Yakima Canutt: The Washington cowboy who became a stuntman

A new film is bringing fresh attention to the people behind death-defying action in Hollywood.

"The Fall Guy" — featuring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt — has been a medium hit at the box office, but this love letter to stunt performers has injected new energy into a campaign to get stunts and stunt performers included during award season. "The Fall Guy" screenwriter Drew Pearce told The New York Times that a pitch for a stunts Oscar was baked into the film, literally.

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There have been only three people in the history of the Academy Awards who have received Oscars for their work in the stunt industry. Hal Needham was given a Governors Award in 2012, and Vic Armstrong won a technical award in 2002. But the very first stunt performer to win recognize was Yakima Canutt, from Colfax, Washington.

Canutt was awarded an honorary award in 1967 for "creating the profession known today of stuntman," as Charlton Heston said during presentation of the award.

Soundside spoke with Cascade PBS editor-at-large and host of Mossback's Northwest Knute Berger about the profile he did on Yakima Canutt's legacy.

"He wasn't a particularly good actor, but he was really, really good at these dramatic stunts," Berger said of Canutt. "And that brought him to the attention of filmmakers who were working in the very early period with John Wayne in the 1920s and 30s."

The origin story of Canutt sounds like it could be straight out of one of the movies he performed in.

He grew up on a ranch in Colfax, where he became a big hit in local rodeos. After serving in the Navy during World War I, his rodeo career took him to Los Angeles.

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Being of similar size and build as John Wayne helped propel him into the limelight of the stunt business, doubling Wayne in countless movies over the years. The two formed a tight friendship and working relationship, with Wayne modeling his acting on Canutt's genuine cowboy mannerisms.

Canutt famously performed the wild stunts in John Ford's landmark western "Stagecoach," leaping from horseback to a train of horses pulling the titular stagecoach, then dropping to the ground and sliding underneath. The stunt was replicated in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" over 40 years later.

Canutt also worked as the stunt coordinator for many films, most notably "Ben Hur," where he spent over two years planning out the stunt-filled chariot race. He professionalized the industry, invented safety measures, and solved problems for directors throughout his career.

Canutt performed in over 350 films, including directing action sequences for "Spartacus" and Disney's "Swiss Family Robinson."

You can listen to Soundside's entire conversation with Knute Berger about Yakmia Canutt's career and achievements by clicking on the play button above.