It Got Ugly When Someone Tried To Expose Evel Knievel

When eight-year-old Robert Knievel's grandparents took him to a daredevil show featuring Joey Chitwood, the experience changed his life. Decades later, after becoming the most famous stunt performer in America, he would assault a man with a metal baseball bat for writing an unflattering book about him. The same man who once said, "I am not scared when I go off of that jump, but I have some concern," turned out to be terrified of his own reputation.

From Copper Mine to Motocross

Knievel dropped out of high school and worked in a copper mine in Butte, Montana. While operating a massive earth mover, he attempted a wheelie and drove the machine into a major power supply, blacking out the entire city. He was fired, but the thrill of danger had taken hold. In 1959, he married Linda Joan Bork and had a son. Needing money, he joined the motocross circuit, but the pay was poor and things got worse when he broke his shoulder and collarbone in an accident. His doctor told him to rest for six months, so Knievel sold insurance instead. He was a good salesman, but quit when the company wouldn't make him vice president after just a few months.