James Sherwin “Bud” Ekins was his stunt double for both “The Great Escape” and “Bllitt.” While Steve McQueen apparently did most of his easier stunts, stunt men did the more difficult ones. But Ekins is the most well known of Steve McQueen's stunt doubles.
James Sherwin "Bud" Ekins (May 11, 1930 – October 6, 2007) was an American professional stuntman in the U.S. film industry. He is considered to be one of the film industry's most accomplished stuntmen with a body of work that includes classic films such as The Great Escape and Bullitt.
Who was the highest paid actor in The Great Escape?
Watch the trailer for The Great Escape (1963)
By then, Steve McQueen was the undisputed big name, but he was actually paid $87,500, to James Garner's $150,000. During filming he had become powerful enough to threaten to walk off the project if he wasn't given a bigger role, and he made various other ego-driven demands.
Provide previously untold insights into the 1962 film epic that came to immortalise the real 'Great Escape' and the iconic motorcycle stunt performed by Bud Ekins, doubling for Steve McQueen, which has become ingrained in film history folklore.
Did Steve McQueen do all the motorcycle stunts in The Great Escape?
Steve McQueen performed all of his own motorcycle stunts in The Great Escape with the exception of his characters final jump over a 6ft barbed wire fence. The final jump was performed by his stunt double, Bud Etkins [1].
Did Steve McQueen do his own driving in The Great Escape?
He did his own cycle stunting in "The Great Escape," explaining matter-of-factly: "What stunt man do you know who could ride that good." After he completes ''Nevada Smith," McQueen heads for Formosa to film "The Sand Pebbles," plans to take his family along.
Did Steve McQueen really jump the fence in The Great Escape?
These exploits were well publicized in the press, so many people assumed the star executed the jump in "The Great Escape." It became a part of his legend, and he never felt great about this because, well, this was a rare occasion when he did not perform the stunt.
After his mesothelioma diagnosis in 1979, McQueen underwent a series of traditional and unconventional treatment options. He died of cardiac arrest in 1980.
Took him a long time to figure out it was me. On January 16, 1980, less than a year before his death, McQueen married model Barbara Minty. Barbara Minty, in her book Steve McQueen: The Last Mile, wrote of McQueen becoming an Evangelical Christian toward the end of his life.
The airmen did not pack overnight bags for their missions. The film shows the executions being carried out by uniformed German troops using a Spandau machine gun. In reality, the executions were done by Gestapo agents who used pistols at close range.
There were three successful escapees: Per Bergsland, Norwegian pilot of No. 332 Squadron RAF, escapee #44. Jens Müller, Norwegian pilot of No. 331 Squadron RAF, escapee #43. Bram van der Stok, Dutch pilot of No. 41 Squadron RAF, escapee #18.
Who were the actors who made it to freedom in the film "The Great Escape"? The three were Danny and Willie (played by Charles Bronson & John Leyton) who are seen rowing to a neutral ship, and Sedgwick (played by James Coburn) who escapes to Spain via France.
Did Steve McQueen do all his own driving in Bullitt?
Although Steve McQueen was credited with the driving during the chase sequence, it was actually shared by McQueen and Bud Ekins, one of Hollywood's best stunt drivers. From the interior shots looking forward inside the Mustang, it's easy to see which one is driving.
The actor is better known for his prowess as a stunt driver. His work in Bullitt (1968) is legendary where he drove the black Dodge Charger 440 Magnum that was pursued by Steve McQueen in his Ford Mustang 390 GT.
What happened to the car Steve McQueen drove in Bullitt?
The Bullitt Mustang ended up staying in the Kiernan family's D.C.-area garage for decades. Upon Kiernan's passing in 2014, the car was passed down to his son Sean who was inspired to get the car back up and running. Sean Kiernan restored the car in secret on his own before unveiling it to the public.
After the operation, McQueen was in good spirits, talking coherently. Santos Vargas said he gave another thumbs up sign and said in Spanish, “Lo hice,” or “I did it!” Santos Vargas said he interpreted that to mean that McQueen thought he would survive.
Sadly, McQueen's acting career was cut short by an unexpected pleural mesothelioma diagnosis. It is believed that McQueen was exposed to asbestos while serving in the United States Marine Corps in the late 1940s. In 1980, McQueen died of mesothelioma at the age of 50.
Chadwick McQueen is a professional sports car driver and endured a horrific crash during a race in Daytona FL, leaving him in a 3 week coma with many broken bones. In an official interview he is thankful to be alive, but this has definitely altered his abilities in Karate as his body heals.
The pressures of maintaining his creative brilliance, coupled with the relentless demands of the fashion industry, took a toll on his mental well-being. McQueen openly discussed his struggles with depression, anxiety, and the emotional weight of his own success.
His pups—Juice, Callum and Minter—were included in his suicide note and had even walked the runway with him. He left the same amount of money to his godson, nieces, and nephews, as well as each of his two housekeepers. McQueen's two brothers and three sisters will each receive $410,000.
Steve McQueen passed away on November 7, 1980, at age 50 after the cancer surgery which was said to be successful. He was cremated and his ashes were scattered at sea. He married three times and had a lifelong love of motor racing, once remarking, "Racing is life.
Did Steve McQueen do his own motorcycle riding in The Great Escape?
Bud Ekins prepared and choreographed the bulk of the chase, and McQueen did most of his own riding. McQueen was a better driver than many of the stuntmen playing Germans, so he put on an SS uniform for some of these scenes and chased himself. As Hilts, he rode a 1962 650cc Triumph TR6R.
Based on Paul Brickhill's 1950 non-fiction book of the same name, the film depicts a heavily fictionalized version of the mass escape by British Commonwealth prisoners of war from German POW camp Stalag Luft III during the Second World War.
In later seasons, it was a mildly 'bobbed' Triumph Trophy 500. As he could not ride, Henry Winkler says that he learned on the same Triumph 650 6T ridden (and jumped) by Bud Ekins in 'The Great Escape' and ended up stuffing it under a truck.
