Evel Knievel Dies At Age 69
Posted November 30, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
He defied death time after time with the dramatic stunts that made him a household name and an American icon, but Evel Knievel finally met his match on Friday. According to his granddaughter, Krysten Knievel, the lanky daredevil passed away at the age of 69.
Knievel, whose motorcycle daredevil stunts propelled him to stardom in the 70s, had been suffering from serious health problems for years.
He suffered from diabetes and an incurable condition that scarred his lungs.
He had a liver transplant in 1999 after hepatitis C nearly killed him. He likely contracted the disease after having a blood transfusion following one of his devastating crashes.
Knievel was best known for a failed attempt to jump an Idaho canyon on a rocket-powered cycle in 1974, and a difficult-to-watch crash at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. He broke over 40 bones before calling it quits in 1980.
“No king or prince has lived a better life,” he said in a May 2006 interview. “You’re looking at a guy who’s really done it all. And there are things I wish I had done better, not only for me but for the ones I loved.”
