Dar Robinson - Any memories?

[flyingferret 0]

Bumped into this, apparently the guy was a great stuntman. He jumped 1200 feet in the 70s off the CN tower in toronto, once with a cable system (which is popularized instead of airbags) and once with a concealed chute he deployed at 300 feet.

cool pic: http://www.the-rocketman.com/Dar_large.jpg

Anyone know any more?

--
All the flaming and trolls of wreck dot with a pretty GUI.

[mccurley 0]

I never met the guy but was a fan. I was there the day he jump from the CN Tower in Totonto, my home town, and got this photo. Pushed a couple of news paper boys out of the way to get close enough!
I believe he was the first to jump from plane to plane, docking on the lower wing of a Stearman in a dive. Made it look easy actually.
If memory serves I think he never broke a bone during one of his stunts.

Watch my video Fat Women
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRWkEky8GoI

[nitrochute 2]

i understand he used to jump at california city,ca.a friend of mine was stationed at edwards afb in the late 1970s and remembers him being there.the plane to plane stunt was done around 1978 at california city, for a tv special hosted by lee marvin.there was also a tv special hosted by chuck norris about dar,and as i recall that one of his trade marks was the fact that he never got hurt doing a stunt. his death in dec 1986 came on the set of a movie he was filming in arizona.he was not actually doing a stunt at the time but just playing around on a motorcycle.ran into a cactus(?) and died of his injuries before he could be airlifted to a hospital.

[markd_nscr986 0]

jumped with Dar in the late 70's down at spaceland....might have been on his scr or scs load have to look at some real old logbooks.He was in town for a stunt at the astrodome, freefall from the top into an airbag.pretty cool guy really low time skydiver but really good and aware in the air.....good flyer....I'm trying to remember but I dont think he had much over 50 or 60 dives when he got his scr/scs?Anyone else out there on that load?

Marc SCR 6046 SCS 3004

[chuteless 1]

I had been asked tyo do the jump from the CN Tower for the movie "Highpopint". The producer called me to come meet with him abnd discuss the jump...I agreed I would do it, and gave them a business card from a lawyer who would negotiate the fee.

The producer asked "how much", to which the lawyer replied, "We're talking six figures".

There was silence on the phone and the producer said he would be in touch.

They invitedDar to do the jump, and he did for $25000.. I spoke with him about an hour after the jump, congratulated him and suggested the jump was worth a lot more.

Dar replied" Yes I agree, but I wanted to do it for the promotional value as much as the money'

He knewhis stuff, was a good jumper, and a loss when he died.

Bill Cole D-41

[wetrock 0]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_neYidAwNs&
video of his CN tower jump

[sasteve49 1]

Jumped with him at Elsinore back in the late '70's. Good guy. Still have his business card....."Dar Robinson & Co."
"Television & Film Production"
Sad....

[drjump 0]

Prior to the jump at the astrodome he came to Houston Parachute Service and bought a new pair of Adidas boots just for the show. He gave us free passes to the show. He was raised to the top of the dome in a small gondola on a wire cable. As he stepped off of the edge to gondola pushed backwards upsetting his balance for a perfect launch. He had planned to do half a front flip and land flat on his back on the airbag. Impact was more on his shoulders and the back of his head. Shortly after someone came and got me out of the VIP box that he had arranged and said that Dar wanted to see me in the dressing room. He needed a chiropractic adjustment! All was well.

[tonybrogdon 0]

I made a jump with Dar ou of a skyvan back in 1980

Tony Brogdon
D-12855

[CReW 0]

Dar Robinson was the greatest. What I remember the most was his 311 foot world record high fall into an airbag in 1979. As someone who made a couple 101 foot high falls I found 311 feet to be almost impossible to believe but, I have it on video!

Dar also broke through a candy glass window backward from Atlanta's Westin Peachtree Plaza hotel for a 220 foot airbag fall.
He was so funny in Lethal Weapon I laugh every time I see it.

That and the first to do the plane to plane stunt makes Dar the greatest stunt man of all time in my eyes.

[BillyVance 34]

CReW

Dar Robinson was the greatest. What I remember the most was his 311 foot world record high fall into an airbag in 1979. As someone who made a couple 101 foot high falls I found 311 feet to be almost impossible to believe but, I have it on video!

Dar also broke through a candy glass window backward from Atlanta's Westin Peachtree Plaza hotel for a 220 foot airbag fall.
He was so funny in Lethal Weapon I laugh every time I see it.

That and the first to do the plane to plane stunt makes Dar the greatest stunt man of all time in my eyes.

IIRC, Dar was really scared of doing that 300+ foot jump. It took him a while to build up the nerve to go through with it.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[MissBuffDiver 0]

He was a wild and crazy guy. Never jumped with him but saw him at Elsinore plenty of times in the 70's. Here's a photo of his grave marker...

Sandy

[rockcores 1]

Dar was working on a film along the highway going up to the north rim of Grand Canyon using motorcycles.  AT the end of the day he bet the other stuntmen a case of beer on who could get down the mountain around the switchbacks first and he went off the road into some boulders at the tightest turn and died.  I don't know if the estate made good with the case of beer.

[rdufokker 6]