The former daredevil Evel Knievel died today.
I remember him well from the 1970s--he was often on ABC's Wide World of Sports, attempting all kinds of challenging feats--jumping him motorcycle over buses, across gorges and canyons, etc.
It wasn't truly "sports." His leaps weren't even true "events"--they were manufactured for television and ratings. But they got them. Somehow we in the 1970s hungered for the something new, something supposed to be exciting and different, even if it was made-for-TV. In the '70s, most everyone knew Evel Knievel's name. He certainly had some guts, and it made him some money. Now he's made his final leap. RIP...
