Legendary stuntman Evel Knievel has died just two days after settling an
ongoing legal dispute with rapper Kanye West. He was 69.
The motorcycling icon, whose glittering white suit and risky bus and canyon
jumping feats turned him into a household name around the world in the 1970s,
has been in poor health for years following a liver transplant in 1999.
He spent the last decade battling diabetes and pulmonary fibrosis.
Knievel's bike-jumping successes were overshadowed by his failures - he hit
the headlines after failing to clear Snake River Canyon on a rocket-powered
cycle in 1974, and broke 40 bones when he spectacularly crashed during a stunt
at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.
The stuntman, real name Robert Craig Knievel, retired in 1980 but continued
to make a good living protecting his image and endorsing a range of products.
He also maintained an annual Evel Knievel Days festival in Montana, which
attracted thousands of fans from around the world.
He recently hit the headlines again after launching a lawsuit against rapper
West, claiming the Gold Digger hitmaker had infringed upon his trademarked
image by posing as a white-suited stuntman, called Evel Kanyevel in his 2006
music video Touch The Sky.
The late stuntman and the rapper settled their legal dispute out of court
earlier this week (begs26Nov07). (KL/WN)
Copyright 2007 WENN
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