Tuesday, June 21, 2011

'Jackass' star Ryan Dunn dies in high-speed car crash

A co-star of the "Jackass" movie franchise was killed on Monday when a Porsche he was driving careered off a highway in Pennsylvania and burst into flames.

Ryan Dunn : 'Jackass' star Ryan Dunn dies in high-speed Porsche crash


Ryan Dunn was driving his 2007 Porsche, which police found "fully engulfed in flames" in a wooded area in outer Philadelphia, police in the West Goshen Township said.

An unidentified passenger also died in the crash.

The daredevil personality, 34, part of the crew in the hugely successful "Jackass" movie franchise that specialised in risky pranks and stomach-churning stunts, lived in nearby West Chester, Pennsylvania.

In the hit MTV show and films, Mr Dunn performed a variety of stunts alongside co-stars Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera and Steve-O.

Knoxville wrote on Twitter: "Today I lost my brother Ryan Dunn. My heart goes out to his family and his beloved Angie."

A police statement said a "preliminary investigation revealed that speed may have been a contributing factor to the accident."

Ohio-born Mr Dunn posted a photo to his Twitter account shortly before the crash which seemed to show him drinking with friends.

On his Twitter account he described himself as a "TV personality, movie star, automotive enthusiast."
In 2005, Dunn was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and entered a first offender's program that allowed him to clear his record after a certain period of good behaviour, said Patrick Carmody, Assistant District Attorney in Chester County.

Besides the Jackass movie franchise that has grossed more than $330 million worldwide, Mr Dunn also starred in "Haggard: The Movie," an indie comedy in which the tattooed, bearded, daredevil played himself.