Dar Robinson was a brave man. He did big stunts in movies. He jumped from very high places. He even used a trampoline. People loved to watch him work. He was very good at his job. Do you like movies?
Dar Robinson was a brave stuntman. He worked in many movies. He was very good at the trampoline. He even broke many world records.
Dar invented a new way to fall safely. He used long cables to slow down. This helped cameras film him from above.
He jumped from a very tall tower in Canada. He also jumped from a helicopter. He even drove a bike off a cliff.
Dar was very careful with his work. He did not break any bones for many years.
He died while filming a movie on a bike. Many films were made to remember him.
Dar Robinson was a famous American stuntman. He worked in movies for thirteen years. He broke 19 world records. He also set 21 "world's firsts." This means he did things no one had done before.
Dar was very good at the trampoline. He was even on the cover of Life Magazine at age thirteen. He grew up in Los Angeles. His father owned a company that sold gymnastic tools.
Dar invented a new tool called a decelerator. This tool used thick cables to slow a person down. It helped him fall safely from high places. It also helped cameras film him from above. This was used in the movie Stick.
He did many big stunts. He jumped from a helicopter in 1979. He also fell 700 feet from the CN Tower in Canada. That tower is the tallest free-standing structure in the world. He even drove a motorcycle over the edge of the Grand Canyon.
Dar was very careful. He did not break a single bone during his career. He died in 1986 while filming a movie on a motorcycle. Many films were made to honor his memory.
Dar Robinson was a famous American stuntman and actor. He spent thirteen years working in the movie industry. During his career, he broke 19 world records. He also set 21 "world's firsts." This means he did things that no one had ever done before.
People remember him for his amazing bravery and skill. He made dangerous moves look natural and exciting on screen.
Robinson was a very talented athlete from a young age. He grew up in Los Angeles, California. His father, Jess Weston Robinson, owned a Gymnastic Supply Company. Dar spent many hours helping his father at the shop. He was so good at the trampoline that he was on the cover of Life Magazine at age thirteen.
This early skill helped him become a top performer.
Dar was also a smart inventor. He created a tool called a decelerator to stay safe. This tool used dragline cables instead of airbags to slow a person down. It was very helpful for filming high falls.
It allowed cameras to film from above without seeing the airbag on the ground. He used this invention during his fall in the movie Stick. You can still see his original tool in Moab, Utah.
He performed many huge stunts in famous films. In 1973, he jumped 100 feet from a cliff into a river for the movie Papillon. In 1979, he set a record by falling from a helicopter onto an airbag.
He even jumped 700 feet from the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada. That tower is the tallest free-standing structure in the world. In 1981, he fell 220 feet from a hotel for the film Sharky's Machine. This is still the highest building fall in a movie.
Dar was very careful and never broke a bone in his career. Sadly, he died in 1986 while filming a movie called Million Dollar Mystery. He was riding a motorcycle near Glen Canyon when he went off a cliff.
Many people in Hollywood wanted to honor him. The films Lethal Weapon and Cyclone were both dedicated to his memory. A documentary called The Ultimate Stuntman was also made in 1988 to celebrate his life.
Dar Robinson was a legendary American stunt performer and actor. He spent thirteen years working in the motion picture industry. During this time, he broke 19 world records. He also achieved 21 "world's firsts," meaning he performed feats never before accomplished.
Robinson was known for his incredible athletic skill and his ability to innovate new safety methods. His work allowed filmmakers to capture breathtaking action on screen. He became one of the most respected names in Hollywood stunt work.
Robinson developed his physical abilities during his childhood in Los Angeles, California. His father, Jess Weston Robinson, ran a business called the Gymnastic Supply Company. Dar spent much of his time helping at the company. He became an expert on the trampoline at a very young age. In fact, he appeared on the cover of Life Magazine at age thirteen.
This early mastery of movement prepared him for a career of extreme physical challenges.
To perform his dangerous feats, Robinson often had to invent his own equipment. He created a device known as a decelerator. Traditional stunts often used large airbags to catch a falling person. However, an airbag in the frame could ruin a top-down camera shot. The decelerator used dragline cables to slow the performer down instead.
This allowed a cameraman to film a high fall from above without seeing the safety equipment on the ground. He demonstrated this technology during his fall in the film Stick. The original decelerator is preserved in Moab, Utah.
Robinson's career was defined by massive, record-breaking falls. In 1973, he performed a 100-foot jump from a cliff into a river for the film Papillon. In 1979, he set a world record by free-falling from a helicopter onto an airbag. He also performed a famous stunt involving the Grand Canyon. In that feat, he drove over the edge and used a parachute to land safely.
These moments required precise timing and immense courage.
Some of his most famous work involved massive structures. In 1982, he acted as a stunt double for Christopher Plummer in the film Highpoint. For this stunt, he performed a 700-foot free-fall from the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada. The CN Tower is the tallest free-standing structure in the world. In 1981, he fell 220 feet from the Hyatt Regency Hotel for the film Sharky's Machine. This remains the highest free-fall stunt ever performed from a building for a commercial film.
Robinson was also a pioneer in cable jumping. He returned to Toronto to attempt a world record cable jump from the CN Tower. This was for a television documentary titled The World's Most Spectacular Stuntman. An initial test with a weight equal to his own mass failed when the braking mechanism broke. However, he eventually completed the jump on August 12, 1980, despite high winds and bad weather. He was listed in the 1988 Guinness Book of Records as the highest-paid stuntman for a single stunt.
Despite the danger, Robinson was a meticulous planner. He never broke a single bone during his thirteen-year Hollywood career. Sadly, he died on November 21, 1986, while filming Million Dollar Mystery at Glen Canyon. He was riding a motorcycle when he went past a turn and off a cliff.
His death was a significant loss to the film community. His legacy lives on through the many films that honor him.
Many filmmakers chose to dedicate their work to his memory. The films Lethal Weapon and Cyclone both include dedications to Robinson. In 1988, a documentary titled The Ultimate Stuntman: A Tribute to Dar Robinson was released. This film helped ensure that his contributions to cinema would not be forgotten. He remains a central figure in the history of motion picture stunts.
Where will your curiosity go next?
More to explore
✨ What else?
Related topics you might enjoy
🪜 Step back
Simpler topics to build understanding
What is Nepedia?
A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.