Exclusive Spanky Spangler Interview: Legacy, Longing, and Love

BUTTE, MT - High-octane stunts. A city of people cheering you on. A life filled with joy and unique experience.

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So is the life of Spanky Spangler, a world-famous stuntman, daredevil, and thrill-seeker. Spanky has been around the daredevil scene for a number of years, drawing his inspiration back to a faithful meeting with Butte native Evel Knievel. Ever since then, Spanky has been astounding and blowing away audiences with his stunt work and dangerous feats, including breaking multiple world records, jumping a car 110 miles per hour off of a ramp, and almost drowning after a particularly intense attempt.

Though Spanky is originally from Arizona (where he currently resides to this day), he is setup to do his final stunt ever in Butte, Montana, on Friday, August 2nd of 2024. Yes, you read that right: his final performance ever, here in Butte.

Why is he doing it here in Butte? What is his last stunt going to be? What was his relationship with Butte legend Evel Knievel? And what is he going to miss the most?

Let's take each question one by one. So, why is he doing it here in Butte America? His final stunt, following a career of jumping from 100 foot heights while on fire, driving cars into pools of water, and jumping out of helicopters onto moving trucks, is quite the event. So is there something special about Butte?

"They've always treated me like gold there," Spanky said to me wistfully as he seemed to reflect upon the hundreds of stories running through his head. "I love them, and they love me. It just felt appropriate to finish it there."

Spanky last performed in Butte back in 2002—22 years ago—where he performed a few stunts; most notably, he launched his Spanky mobile off a dirt ramp on East Park Street through a flaming sign and into the side of another dirt ramp as a part of Evel Knievel Days, an event appreciating the legacy of the man himself. Though the incident was frightening at the time, Spanky looks back on the whole ordeal—and Evel Knievel Days as a whole—as a fond time in his life. When he spoke about it all, it was clear how much he really does love this little slice of America.

Spanky has a clear allure for the stunts and tribulations of American legend Evel Knievel. It turns out, though, that Evel Knievel did more than influence Spanky through just a sheer chance meeting.

"When I first met Evel, he wasn't famous yet, he was just jumping motorcycles. Then, years later, he bought me a beer when I was 20 years old—I was in Hollywood at the time—and influenced me to be more of a daredevil than a stuntman."

The rest, as they say, was history. And all it took was sitting down and having a conversation with America's number one daredevil himself. Spanky later recalled that Evel "opened up my career."

For decades since, Spanky has performed across the globe, taking his stunts—and, later, his son, who also performs in the industry—with him. Through his time as a stuntman and daredevil, he has been around the world 16 times, meeting thousands of people and fans as he showed off his unique set of skills.

But when he retires at the age of 75, a remarkable age to be retiring at for such a dangerous profession, what will he miss the most? You won't believe it, but:

"I'll miss the people up by you [Butte]. That really is God's country, and the townspeople have shown me nothing but respect and love. I owe them a lot."

As our conversation was winding down, he started to reflect on his favorite stunts; or, at least, most memorable. There was the time he jumped out of a helicopter onto a truck moving at 45 miles per hour. Then there was the time he jumped a car into a pool of water, only to get stuck in the vehicle for over three minutes—where he held his breath for two and a half minutes of it.

So I thought it would be the perfect time to ask him what his final stunt will be. Though he didn't want to go into specifics, he said it will resemble something he performed back in '02 here in Butte: jumping off a structure that is more than 80 feet tall. For some, that may not sound crazy enough, but for Spanky Spangler, a 75-year-old man whose gone through enough stunts, injuries, and heartbreaks in his long and incredible life, he assures me that it will be something to remember.

You can see Spanky Spangler perform his final stunt of his career here in Butte on Friday, August 2nd, 2024, at 7:00pm at the Butte Civic Center.