Ryan Matthew Dunn was an American reality television personality, actor and stunt man.
He was a member of the Jackass and Viva La Bam crew.
Dunn came to prominence as a member of the CKY Crew along with long-time friend Bam Margera
for their extreme stunts and pranks recorded on camera which led to the rise of MTV's Jackass
and its three later feature films, which have all been commercial successes. Aside from
Jackass, Dunn also hosted Homewrecker and Proving Ground and appeared in feature films
such as Street Dreams and Blonde Ambition, as well as in Margera's films Haggard: The
Movie and Minghags: The Movie. Dunn died in an alcohol-related automobile
accident in West Goshen Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, on the morning of June
20, 2011, alongside his friend Zachary Hartwell, a production assistant on Jackass Number Two.
Career Dunn took part in the characteristic stunts
that made Jackass famous, and featured in all three released films, Jackass: The Movie,
Jackass Number Two and Jackass 3D. In 2006, Dunn and Bam Margera participated
in the Gumball 3000 road rally in Margera's Lamborghini Gallardo. He later went on a tour
with Don Vito called "The Dunn and Vito Rock Tour" for which the DVD was released on March
20, 2007. Dunn and Margera again participated in the rally in 2008.
Bam Margera stated during a December 2, 2008, radio interview with Big O and Dukes of 106.7
WJFK-FM, that he and Dunn would be going to Italy to film Where the F*%# Are My Ancestors.
That same month, Dunn appeared on the episode "Smut" of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
in December 2008. He is also featured in a movie called Street Dreams which was released
in spring 2009. He co-starred along with Rob Dyrdek and Paul Rodriguez Jr. Dunn was also
featured on a show with fellow Jackass star Bam Margera about them traveling through Europe
in a Viva la Bam-like show called Bam's World Domination for Spike. He appeared in Jackass
3D, which was released on October 15, 2010. Dunn co-hosted G4's Proving Ground along with
Jessica Chobot, which made its premiere on June 14, 2011, six days before his death.
However, according to a G4 spokesperson, the channel decided to postpone the airing of
further episodes. The spokesperson added, "The show is off the schedule as of today
until we discuss next steps." On June 27, G4 announced they would air the remaining
episodes starting on July 19, 2011. At the time of his death, Dunn was working on the
film Welcome to the Bates Motel. The film was later renamed The Bates Haunting and was
released in 2013. Personal life
Dunn was born in Medina, Ohio, to Linda Piscitello and Ronald Dunn. From 2002 to his death, Dunn
was in a long-term relationship with girlfriend Angie Cuturic, who co-starred with him in
Margera's directorial debut Haggard: The Movie and later Minghags. Dunn had several tattoos
of Cuturic, including in his inner arm and left ring finger.
During shooting of the closing scenes for Jackass Number Two in 2006, Dunn injured his
shoulder during one of his final bits, where he and co-star Bam Margera are pulled out
of shot by a running horse by a rope tied around their feet. Dunn dropped straight onto
his shoulder, causing damage to the muscles and leading to a blood clot that was at one
point life-threatening, due to its proximity to his heart and brain. While seeking treatment
for it and Lyme disease, Dunn became depressed, eventually cutting off all contact with his
friends, co-workers, and others for nearly two years. Jackassworld.com: 24 Hour Takeover,
or any subsequent events related to the films and series. Although reluctant to return to
the Jackass cast, he soon joined the rest of the crew in the production of Jackass 3D
and Jackass 3.5 later saying that he was happy to rejoin the cast and had more enjoyment
working on Jackass 3D than any previous film endeavors.
Death
On June 20, 2011, at around 3:30 a.m. EDT, Dunn and Zachary Hartwell, a production assistant
on Jackass Number Two, were killed when Dunn's Porsche 911 GT3 veered off the road and hit
a tree in West Goshen Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. Dunn was 34 years old. Hours
before the accident, Dunn had posted a photo to his Twitter account of himself and Hartwell
drinking at a West Chester bar. Dunn was identified in the police report as the vehicle's driver,
and a subsequent toxicology report showed Dunn had a blood alcohol level of 0.196 g/dL —
more than twice the state's maximum legal limit of 0.08%. The police report stated "speed
may have been a contributing factor in the accident" and preliminary investigations suggested
the car had been traveling between 132 and 140 miles per hour in a 55 miles per hour
zone. In August 2012, the parents of Zachary Hartwell
filed a civil suit in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County, naming the co-administrators
of Dunn’s estate as defendants, along with Barnaby’s West Chester, the Pennsylvania
bar where Dunn drank prior to the fatal crash. The suit claims negligence and recklessness,
as well as wrongful death in the incident that killed 30-year-old Hartwell.
The plaintiffs claim that Mr. Dunn displayed negligence and recklessness in failing to
have his vehicle under adequate and proper control, operating his vehicle under the influence
of alcohol, operating his vehicle at an excessive rate of speed and violently veering off a
road and into a tree, among other alleged transgressions. They are seeking unspecified
punitive and compensatory damages, as well as interest, court costs and "delay damages
as the law may allow." Legacy
Dunn is remembered by friends and fans alike as the "go-to guy for outrageous stunts that
even such stalwarts as Steve-O weren't willing to try" and "the kind of guy who would do
anything for a friend," gaining the nickname "Random Hero".
Following the news of his death, Dickhouse Productions and the producers of the show
released the following statement:
"I don't really know what to say right now everybody, because the sadness is overwhelming,
but today we lost one of our own. Our brother Ryan Dunn has passed. He died in a car wreck
in West Goshen, Pennsylvania this morning at 3 a.m. that's tough to write. Our hearts
go out to his family and his beloved Angie. Ryan will be missed and remembered by us all.
Thanks for the kind words of support everybody."
Many celebrities expressed their grief and condolences on Twitter including Sofia Coppola,
Tom Green, Carey Hart, Dwayne Johnson, Tony Hawk and his Jackass cast members.
Film critic Roger Ebert posted on Twitter "Friends don't let jackasses drink and drive"
just hours after Dunn died, which became controversial. Bam Margera retaliated by saying, "I just
lost my best friend, I have been crying hysterical for a full day and piece of shit Roger Ebert
has the gall to put in his 2 cents about a jackass drunk driving, fuck you!" He added,
"Millions of people are crying right now, shut your fat fucking mouth!" Celebrity gossip
blogger Perez Hilton responded, "We certainly agree that driving after drinking is wrong,
we think there's no reason - especially RIGHT NOW - that anyone should be pointing fingers
or poking fun at a truly tragic situation. Everyone makes mistake, and this is somebody's
son. Too soon, Roger." Ebert replied to Hilton's post saying, "Perez Hilton's readers agree
with me and not with Perez about my tweet on Ryan Dunn. He drank, he drove, 2 people
died." In Ebert's journal, he wrote, "I offer my sympathy to Ryan Dunn's family and friends,
and to those of Zachary Hartwell, who also died in the crash. I mean that sincerely.
It is tragic to lose a loved one. I also regret that my tweet about the event was considered
cruel. It was not intended as cruel. It was intended as true." Ebert stated that he wasn't
calling Dunn a jackass because he was referring to Dunn's affiliation with Jackass. However,
Ebert admitted he used a double meaning by "implying that someone who drinks and drives
is a jackass." He also wrote, "I don't know what happened in this case, and I was probably
too quick to tweet. That was unseemly." Kings of Leon also paid homage to Dunn at
their London Hyde Park concert by dedicating their song "McFearless" to him. Skrillex dedicated
his remix of the song "Cinema" to Dunn after a moment of silence. Alkaline Trio also dedicated
their song "Goodbye Forever" to Dunn on their fifteen-year anniversary tour. Singer/song
writer Roger Alan Wade wrote and composed the song dedicated to Dunn titled, "The Light
Outlives the Star." Occasional Jackass member Loomis Fall also wrote the song "Bid Farewell"
in memory of Dunn. Both songs were used in a music video tribute by Dickhouse Productions
for its official website. Dunn also came in at number three in top trending
searches of 2011 on Google's Zeitgeist report following his death.
On November 28, 2011, MTV aired an hour-long tribute to Dunn, where several details of
his life previously unknown to the public were revealed as well as never-before seen
stunts he performed. Dunn's parents, sister, friends and both Jackass and Viva La Bam cast
mates recalled his early beginnings to final months.
The 2013 film Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa is dedicated to Dunn.
Filmography Discography
The Alter Boys - The Exotic Sounds of the Alter Boys
References
External links Ryan Dunn at the Internet Movie Database
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