Ryan Dunn:RYAN DUNN, who has died aged 34, was the stuntman in the MTV prank show Jackassthat became cult viewing in the early noughties, particularly among teenagers and young men.
His death – drunk at the wheel of his Porsche car in which a friend, Zachary Hartwell aged 30, also died – seemed to mirror some of the reckless insanity of the TV show.
Dunn was born in Medina, Ohio, in 1977 and grew up in Williamsville, New York, before moving to West Chester, Pennsylvania, with his parents in his early teens.
He first came into public attention while appearing in four videos alongside his friends in the CKY Crew, which stood for Camp Kill Yourself, involving videos that featured them skateboarding and performing stunts.
Dunn was working as a welder and at a petrol station when Johnny Knoxville, the actor and daredevil co-founder of Jackassasked the crew to allow their videos to be part of the series.
The show became a massive hit on MTV and ran from 2000 to 2002.
Perhaps his most famous stunt, in 2002's Jackass: The Movie, involved inserting a toy car into his rectum and going to an emergency room, where he told medics he had a mysterious pain in his tailbone after passing out at a fraternity party.
The resultant X-ray from the hospital became a popular T-shirt with Jackassfans.
In a 2000 stunt, he dived into a tank at a raw sewage plant wearing flippers, a mask and a snorkel.
Dunn, who had 23 driving convictions, including 10 for speeding, drank six shots and two beers at a West Chester bar in the early hours of Monday before driving his 2007 Porsche 911 GT3 at between 132 and 140 mph in a 55 mph zone.
It crashed into a guardrail, plunged into a ravine before hitting a tree and bursting into flames.
The star had more than twice the legal limit of alcohol in his bloodstream at the moment of his death.
Knoxville mourned the loss of his friend, whom he described as “a brother”.
Yesterday, the film studio Lionsgate said it was considering the future of an unreleased film starring Dunn. The 34-year-old reality star played a ghost called Belch who returns to haunt his best friend in the low-budget comedy.
Before his fatal crash, Lionsgate had been planning an October release but now it may be delayed, according to US website, the Wrap.
The film’s trailer, which opens with the quote, “Call no man happy till he is dead,” shows a jovial Dunn sporting a full beard and playing practical jokes on his unsuspecting friends.
“Being dead is the best thing that ever happened to me. Ever,” says Dunn’s character during the three-minute clip.
Ryan Matthew Dunn: born June 11th, 1977; died June 20th, 2011