sense to just hire a stunt person.
Jerry
Yeah. And, you know, chances are these days you're gonna get a mix in a big action movie, you're gonna get a mix of all three. You're gonna get some cgi, you're gonna get some stunt people. And these days you're gonna get real actors doing some of the real fake fighting.
Josh Clark
Doesn't Tom Cruise do a lot of his own stunts?
Jerry
Yeah, I got a list of actors who prefer to do their own stunts.
Josh Clark
I didn't mean to jump the gun.
Jerry
No, the Cruise is famous for that.
Josh Clark
I was reading this and I was like, I wonder if I would do my own stun. I would say, sure, I want to learn how to sword fight. Teach me. Like, that's something I want to know. And I'm certainly not going to shell out for it myself ever. So let's go ahead and learn now.
Jerry
That's a good point. I would do my own stunts.
Josh Clark
It depends the heights. No way I would do that.
Jerry
I would jump off of something. So California state law, and of course, there's shoot movies all over the place now. And the union rules in Hollywood have really made it pretty safe these days. But you're still gonna find injuries and your occasional death on set, which is really awful.
Josh Clark
Yeah, well, there always have been, pretty much from the beginning, deaths and injuries.
Jerry
Howard Hughes.
Josh Clark
Yeah. The movie Hell's Angels, which we must have talked about in the Hell's Angels podcast. I'm sure we did, because I Think we talked about the origin of the.
Jerry
Name, which is from the air combat.
Josh Clark
It was. Yeah, that's what they think.
Jerry
The Fighting Hellcat.
Josh Clark
I think that was one of the theories. But there were three, maybe four fatalities.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Because they were doing like real dog fights with airplanes and there were a lot of crashes.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
So that was a movie where people died.
Jerry
Yes, Very famously, the Twilight Zone. The movie. Jennifer Jason Lee's father, Vic Morrow, and two little Vietnamese kids died when a helicopter crashed into the water where they were crossing a river. That's on YouTube, by the way.
Josh Clark
I know, it's pretty awful.
Jerry
It is. And I saw it recently because I was just curious. I'd always wondered how it went down in my head because I've heard the story since the movie came out, since I was a kid. And I was wondering, like, exactly what was the logistics and how did that go down?
Josh Clark
It's pretty bad to watch it is because it just goes totally out of control.
Jerry
It does. So I would not recommend that. But you do have to enter your age, by the way, to watch that video I saw. And on set, the AD is ultimately responsible, the assistant director, for everyone's safety. And in fact, on our own little TV show when we had fake guns on set just as props, like we didn't even use them in the scene. But just to have a fake gun on set, the AD has to announce to the whole crew and show them the gun, say, it's fake, it's not real. Look at the barrel. There's no bullets, there's no nothing. It will not be fired. We will not be shooting blanks or dummy cartridges. And it's just, you know, even on a stupid little silly show like ours, you got to be really careful with that stuff.
Josh Clark
Yeah. So, Chuck, because of this incredibly high risk profession work, the stunt people must be paid out the yin yang. True or false?
Jerry
Well, they make a good rate. But like we said earlier, there's not a ton of work for the amount of stunt people trying to get work. And that was when I used to work out in LA as a pa. I would always try and talk to the stunt people when I worked on jobs where they had stunt people because they're just really interesting to say the least. And they would usually bemoan the fact that there's not a ton of work. And, you know, they're all kind of scrapping for the same piece of cheese. But that's like everyone in the film business.
Josh Clark
Sure.
Jerry
From crew to the lead actor, you're all. You're all after that same piece of cheese.
Josh Clark
Yep. We've worked with some stunt people too.
Jerry
Yeah. You'd be surprised when you need to call in a stunt person. I worked on this one commercial where the was just like bad traffic on the highway that the shot was and cars had to just sort of pull over to the side while another car came through. All the cars that pulled over to the side of the road had to have stunt drivers. I was like, I could do that, but then I'd be taking bread off the table of a stunt person.
Josh Clark
Right. And then the whole production would shut down.
Jerry
That's true.
Josh Clark
Okay, so the most stunt people, you say, because there's just so little work for so many people. It's not a high paying job. A lot of people do it for the love of it. Right?
Jerry
Yeah. I mean, you can make money if you're experienced and get tons of work, obviously, but.
Josh Clark
Right.
Jerry
I'd say those are the few and far between.
Josh Clark
But you'd have to love it because the hours are usually very, very long.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
To do a stunt is not. You don't just walk up and get in the car and drive it and all of a sudden it flips and there's an explosion. And you're hoping for the best.
Jerry
Right.
Josh Clark
Like when you see a stunt, these things are rehearsed over and over again. Say for a car chase, they'll go through the entire car chase, but they'll do it at a low speed.
Jerry
Right.
Josh Clark
So that it's choreographed, rehearsed, and everybody knows what's gonna happen when.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
That takes a very long time. If you need to flip a car, you need to do measurements. The pyrotechnics guys are probably involved.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
There's a lot of standing around, there's a lot of practicing, there's a lot of measuring, there's a lot of talking. And then if for say you're doing something like in. In water, you're probably standing in water the whole time. So you're doing that for 14 hours.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
It sounds like some. You would have to love your work to do this.
Jerry
Yeah. It's definitely not a glory job. Especially factoring in the anonymity factor.
Josh Clark
Right. When you do all this and you do it absolutely perfectly, no one notices.
Jerry
That's the goal.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
In fact, one of my biggest pet peeves is when you do notice and you see that one shot of the dude with a wig on, it's supposed to be Clint Eastwood.
Josh Clark
Right?
Jerry
Yeah. Just disappointing.
Josh Clark
So you were saying the second unit director handles this. The second unit director is in charge of shooting stunts, but the person who's in charge of the stunts themselves is the stunt coordinator.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
And that person hires the stunt people, plans the stunts, oversees the stunts execution, does everything, but actually sets up the camera and all that. Or handles the camera shooting it. Right?
Jerry
Yeah. It's basically, it's like a film crew is broken up into many departments and that's just sort of its own little department headed by the coordinator.
Josh Clark
Gotcha.
Jerry
Like they'll have a budget to work with and all that kind of stuff. Just like any other department.
Charles W. Chuck Bryant
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Josh Clark
So let's talk about how they do some stunts.
Jerry
Okay. And actually the second unit director a lot of times is a former stunt person or stunt coordinator.
Josh Clark
Right. That makes sense.
Jerry
Comes in handy.
Josh Clark
Sure.
Jerry
Let's talk about stunts without fire.
Josh Clark
How about punches?
Jerry
How about them? Stage fighting man. Something we have not learned yet.
Josh Clark
That's pretty much a must if you want to become a stuntman. That's lesson one is go take stage fighting courses.
Jerry
Yep. Learn how to sell a punch as the giver and as the receiver without looking corny and hokey and fake. Like pro wrestling.
Josh Clark
Right. But it's very much similar to pro wrestling, especially if you've ever seen somebody throw a punch in pro wrestling and you can hear the skin slap.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
That's because that person was actually just punched.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
The key is they weren't punched very hard. Certainly not as hard as their. The jerk of their head would. Would say.
Jerry
Yeah. And you suggest you got camera angles and you've got sound effects. And through the art of movie magic, it looks like a good knockdown drag out brawl.
Josh Clark
Right. And if you got it like a really good stunt coordinator, there'll be like a punch that's sold. And the person who's being punched is on a ramp. So they fly through the air afterward.
Jerry
Yeah, that's awesome. All right. Gunshots. We talked about squibs. A squib is basically, you're gonna have a chest metal chest plate with a squib on the front of it to protect your body. And it's basically a little blood packet that's rigged electronically to explode when it's supposed to.
Josh Clark
And so the plate in between the squib and your chest protects you.
Jerry
Sure.
Josh Clark
And maybe you are in charge of. You. The stuntman are in charge. You have a little button.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Maybe to explode the charge or there's somebody else doing it remotely. And it. It's pretty awesome. Releases theater blood, opens a hole in the shirt.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Pretty awesome.
Jerry
It is very awesome.
Josh Clark
This. I didn't realize, though, how they make bullet holes in, like. Like a wall. Like a stucco wall.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
I thought this was pretty ingenious. They drill the hole ahead of time, and then they cover it up with, like, putty or paper or something and paint with a squib in there.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
And they blow that squib out, and it makes a bullet hole.
Jerry
It's pretty cool.
Josh Clark
It's ingenious. It's simple, it seems like, but it's very ingenious.
Jerry
Well, especially when you watch a movie, ideally, you're getting lost in the movie, not paying attention. But if you watch, like, a John Woo film or something.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
And you see just, like, a wall get riddled with bullets. Just think about all the time it took to set up all those squibs.
Josh Clark
And, like, what if the actor trips in the middle of it? You're just like, we have to do it again.
Jerry
Yeah. Which is no good. And in fact, big stunts, they go with many, many cameras on stunts that you don't or can't recreate because of either danger or money. And, like, some of these shots have, like, you know, a dozen or more cameras shooting at a time, which makes.
Josh Clark
A lot of sense, of course. And Grabster points out that another reason why you don't want to do a big take like that more than once is because every time you do, the danger for the stunt person multiplies.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
And I was like, how? And then I thought, oh, well, doing it more. Right. Your chances of injury are increased the more you carry out, the more times you carry out a dangerous act. So that's how it multiplies.
Jerry
Getting back to squibs, these days, a lot of directors are opting for CGI blood and bullet wounds, but supposedly Quentin Tarantino and this is out by the time this comes out. Django and Jane, man, I Can't wait to see it. Supposedly he had 100% real squibs. And the blood, like they're supposed to be the bloodiest, nastiest squibs that Hollywood has seen in years.
Josh Clark
Is that right?
Jerry
Yeah, it's supposed to be pretty awesome. Yeah.
Josh Clark
Have you seen Machete? Yeah, that was pretty bloody.
Jerry
Yeah, that was bad though. I didn't like it.
Josh Clark
I agree it was, but it was still pretty bloody.
Jerry
They also blanks. If you are firing a gun on set, it is probably a blank.
Josh Clark
You would hope.
Jerry
So it's not the same as a dummy cartridge. No, a blank actually fires gunpowder. Has gunpowder and fires what's called a wad. It's like paper or wood or plastic and. But it does not obviously have shot or bullet.
Josh Clark
No, but there. Sometimes when the bullet explodes, bits of metal can end up being shot out as well. Yeah, that's how Brandon Lee died when they were filming the crowd.
Jerry
Yeah, his was actually an accident. There was a bullet lodged in the barrel that they didn't know about.
Josh Clark
What I thought. Okay, well then I'm thinking of somebody else who like was messing around with a gun.
Jerry
That was. Man, I can't remember his name.
Josh Clark
Put it to his head.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Pulled the trigger and like the water, like the gases or something killed him.
Jerry
Yeah, that was. I can't remember his name but it was on a TV show set and he like goofing around. Put it to his head as a joke. So you should never mess around with blanks.
Josh Clark
No.
Jerry
It's very dangerous still.
Josh Clark
No, but there was a bullet in the.
Jerry
Yeah, there was a bullet. They got the guns mixed up and there was a real bullet slug lodged in the barrel that they didn't know about. So it fired a blank but it ejected that other thing and Brandon Lee died.
Josh Clark
Wow. I didn't know that.
Jerry
Yeah, man. It was one of the biggest oops is probably in Hollywood history.
Josh Clark
Yeah, you know, I guess you could call it that.
Jerry
And I think he. They thought he was still acting and continued to roll cameras for a bit afterward even. Yeah, very sad. Tragic. Are we to falling?
Josh Clark
Yeah, which you'll do. I won't do.
Jerry
Yeah, I'll jump off of stuff. I've always done that.
Josh Clark
Well, they use these huge, huge airbags, right?
Jerry
Well, back in the day they did. And if you. And if you're doing a fall today, they still will sometimes. But generally these days they have like a bungee type contraption.
Josh Clark
I would still demand an airbag.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
They apparently also for shorter falls they'll take some cardboard boxes and they'll cut the sharp corners off.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
And then you jump onto that. Did you do that when you were a kid?
Jerry
No, no, no. I always would jump into water.
Josh Clark
I would jump like onto the ground, off of like the credenza or whatever. And now I'm like, I wouldn't even do that. That's dangerous.
Jerry
Falls used to be the thing. Like I'm sure you remember as a kid, falls were a really big deal for stuntmen. And Dar Robinson, remember that guy?
Josh Clark
No.
Jerry
He did the Sharky's Machine fall in Atlanta. In the Burt Reynolds movie.
Josh Clark
Nope.
Jerry
Very famous fall out of the Peachtree Plaza Hotel.
Josh Clark
I was up in Toledo at the.
Jerry
Time it was released. In Toledo, not in Toledo. Sharkey's machine was. Yeah.
Josh Clark
Off the. Which hotel?
Jerry
He went through a window of the Peachtree Plaza and into. Onto an airbag. And it's just. It was one of the famous early falls, or not early falls, but one of the famous falls.
Josh Clark
What floor did he jump out of, man?
Jerry
I can't remember.
Josh Clark
Was it pretty high?
Jerry
Yeah, I mean, it was over. Over like 150ft. Oh, wow. Yeah.
Josh Clark
That's nuts.
Jerry
It's pretty cool.
Josh Clark
But see, so imagine planning that stunt how many times they measured everything to figure out where the airbags needed to go. And then they probably supplemented it with additional airbags. And if they loved the guy at all, they did all this.
Jerry
Yes. Stuntmen. When you go to talk to one, if you're on set, you'll be disappointed by the fact that they aren't these crazy dudes like you want them to be. They're actually really sensible because they want to work and earn money, so they want to be really, really sure that no one gets hurt. It's a little more boring than you would think talking to them.
Josh Clark
Sure.
Jerry
But they are a little nuts.
Josh Clark
Yeah, you'd have to be at least a little. What else, Chuck? Fire. How about fire?
Jerry
I just saw Anchorman the other night. Remember when they had the street brawl and the guy on fire just walks by?
Josh Clark
Yeah. That's a pretty serious stunt. Like when you are. When you set yourself on fire.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
And there's a lot of safety precautions, but even still, it's. You're on fire whether you like it or not.
Jerry
Yeah. You're wearing all kinds of fire protective clothing and fire retardant. And then you're smeared with the flammable gel.
Josh Clark
Yep. You have a hood on that protects you as well. And there's an oxygen tank in there. So you're basically just completely wrapped in this Outfit. Yeah, but, yeah, the flammable gel's on and they light you and then film you and you're going. It's always the waving arms and the.
Jerry
Kind of looks the same.
Josh Clark
And then people run over and put you out with fire extinguisher.
Jerry
That's right.
Josh Clark
But they time it very closely as well.
Jerry
Oh, I'm sure.
Josh Clark
Because I think it's kind of like, well, if we go 12 seconds, he actually will catch on fire. So we can shoot for 11.11.5.
Jerry
Explosions are a big deal. Obviously, these days there's so many explosions in movies, sometimes they cheat a little bit when what's called a technique called force perspective to make it look like the actor is closer to the explosion. And if there's an explosion, you're probably also going to be propelled with the air ram that we were talking about. It's very. I would call it a Hollywood trope at this point. The explosion and the dudes flying, like 20ft in the air.
Josh Clark
Oh, yeah. Yeah. That was big in Commando.
Jerry
Oh, yes.
Josh Clark
Weren't there a lot of air rams used in Commando?
Jerry
Many more than I can count.
Josh Clark
That was such a good movie.
Jerry
Car chases and crashes.
Josh Clark
Yeah, they use rams as well. They may be attached to the car. So if a car needs to flip, you see people like going up on a ramp or whatever.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
And they probably use that if you're just trying to stay on two wheels. But if you're trying to flip, there's usually a ram that pushes the car, pushes it off the ground and it flips. Or if you have one coming out of the rear, it'll make it jump really high.
Jerry
Oh, true. Like in Hooper.
Josh Clark
I don't know all these movies you're talking about.
Jerry
Oh, dude. Hooper was the stuntman movie with Burt Reynolds.
Josh Clark
I didn't see it.
Jerry
Oh, my God. Hal Needham, very famous stuntman turned director.
Josh Clark
Directed founder of the Cannonball Run.
Jerry
Well, yeah. And director of the movie the Cannonball Run. And Smokey and the Bandit. And Hooper. Hooper was about an aging stuntman, Burt Reynolds, who was challenged by the up and comer Jan Michael Vincent. And of course, there's the love relationship with Sally Field. She was in that, too. And it was good. It was like the best. It's sort of the best stunt movie ever because it was about stunts.
Josh Clark
Huh?
Jerry
And he had a rocket car in that one. That was a big rocket car jump. It was the big climax.
Josh Clark
I did not see Hooper.
Jerry
Oh, dude, you need to see Hooper.
Josh Clark
What was I watching back then?
Jerry
What were you. You were probably watching TV and stuff, I guess. Yeah, it was a little before your time.
Charles W. Chuck Bryant
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Jerry
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Josh Clark
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Jerry
And like I said earlier, stunt drivers, it's not all like a lot of the stuff you're going to see on TV is stunt driving. Even though you might not think it's necessary.
Josh Clark
Yeah. Apparently to just pull off of the highway.
Jerry
Sometimes not. How do you become a stuntman, Josh?
Josh Clark
Well, apparently, as far as Grabanowski says, you basically have to start off as an extra on the set.
Jerry
That's not necessarily true.
Josh Clark
Okay. If you wanted. If you want to go from the absolute from zero to stuntman in the slowest way possible and you would start out as an extra on the set, you have to be a member of the Screen Actors Guild in most cases. And when you're hanging around the set, you identify who the second unit director or stunt coordinator is and you hand them your headshot.
Jerry
This Ed painted a path to becoming a stunt person that we've kind of laughed at. It is not the only path. But one thing is for sure, to become a stunt person, you need to get to know someone else in that department. And that's really with every film department. If you want to be in wardrobe, you should get a job as a PA and start hanging out with the wardrobe people. If you want to be in makeup, start hanging out with the makeup people. And that's just how it works in Hollywood. There is no degree. You can get a film degree, but come on, that's wasted money. Just go to work on a set. You get to know the people in the department and then start bugging them a little bit when they're not busy. Stunt coordinators are little testy because there's a lot on the line, you know?
Josh Clark
Sure.
Jerry
So, you know, if you're a new PA on set, don't run over to the stunt coordinator and start bugging them right away. Pick and choose, right your time and.
Josh Clark
Then give him your headshot.
Jerry
And give him your headshot.
Josh Clark
But yeah, what you're saying is that it's apprentice based.
Jerry
It is.
Josh Clark
Basically, there are schools.
Jerry
One recommended driving school, the Rick Seaman Stunt Driving School.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
There's also the International Stunt School.
Josh Clark
That sounds pretty serious.
Jerry
And this is where you can learn to do some of the stuff. But it's not like you exit with a degree and then show up and say, now I'd like to do stunt work.
Josh Clark
Right. All the rest of you are fired. I have a degree from the International Stunt School.
Jerry
Grabster points out that you should have a large area of specialty rather than one thing.
Josh Clark
I thought that's a very good point.
Jerry
Yeah. But that's not necessarily true. I've talked to some stunt dudes that say, eventually you would like to have a wide range of skills, but a good way to get in is to have one really specific skill that you're great at. And you might get that call, like, this guy's good with wire work or water work, or he's a hell of a driver, or a really good motorcycle guy or a great skier. If you're doing like. What was that? For your eyes only.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
Was that the one that opened up the big ski chase?
Josh Clark
Never say never again?
Jerry
No, it's definitely Roger Moore. I think it's for your eyes only. But it helps to have these skills. Like, a lot of stunt people are former motorcycle motocross racers or car enthusiasts or they know how to stand horseback riders. Stand up horseback riding.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
So a lot of them have these skills just. Anyway, and they're like, hey, I can. I've been driving dirt track for 20 years. Might as well make some money.
Josh Clark
Yeah, film me.
Jerry
There's books out there.
Josh Clark
Are there?
Jerry
So youo Want to Be a Stuntman by Mark Aspit.
Josh Clark
Oh, that's a great name for a book like that.
Jerry
The Full Burn by Kevin Conley. Fight choreography, the Art of Nonverbal Dialogue by John Kring. And then Hal Needham's biography, Stuntman with an exclamation.
Josh Clark
Had to be.
Jerry
Had to be.
Josh Clark
You said you have a list of actors that do their own stunts.
Jerry
Yeah, I think most people know this. People like Jason Statham, famous for doing his own stunts.
Josh Clark
I see Zoe Bells on there. I thought she was a stunt person.
Jerry
Well, she is. And she was in Death Proof, though, as an actor.
Josh Clark
Right.
Jerry
And they were like. I guess they include her now because she did that awesome hanging onto the hood scene.
Josh Clark
I was watching that earlier, and it is just nuts.
Jerry
It's pretty cool.
Josh Clark
It's like she's. When she's hanging on, it looks like by belts or whatever.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
And. And then she. But she's kind of sliding still across the hood.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
All it would take is, like, half an inch, and then all of a sudden, she's gone too far and she's off the side of the car. Yeah, that was it.
Jerry
She's one of the best in the business, apparently.
Josh Clark
Man, that's scary.
Jerry
Burt Reynolds used to do a lot of his stunts. In fact, he got injured pretty bad. That led to some bad health problems on set.
Josh Clark
Oh, yeah.
Jerry
City Heat, the Clint Eastwood movie. Burt Lancaster used to do his own stunts.
Josh Clark
He's a tough guy.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Remember the movie Tough Guys? He was in that.
Jerry
Yeah, yeah. I don't think we mentioned Ben Hur either. That's one of the famous stunts ever. The chariot race.
Josh Clark
Yeah. You want to tell them about it?
Jerry
Go ahead. What do you got?
Josh Clark
Oh, well, there is a stuntman named Joe Canut, and he was doubling for Charlton Heston. And during the chariot race, this big, long, intense race, he falls off the chariot and is about to be run over, but in true stuntman fashion, grabs. It is being dragged.
Jerry
Yeah.
Josh Clark
Pulls himself back up and continues on.
Jerry
And I think that made it on screen.
Josh Clark
Yeah, it's in the movie. But that was a real thing. Like, it wasn't a planned stunt. Like, the guy saved his own life.
Jerry
That's awesome.
Josh Clark
Yeah, it is.
Jerry
Harrison Ford. We mentioned, as far as the ladies go, Angelina Jolie and Cameron Diaz, known for doing stunts. Arnie Schwarzenegger and Jackie Chan, of course, is very famous for doing his own stunts. And it makes a difference, man, when you can tell it's Tom Cruise on the side of that mountain.
Josh Clark
Man, that was scary. Is that really him?
Jerry
Yeah. Emily worked on that shoot on just that segment in Moab, the rock climbing segment. And that's when, famously, Tom Cruise is, like, four hours late and flies in on a helicopter, and, like, the whole crew was waiting around all day for him.
Josh Clark
I hadn't heard that.
Jerry
And then. Oh, yeah, I mean, famous in my family.
Josh Clark
Oh, gotcha.
Jerry
Yeah. And now, I guess, famous to the podcast community.
Josh Clark
Yeah. Tom Cruise is not punctual.
Jerry
Well, he wasn't that day.
Josh Clark
Wow. Stunts.
Jerry
Have you seen Haywire, the Soderbergh movie? Uh, it's about assassins. Basically, it's an action movie. Soderbergh's take on an action movie. But Gina Carano is a former mixed martial artist, and she. She's awesome and does her own stunts.
Josh Clark
What's her name?
Jerry
Gina Carano.
Josh Clark
I don't believe I know her.
Jerry
She plays the lead, and she. I think that was her first, like, legit movie.
Josh Clark
Oh, gosh.
Jerry
Known for mixed martial arts. But, yeah, she does her own stunts, and she's ba.
Josh Clark
Haywire.
Jerry
Haywire.
Josh Clark
I'll check it out.
Jerry
I got nothing else.
Josh Clark
I don't either.
Jerry
Pretty straightforward.
Josh Clark
If you want to learn more about stunts, you can type dunce into the How Stuff Works search bar. And I said search bar, which means it's time for listener mail.
Jerry
Josh, I'm gonna call this Things We, I guess, say a lot. Oh, no, yeah, like, no, no, no. That's not in there. Everyone says like, though.
Josh Clark
I know, but I know people have pointed out here they're like, you guys say like a lot. And I've started to notice. And when I say it, when I hear. Hear the podcast, I don't hear it when I'm saying it, only later on when I can't do anything about it.
Jerry
Don't. Don't beat yourself up. Everybody says that. Like, there are articles written in the New Yorker about the use of the word, like, in the 21st century. Okay, so you're part of that crowd. You're no millennial.
Josh Clark
I'm not. I'm an aged person. So what's wrong with me today?
Jerry
Guys, before I start, I feel like I should get out my adoration of the podcast. Always listen as I'm walking my dog. Chloe keeps me entertained for hours. I love that you guys are still going strong and I'm very thankful. I have comprised a list, however, of words and phrases used most often in the show. Besides obvious ones like Chuck or Josh or Search Bar. Let's hear them in no particular order. Bada Bing, bada boom.
Josh Clark
He left off the Bon Jovi.
Jerry
She.
Josh Clark
Oh, she.
Jerry
We'll talk about this later. Or we'll get to that.
Josh Clark
And then a lot of times we don't.
Jerry
Yeah, I feel like I say that a lot.
Josh Clark
I think it's hilarious when we say that we're gonna talk about something later and then we just forget to.
Jerry
Yeah, or I say all the time. I think we should point out. And she didn't put that in here, but I'll go ahead and throw my own on there.
Josh Clark
Oh, yeah, you do say that.
Jerry
I'm making air quotes.
Josh Clark
Yeah.
Jerry
I E, E G. Yeah, that's one of yours.
Josh Clark
So pretentious.
Jerry
That's a good band name. That's usually me.
Josh Clark
Sure.
Jerry
That's Obnoxious Sweat. We just talk about Sweat a lot. Yeah, because of me. That's a stand up guy. I don't remember us saying that a lot. Do you say that a lot? I'm gonna take issue with that one. Catherine on the up and up coa. Of course we say that a lot.
Josh Clark
Definitely.
Jerry
People always ask it what it means.
Josh Clark
We never tell.
Jerry
We never tell. And then. Have you seen the movie ironically?
Josh Clark
That's about right.
Jerry
Yeah. And those are 10 things that we say a lot. And that is. She says she thinks these are great comforts her. And she smiles. And that is Kathryn Phillips.
Josh Clark
Thanks a lot, Kathryn. That's pretty cool. Somebody's out there like writing lists of things we say.
Jerry
It's nicer to hear people say like, I take comfort in that. Except for the emails. And we get like, you guys always say this.
Josh Clark
You say like too much. That's John Travolta taking us to task. What if you want to take us to task? Whether you're John Travolta or anybody else, or you just want to say, hey, here's a list of things I noticed because the podcast or whatever, you can join us on Twitter. Actually, first, before we sign off, let's remind everybody that we're gonna be on the TV again.
Jerry
The TV.
Josh Clark
Yeah. Saturday night on Science Channel at 10pm will be the premiere of another Stuff youf Should Know episode.
Jerry
You can watch us each and every week.
Josh Clark
Yep. TV Show Stuff youf Should Know TV.
Jerry
Show 10pm or Get it on itunes the following day on Sundays.
Josh Clark
That's right, Chuck.
Jerry
Just go to itunes and type in stuff you should know and see what comes up.
Josh Clark
Alright, so now we'll sign off, right?
Jerry
Yep.
Josh Clark
You can get in touch with us on Twitter Twitteryskpodcast. You can join us on facebook.com stuffyshouldknow and you can send us a good old fashioned email too. Stuffpodcastdiscovery.com.
Jerry
For more on this and thousands of other topics, visit howstuffworks.com.
Charles W. Chuck Bryant
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Jerry
Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted. If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide, and every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn more@discover.com credit card Based on the February 2024 Nielsen report, this is Jana Kramer from Wind down with Jana Kramer when we were deciding on our appliances for the house, Samsung was at the top of our list. And I love my Samsung appliances, especially because they're so reliable.
Josh Clark
And with my busy schedule, having reliable.
Jerry
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Josh Clark
This is an iHeart podcast.
Detailed Summary of "SYSK’s Summer Movie Playlist: How Stuntmen (and -women) Work"
Podcast Information:
The episode kicks off with hosts Josh Clark and Charles W. ("Chuck") Bryant delving into the intricate world of stunt performers. Josh introduces the topic with enthusiasm, hinting at the behind-the-scenes efforts that make movie stunts appear seamless and exciting.
Notable Quote:
Josh and Chuck trace the origins of stunt work back to the early days of motion pictures, emphasizing that stunt performers have been integral to filmmaking almost since its inception. They highlight that before the establishment of dedicated stunt professionals, roles like riding horses or performing dangerous feats were often handled by versatile performers, including comedians.
Notable Quote:
The conversation shifts to the recognition stunt performers receive within the industry. The hosts lament the absence of a dedicated category for stuntpeople at prestigious award ceremonies like the Oscars, noting that while organizations like the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences acknowledge their work, formal awards remain limited. They mention the Taurus World Stunt Awards as a significant platform, despite its intermittent history.
Notable Quote:
Josh and Chuck delve into the technical aspects of stunt work, discussing various techniques such as squibs for simulating gunshots and the use of airbags and bungee systems for falls. They emphasize the meticulous planning and safety measures that underpin each stunt to ensure performers remain unharmed.
Notable Quotes:
The hosts shed light on the precarious nature of stunt work, where performers often face long hours, high risks, and the constant need for specialized skills. They discuss the financial uncertainties within the profession, noting that many stuntpeople pursue it out of passion rather than substantial financial gain.
Notable Quote:
Josh and Chuck outline the typical pathways into stunt performing, emphasizing the importance of building connections within the industry. They suggest starting as a production assistant (PA) on sets to network with stunt coordinators and highlight the value of specialized training through stunt schools.
Notable Quote:
The episode features anecdotes about renowned stunt performers and actors known for doing their own stunts. Names like Tom Cruise, Jackie Chan, and Zoe Bell are mentioned, illustrating how some celebrities integrate stunt work into their acting careers, enhancing the authenticity of their performances.
Notable Quotes:
The hosts share vivid stories of famous stunts, such as the chariot race in "Ben-Hur" performed by Joe Canut and Burt Reynolds' dangerous falls in movies like "Hooper." These stories underscore the bravery and skill required to execute complex and high-risk stunts successfully.
Notable Quotes:
Discussing the impact of technology, Josh and Chuck explore how CGI has transformed stunt work, sometimes replacing practical effects but also presenting new avenues for creativity. They debate the effectiveness of CGI versus real stunts, referencing movies like "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and praising filmmakers who still prioritize practical effects.
Notable Quotes:
The discussion touches on the critical importance of safety on set, highlighting tragic incidents like Brandon Lee's accidental death due to a mishandled prop gun. The hosts emphasize stringent safety measures and the responsibility of assistant directors to ensure a secure working environment.
Notable Quotes:
In wrapping up, Josh and Chuck reflect on the unsung heroes behind the action scenes, appreciating the dedication and expertise stunt performers bring to the film industry. They acknowledge the blend of artistry and technical skill required, celebrating the craftsmanship that makes cinematic illusions believable and thrilling.
Notable Quote:
Overall Insights: The episode provides an in-depth exploration of the world of stunt performers, highlighting their essential role in filmmaking, the evolution of their craft, and the challenges they face. Through engaging anecdotes and expert discussions, Josh and Chuck offer listeners a comprehensive understanding of how stuntmen and stuntwomen work to create the spectacular action sequences that define modern cinema.