Jackass star, Steve-O, has been entertaining audiences for more than 20 years by risking his life and limbs in an effort to bring laughs to fans across the world. He recently joined NPR’s Bullseye podcast with Jesse Thorn to talk everything from his early dreams of becoming a “crazy stunt man,” and time in clown college to his new memoir, A Hard Kick in the Nuts: What I've Learned From a Lifetime of Terrible Decisions, and what he has going on nowadays.
LISTEN NOW: Steve-O joins NPR’s ‘Bullseye’ podcast
His love for skateboarding and videotaping were present from a very young age for Steve-O, who enjoyed the challenge of learning new tricks and being able to edit and alter the way people saw him through video. His struggles in school followed him all the way through college at the University of Miami, where he was ultimately kicked out of the dorms, resulting in him leaving school and becoming homeless for three years.
After moving in with his sister, the entertainer applied for clown college to further his dreams of being a “crazy stunt man.” While he beat the odds in many ways and got into the school, he did not walk away with a contract with the circus, which is ultimately what he was striving for.
“The reason I wanted to go to clown college was the further my goal of becoming a crazy, famous, stuntman,” he shared. “I thought, ‘If I graduate from clown college, I will be a trained, circus professional and people will take me seriously as I’m lighting myself on fire at backyard keg parties.'”
Following clown college, Steve-O got together with fellow clowns to launch clown performances on cruise ships, but that too was short-lived for him as his one-of-a-kind personality was not embraced by the other clowns.
All the ups and downs of Steve-O’s career led him directly to accomplishing his dreams of becoming that “crazy, famous, stuntman,” which he accomplished with Jackass.
Hear more about his journey to Jackass and what he has going on nowadays including the Jackass crew’s latest film, Jackass Forever, by tuning in to his conversation on the Bullseye with Jesse Thorn podcast above.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign up and follow Audacy
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram