World of Stunt Illusions Part 5
World of Stunt Illusions Part 5
Sometimes it’s not the people who change, it’s the mask that falls off.
“In a world where everybody wears a mask, it’s a privilege to see a soul.” Amanda Richardson
Stunt actors are faces never seen, the invisible presence behind the settings in a movie performing amazing, dangerous feats to make stars look spectacular. Even though their work is prominently seen in famous movie franchises on the cinematic landscape, they do so inconspicuously without a chance of winning an Oscar. Working behind masks without recognition, they can't decline opportunities like crashing cars and leaping from explosions for a living (and an excellent living they make if they work consistently). But that's why stunt workers are professional. They do it for a living, never receiving the applause and recognition they deserve for their thrills ’n’ spills. To them, there is no career more intoxicating than performing well-executed stunts. Action is the vitality of their life, and their reward is the finish line and seeing their action appear in films and TV Shows. For many, an Oscar sitting on a shelf collecting dust is nothing compared to the honor they receive from successfully executing a breakneck feat. Like a magician in a movie, a stuntman uses his whole body instead of just his hands to deceive the audience into thinking the actor performed a particular stunt. They are the hidden magicians behind the curtain. The magic is broken when the audience discovers their secret. So, the person behind the mask playing the actor must remain a mystery. It’s all part of the illusion of Hollywood, and the stuntman is a wizard.
Unlike the hero in The Lone Ranger, who, while wearing western attire and a mask and riding a horse, and whose identity is unknown and revealed to the audience only at the end of the series, a stuntman’s identity remains confidential, except for their credit read on-screen during the conclusion of the film. When Jonathan and I performed stunt work, our masks came off only when we played ourselves in TV Specials presenting our illusions. At times, we'd mix our illusions with our stunts, increasing the danger and creating excitement in our audiences. For myself, one time was when I jumped from the edge of a 30 + high boat while heavily chained at Lake Mead outside Las Vegas, where, while underwater, I successfully escaped my restraints. Stunt man and director Gregg Barnett was my safety diver during this Houdiniesque stunt escape I performed on NBC TV Special Houdini: Unlocking His Secrets. I write about this stunt in my article Part Two: The Tao of The Pendragons
“There was a build-up of adrenaline in my body as I stared into the water below me as I prepared. When I landed in the water, I sank deep in its depth from the heavy chains securing me, but I was relieved of the anxiety brought on by my fear of heights. So, I was unaware of the threats presented trying to escape the shackles. As I wormed my body out of my constraints, I was comforted by the presence of the famous stuntman and director Gregory Barnett, who was my underwater safety person.”
Of course, overcoming an adrenaline rush is always a challenge for every performer, whether speaking to a small group or walking over the Grand Canyon on a tightrope. Everyone has their way of handling it. I make it a positive force by focusing on my performance. To calm down my anxiety supercharges, I'll think of something comical to reset my energy. This method always relieved the pressure. I can't stress enough how it matters to be well-rehearsed and prepared before a presentation. When my stunt finished, I felt a blissful joy; it was over, and a high sense of attainment from conquering my fears and apprehension. Jonathan performed his stunt illusion discussed in the same article in the above link, where he successfully escaped an exploding coffin.
“Tension was high as the live audience watched Jonathan being constrained and locked in a solid wood coffin with an exploding device added to the top of the box as a timer. A nervous audience continued to watch as the box reached its apex, and time was running out for Jonathan to escape. Time did run out as we all watched the box explode before Jonathan’s exit. Where had he fallen among the debris which landed in the water? It was hard to wrap your head around what you thought, “did Jonathan survive?” Then suddenly, a Sea-Doo interrupted thoughts of his survival, and much relief was felt as the audience watched the watercraft appear closer, driven by Jonathan, who seemingly transcended time and space.”
It's an exhilarating feeling caused by the mixture of adrenaline and other brain chemicals when you perform for a live audience — when you have a real audience in front of you responding with authentic feedback and applauding your performance. Especially when given a standing ovation. There is immediate gratification at the finale of your presentation. But when your performance is presented on TV or in a film, you have to wait until the show is released, sometimes months later, before receiving feedback for your performance. The adrenaline rush isn’t the same. It can be not very pleasant being a stunt actor because only your friends and family applaud you for your work. Your work is not mentioned in the weekend reviews, and in rare instances, when a reviewer talks about it, the stunt is commented about with no mention of the player. There is no instant gratification. That's one of the differences between performing for a live audience or on TV or films. Instant fulfillment gives you a big boost of confidence, which you get addicted to, so you look forward to your theater performances. You do not receive this type of satisfaction when you double an actor in a movie or TV Show. Other than your peers congratulating your work, you never get to take a bow and enjoy the audience's response. A stuntman takes his final bow in quietude. When Jonathan and I performed our death-defying stunts as ourselves on TV, we had the best of both worlds: instant gratification on the set and, later, when it released to the public more positive feedback from critics and people on the street recognizing us from TV. A stunt actor doubling for a famous actor receives none of this admiration. It’s one of the reasons I preferred performing magic for live audiences instead of doubling stars like Farrah Fawcett.
Before Jonathan and I committed ourselves to a lifetime of magic, we continued along with stunts. Much of the decision to focus on magic was determined by life events out of our control. A divine presence interrupted the process- whose compass pointed MAGIC. It's interesting how life takes different turns, and it’s never linear, matching our well-laid-out plans. But before that direction was given, we continued with our stunt work while perusing our magic, and there are more stories to tell, like when Jonathan met Fred Waugh, one of the greatest stuntmen and stunt coordinators to have lived, a legend in the business. Jonathan met him during one of his stunts. Jonathan’s talent immediately took Fred, and he took him under his wings. He just saw the potential in someone similar to himself, so he fostered Jonathan through an act of kindness. Our families became good friends, sharing many evenings and weekends. When his kids Ric and Scott were in school studying astronomy, Freddie asked Jonathan to advise them since Jonathan had studied Astrophysics and taught observational astronomy at Fullerton Junior College in Fullerton, California, when their elementary school featured a talent show we were brought in to teach Ric and Scott our metamorphosis, which they performed very well. Our friendship with the Waughs—Fred, Sophia, Scott, and Ric was a close one. Fred coordinated the Spiderman TV series on CBS in the late 70s starring Nicholas Hammond. Spiderman became a training ground for Jonathan as Fred hired him for many stunts in the action-driven TV series. He also encouraged my stunt career, hiring me to double various actresses in scenes on different TV Shows. Too many to name. Below picture is Ric Waugh , a very successful producer, Director, writer and former stuntman.
One of the shows Fred coordinated was Buck Rogers. He needed a stunt actress to double Morgan Brittany in a scene called Happy Birthday Buck. Morgan, a successful actress since childhood, is known for her work in Gypsy, Twilight Zones, and Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds , famous for her role as Katherine Wentworth on the TV Show Dallas. Her’s is a remarkable career in film and TV. Fred thought of me because of my similar body structure and hair to Morgan’s. The stunt was a simple stunt scene called a bread and butter stunt. I fell and dragged away to another room in a space scene. I was aware of Brittany since I was a kid, seeing her dance in Gypsy playing the part of Baby Jane and later seeing her in a rerun of The Birds. I also had more recently seen her play Vivian Leigh in Gable and Lombard, a part she played in three different movies, and facially, she had a striking resemblance to the the Gone With The Wind star. Needless to say, I was extremely excited to meet her and play her on the show as her stunt double.
Doubling Morgan Brittany in a scene from Buck Rogers
I remember showing up on the set of Buck Rogers and Freddie going over the scene with me and rehearsing it a few times before I went to makeup and hair. Walking out, I ran into her in the hallway. I would have loved to have seen the look on my face. I'm sure my surprise probably caught her off guard. Here we were, two strangers dressed precisely the same, with the same hair and makeup, staring at each other. Quickly, Morgan took charge and made her introduction. We exchanged greetings, and her gracious hospitality made me feel welcome. My work went well and made Fred very happy. Just a few earlier years, I would have never imagined falling for a living. Still, I was in a surreal meeting with one of the most outstanding stunt performers, encouraging me to pursue a more serious career. By the close of the day, Morgan and I were friends exchanging phone numbers as we went our separate ways home. In the future, I double her in other TV shows and films, like Wild Women of Chastity Gulch. It was the start of a friendship with Jonathan, and I introduced her to one of Jonathan’s good friends, Jack Gill, another legendary stuntman, who, at the time, like Jonathan, was in the springtime of his stunt career. I'd never been a matchmaker, but it was the first of a few I've been happy to help unite. For their first date, we all went on a double date, taking Jack and Morgan to the Magic Castle to seal their deal. The magic must have worked because today, they are still a couple who recently celebrated one of their anniversaries at the Magic Castle, returning to that romantic, magical setting where Cupid shot some arrows their way. 💘
Doubling as Morgan Brittany in the movie Wild Women of Chastity Gulch
It was during my work with Morgan that my friend Greg Barnett noticed my resemblance to Natalie Wood. At dinner one time, Greg mentioned one of his future projects was coordinating the subsequent movie starring Natalie Wood in water scenes being shot in Florida after she finished Brainstorm. I’d been a long-committed water baby since childhood and had spent most summers in the pool swimming competitively on a team. It was while swimming in college that I met Jonathan. I had my scuba card, and on weekends, I spent much time in the ocean during the late 70’s and early 80’s, so I was qualified to do the swimming scenes for Natalie. I was excited because I'd seen Natalie Wood for the first time in the same movie as Morgan. I thought to myself, what an uncanny coincidence doubling both these ladies from that iconic film, which piqued my interest, and I curiously watched it later in my teens when often I was told I looked a lot like Natalie Wood. Arrangements were made for me to meet Natalie. Greg and the director were excited because I was an excellent facial double for her, which was more critical for underwater work where wigs and masks posed a difficult challenge. I met Natalie Wood in a wardrobe room at one of the studios. The seamstress looked at me and my physique and thought I'd be perfect and added her encouragement. Mostly, I talked to Natalie about my swimming abilities and what her part would require regarding stunts. She seemed to be comfortable with me, and before I left, she grabbed my hand and said something like, “Charlotte, I'm terrified of water, and I'm depending on you with complete trust.” She told me I would represent her well while expressing her fear of water was so great she didn't like washing her hair. So she would be doing no swimming in the film. I was struck by her terror and her powerful grip on my hand; she wouldn't let go while she talked.
I only met Natalie Wood for a brief interlude between her movies and my work. Our paths crossed just enough to change the course of my life. When I turned on the 5 o’clock news on December 1, 1981, I was in shock with many questions when learning she drowned!? how is that? I thought to myself. I had taught life-saving to lifeguards and understood the psychological makeup of someone fearing water. I can understand why she would be on a yacht, but it was beyond my understanding how she managed or why she would try to launch a dinghy by herself in the middle of the night. I think her “accident” was blamed on drunkenness. Case closed. But many people, including myself, believe possible foul play happened that night. But who would have killed her? Without a thorough investigation, we will never know, and her death, just like John Belushi’s, will continue to remain a mystery. Although we know John used drugs, we have no idea if he injected himself at night; no evidence of any regular heroin use had been found by lack of injection marks, which are regularly seen on heroin users shooting up all the time. Cathy Smith, his drug pusher who finally admitted injecting him, was put in jail for a few years, but no murder charges were filed against her. It was clear to investigators John was not a regular user. There lies the mystery.
Natalie Wood and John Belushi died within six months of each other, and both announcements were devastating to the world. Professionally, what that meant for Jonathan and me is we would not be doubling either of these movie stars in future films or TV shows. A massive loss of our anticipated projects. Unexpected and unplanned. Had they lived, Jonathan and I today might be retiring from a lifetime career of stunt work and directing. At the same time as John and Natalie’s untimely demises, it was 1982, and we moved to Las Vegas to headline our first show, Rocky Sennes Wild World of Burlesque at the Holiday Casino, a showgirl review show popular from 60’s through the ’90s’s in Vegas. It was an ample opportunity for us and one we would have turned down if we’d committed ourselves to film projects with Wood and Belushi. From that first showroom in Vegas, our career exploded. While there, we met producer John Stewart, who owned and produced Legends in Concert, a show tributing stars with impressionist artists. Stewart saw us and wanted Jonathan to play Houdini and I Bess in his show. It was an opportunity any magician would have loved to be offered. We turned it down. Not because of the money, and we were flattered to be asked, and the money was excellent accompanying a long-term contract. We turned it down because, like Jonathan astutely said at the time, “I don’t want to make Houdini more famous; I want to make Jonathan Pendragon famous.” so in the future, other than an occasional stunt or two to keep up our health benefits, Away concluded our film and TV stunt careers. We put away our stunt masks and disguises, leaving those things behind as we emerged from our caterpillar casings as The Pendragons performing all over the world as our authentic selves exposing our real faces. The masquerade party ended as our masks were dropped.
I feel a huge sigh of relief when I bow on stage, happy the show is over and absorbing the relaxing energy. The applause would always rise during our bows, and I felt validated for all the blood, sweat, and tears we put into our work. None hidden behind the disguise of a Hollywood actor. In real life, it's much easier to live transparently and to be yourself. It's difficult to put on different disguises, and drains you mentally if you try to be different people. Remember, everyone wants to see the real you. Be you and not somebody else. Being real requires courage and risk, but the rewards are great.
I have to go to bed but I cannot stop reading. It is like watching a movie. :)
“The most important kind of freedom is to be what you really are. You trade in your reality for a role. You trade in your sense for an act. You give up your ability to feel, and in exchange, put on a mask. There can’t be any large-scale revolution until there’s a personal revolution, on an individual level. It’s got to happen inside first.” JIm Morrison ( The Doors).
So beautifully put; our mask sometimes becomes our persona, a protective face that hides our fear and uncertainty. But the mask must at some point come off, if we are to be known and breathe free -
we must unmask, and be free.