In 1996, Johnny Knoxville (who was a prankster as a child and wanted to pursue an acting career) had the idea of shooting himself with pepper spray, a taser, a stun gun, and a .38 for a Self Defence article in Big Brother Mag. He pitched the idea to a couple of magazines and was turned down until meeting with Jeff Tremaine of Big Brother Magazine. Jeff hired him as journalist (with others like Chris Pontius and Dave England) and convinced Johnny to videotape this idea and other stunts for stories. Eventually these became part of the Big Brother video trilogy: Boob, & Number Two. Johnny quickly became a hit. Big Brother would go on road trips which is believed where Johnny met Bam and they became good friends.

Bam and his friends made the video cKy and became big hits. Their video was a top seller and they later followed with cKy2k. Soon, there was a bidding war (war at which the two companies bid for the show) to land him a TV show. MTV did something smart for a change and jumped at this unique idea.

Johnny then remembered about Bam and called him up to be on the show. Bam would only agree if Brandon and Ryan were on the show too. Of course, Johnny agreed and the show was on its way. The show featured Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Chris Pontius, Ryan Dunn, Brandon DiCamillo, Dave England, Ehren McGhegan, Steve-O, Jason 'Wee Man' Acuna, Raab Himself, and many guests and friends. Jackass became a hit and was one of MTV's highest rated shows for 3 seasons. Now, the Jackass crew may not be doing any more shows on MTV because of MTV's restrictions etc. etc. and because of the problem MTV faced with the a Boston family (where the kid saw a skit and then lit his feet on fire etc.)

As we look forward to this film coming to cinemas around the UK, Johnny and all the crew are ok and finished filming. More detailed description in the caption from Johnny himself below.

***Review***

Upon seeing a man get hit in the crotch with a football, contemporary philosopher Homer J. Simpson stated, "The ball, his groin--it works on so many levels." That wisdom has never been more true than when watching Jackass. Kissing the MTV censors goodbye, Johnny Knoxville and the rest of the broken-bones brigade let it all hang out (literally), allowing fans to see their wince-worthy stunts the way they should be seen--unedited and full of blood, bad words, bile and body parts. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll gag as the crew burn through a series of practical jokes and daredevil moves--from Party Boy to Bungee Wedgie--then break down into fits of laughter along with the audience. This is the funniest film of 2003, whether uptight cinema snobs admit it or not.

This film is very very funny if you are a Jackass fan. It has no story line so It should have been called Jackass: One Long Episode, but as the TV series it never fails to deliver the goods. This film is superb and well worth a watch.

                                      JOHNNY KNOXVILLE

Full Name: Philip John Clapp

Nicknames: Johnny Knoxville, PJ.

Birth Date: March 11, 1971

Age: 30

Marital: Married: Melanie

Children: Daughter: Madison: 5 years old

Hometown: Knoxville, Tennessee

Current home: California

Sign: Pisces

Hair: dark brown

Eyes: brown

Height: 6'1"

Body Art: has "Madison" tattooed on his chest

Family: father (Phil), mother (Lemoyne), wife (Melanie), daughter (Madison)

Occupations: Jackass writer and stuntman

Heroes & Influences: his father, Slim Pickens, Strother Martin, George C. Scott, Paul Lynde, Charles Nelson Reilly, Ron Palillo, Dave Letterman, Super Dave Osborne, and Candid Camera

Movies He's Been In: Boob, Number Two, Coyote Ugly.

Upcoming Movies: Big Trouble, Life Without Dick, The Tree, Men In Black 2, and Deuces Wild

In Depth

Philip John Clapp (better known as Johnny Knoxville), the 30 year old 6'1" host of MTV' Jackass, was born on March 11, 1971 and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee. From an early age he was an athletic daredevil (throwing himself from his crib), according to his parents, Phil and Lemoyne. At the age of 7, PJ decided to take a stick to a hornet's nest near his home. At 13, the straight-A student produced a phoney report card with failing grades which was left out for his parents to find. Then there was that time he jumped from a second-story hotel room into a pool.... However, Johnny admits that he got his odd sense of humour from his father, Phil, who used to run Clapp's Tire Store. He recalls several practical jokes his father played while he was growing up: Running a lukewarm hot dog through Johnny's lips while he was asleep (then pretending to zip his pants when his son awoke); Staging a gunfight at the Christmas party; Giving Ex-Lax milkshakes to friends. Plus during PJ's senior year at South Young high school Phil helped his son create letters supposedly from a V.D. clinic telling them they had been exposed, which were sent to several friends on the football team. Fellow classmates have said Johnny was always very outgoing and loved to be the centre of attention. Once he got up in front of the whole school during a pep rally and lip sang the same song that Ferris Bueler did on top of the float in Ferris Bueler's Day Off. He was even dancing and acting out the parts. He also played Danny Zucho in a chorus production of "Grease".

After graduating at the age of 18, Johnny moved to California to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Pasadena on a scholarship. However, he dropped out within weeks. When he met his neighbour, a Texan named Melanie, they fell in love. Soon they decided to elope to Las Vegas, Nevada to get married. But when they got there, Johnny ended up gambling away all their money and they were forced to marry in a smaller church. They now have a five-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Madison, whose name is tattooed on left side of Johnny's chest. Early in his marriage, Johnny supported his family by appearing in commercials (for Taco Bell, Coors Light, and Mountain Dew) and worked on novel (which he never finished) in his free time. He also wrote occasional articles for Blunt, Bikini, and Big Brother Magazines. Once he even spent the night in a field with 10,000 hippies during the Rainbow Gathering for a story.

In 1996 Johnny had the idea to shoot himself with pepper spray, a taser, a stun gun, .38, and then write an article about the experience. He pitched the idea to a couple of magazines that turned it down. Finally in 1997 he told Jeff Tremaine (then an editor at Big Brother Magazine, now executive producer and co-creator of Jackass) about his idea. Jeff hired him as journalist and convinced him to videotape this idea and other stunts (getting hit by car, poo poo platter, etc.) for stories. Eventually these became part of the Big Brother video trilogy: Boob, & Number Two (also Shit, which doesn't feature Johnny). Johnny quickly because a cult hit. Soon, there was a bidding war between MTV and Comedy Central to land him a TV show. He was offered a spot on Saturday Night Live, but turned it down. That's when Johnny Knoxville, Jeff Tremaine, and Spike Jonze pitched the idea of Jackass to MTV...it would combine part of the Big Brother Crew with the East Coast CKY crew (which included skateboarding pranksters Bam Margera, Brandon DiCamillo, and Ryan Dunn) and would allow the three producers creative control. MTV did something smart for a change and jumped at this unique idea. Alongside Johnny, Tremaine, and Jonze on the show are: Bam Margera, Chris Pontius, Ryan Dunn, Brandon DiCamillo, Jason 'Wee Man' Acuna, Dave England, Ehren McGhegan, Steve O, and Raab Himself. Jackass quickly became one of cable's highest rated shows. The success of the show has also sparked many recent movie deals for Johnny Knoxville. He made a small appearance in Coyote Ugly as the beer chugging college guy. Some of his upcoming projects include: Big Trouble (with Tim Allen and Rene Russo), Life Without Dick (with Sarah Jessica Parker, Harry Connick Jr., and Claudia Shieffer), and Deuces Wild. In addition to his father, Johnny names Slim Pickens, Strother Martin, George C. Scott, Paul Lynde, Charles Nelson Reilly, Ron Palillo, Dave Letterman, Super Dave Osborne, and Candid Camera as many of his influences. Melanie, Johnny's wife of five years, is a clothing designer.

STEVE-O

RAAB HIMSELF

Full Name: Ryan Dunn 

Nicknames: Cryin Ryan, Plugs, Random Hero 

Birth Date: June 11, 1977 

Age: 24 

Place of Birth: Medina, Ohio 

Current home: West Chester, PA 

Sign: Gemini 

Hair: Brown 

Eyes: blue 

Interests & Hobbies: sleeping and eating 

Tattoos: Blair witch, chilli peppers sign, barb wire, a noose, a plus sign, bmw logo 

Heroes: Tom Piscattello 

Hates: everything at one point in time 

Likes: the TV in his car, jean jacket, mom 

F A V O R I T E S 

Music: life of agony, the clash, ignite, Billy Joel, Eddie money 

Foods: red beet eggs 

Movies: Gross Point Blank, Annie, One Crazy 

Place: Iceland

CHRIS PONTIUS
Full Name: Chris Pontius 
Nicknames: Pontius, Bunny, Party Boy, Chief Roberts, Pontius the Barbarian, Mr. America, Garbage Man, Bear Johnson (The Alaskan Porn Sensation) 
Birth Date: July 16, 1974 
Age: 26 
Marital: Single 
Hometown: Pasadena, CA 
Current home: Los Angeles, CA 
Sign: Cancer 
Hair: brown 
Eyes: hazel 
Height: 5'8" 

F A V O R I T E S 
Bands: Misfits, Black Flag, Elvis Presley, Pixies, Doo Rag, Bob Log III, White Stripes, Melvin's, Hasil Adkins, Fred McDowell, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Eazy E, NWA, Any Gangster Rap 
Colours: Rainbow 
Foods: Mexican, Tuna 
TV Show: Different Strokes, Scooby Doo 
Movies: Big Trouble in Little China, North Shore 
Books: 'Breakfast of Champions' by Kurt Vonnegut; 'Barrel Fever' by David Sidaris 
Drink: Water 
Song: Hybrid Moments by the Misfits 
CD: Misfits Box Set 
Skateboarder: Jason Jessee 
Past-Times: Watching sunsets, Daydreaming, Picking flowers, Having promiscuous unprotected sex.
 
 
WEE MAN
Name: Jason Acuna 
Nicknames: Weeman 
Birth Date: ??-??-?? 
Age: ?? 
Current home: ?? 
Hair: dark brown 
Eyes: brown 
Occupation: Skateboarding & Stuntman for Jackass
 
 
PHIL MARGERA (BAM'S DAD)
Full Name: Phil Margera 
Nicknames: Phil 
Birth Date: July 13, 1957 
Age: 44 
Current home: Glenn Mills, PA 
Martial: Married to April for 25 years 
Sign: Cancer 
Hair: Black 
Eyes: Blue 
Interests & Hobbies: collecting Elvis memorabilia, mowing the lawn 
Heroes: Elvis 
Hates: nothing 
Likes: Elvis, Don Vito, McDonald's drive thru, Elvis & Friends show with Rockin Ron, 70's Pittsburgh sports. 

F A V O R I T E S 
Music: Elvis & CKY 
Foods: anything 
Movies: anything with Elvis in it 
Place: Chichester, PA & Graceland 
Skaters: Bam, Tom Boyle, Tony Hawk, Bucky, Maldonado, Kerry Getz, Jason Ellis, the late Sean Miller
 
PRESTON LACY
Name: Preston Lacy 
E-mail: preston@kcroyalsfan.com 
Place of Birth: Carthage, Missouri 
Birthday: August 14, 1973 
Currently Residing In: Hollywood, CA