If you watch TV or go to movies, you have seen most of the people who turned up in a parking lot in Calabasas early on Saturday, Oct. 14. You might not recognize them, but you’ve seen them. They are the men and women falling from buildings, driving fast cars, taking a bullet and getting punched in the face.
Stuntmen, stuntwomen and friends came to the parking lot of Stunts Unlimited on their motorcycles to honor a late friend and an icon in the stunt community, at the second annual Gene LeBell Memorial Ride.
LeBell, who passed away at home on Aug. 9, 2022 at 89, left a lasting impression on those lucky to have met him. Once called the “Toughest Man Alive,” he forged a legacy in both the stunt and martial arts worlds.
In the 1960s, LeBell began acting and doing stunts. On the set of “The Green Hornet,” he struck up a friendship with martial arts icon Bruce Lee. Lee and LeBell had a rocky start after LeBell hoisted Lee on his back in a fireman’s carry without Lee’s cooperation. Eventually LeBell put Lee down and they became friends.
Lebell is so admired that it has been rumored that Brad Pitt’s character as stuntman Cliff Booth in the 2019 Quentin Tarantino film “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” which included a memorable sequence with Lee, was an homage to LeBell.
LeBell appeared in more than 1,000 films, shows and commercials. He was presented with the prestigious Taurus Lifetime Achievement Award on May 13, 2017, for his outstanding contribution to the world of action feature films.
LeBell was a member of the elite Stunts Unlimited organization, whose members are some of Hollywood’s top A-list stunt performers. An empty chair with his name emblazoned on it still sits at their office table.
“There’s always going to be a chair. He was a member of our group, and there’s no other Gene, so he will always have a chair in our office that nobody can fill,” said Chris O’Hara, president of Stunts Unlimited.
He once told former UFC…
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