one standup guy Jackass stuntman Steve-O performs standup comedy for the University

Raunchy jokes and a few crazy stunts took place in the Mary Linn Auditorium Halloween night, arousing the audience of students and community members into uproarious laughter and astonishment.

Steve-O (a.k.a. Stephen Glover), known for his dangerous stunts and behavior in the Jackass franchise, was brought to the University by the Student Activities Council.

It all started for Steve-O at fifteen years old, when he stole his dad’s video camera. From there, he started making skateboarding videos, which featured him performing insane stunts and his outlandish behavior.

“The way people reacted when I showed them the stunt footage I was filming made me feel like I was really onto something,” Steve-O said.

Steve-O completed a year of school at the University of Miami, but decided that college wasn’t for him. After dropping out of school, he enrolled in the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and

Bailey Clown College, where he then decided he wanted to pursue his passion of becoming a professional stuntman. Once a Clown College alumnus, he became determined to make it big in

Hollywood, and began pitching his home videos to producers.

A video eventually made it into the hands of Jeff Tremaine, the creator, director and producer of Jackass. At the time, Tremaine was working with Johnny Knoxville to create the stunt- based reality show. Tremaine took an interest in Steve-O, which landed him the spot among the famous Jackass crew.

“The Jackass stuff really started when I started videotaping myself doing stunts and sending them around, trying to get featured in skateboard videos,” Steve-O said. “I was very fortunate to have one of the skateboard video makers take interest in me.” The first season of Jackass aired on MTV in 2000. In 2001, Steve-O launched his own tour, called “Steve-O Don’t Try This At Home Tour,” which helped him establish himself as an experienced stunt performer. This tour took place in the U.S. and in a dozen other countries around the world.

When the Jackass series ended in 2002, the team created Jackass: The Movie, which was released that same year. Shortly after, a spinoff show, Wildboyz, was created by Steve-O and

Jackass alumnus Chris Pontius. The show lasted four seasons and aired on both MTV and MTV2.

In 2006, Paramount released Jackass Number Two, in which Steve-O and the rest of the Jackass crew continued to entertain audiences with their dangerous activities.

In 2009, Steve-O competed in the well-known TV show Dancing with the Stars, lasting six weeks despite an injury.

In 2010, Steve-O returned to the Jackass crew for the film Jackass 3D and Jackass 3.5, both turning out to be huge hits at the box office.

In addition to Jackass 3D and Jackass 3.5, Steve-O began performing standup comedy, bar tricks and stunts with successful performances all over the world. He eventually named this tour

“Steve-O’s Entirely Too Much Information Tour.”

In 2011, Steve-O released his autobiography, Professional Idiot: A Memoir. Additionally,

Steve-O finished production for a new game show he hosted for TruTV called Killer Karaoke. The show challenged contestants to break out in song during extreme situations.

Steve-O shared what inspired him to become who he is today.

“When I was a kid, I loved a heavy metal band called Mötley Crüe. Those guys made a lifestyle of sex, drugs, and rock’n'roll very appealing to me,” Steve-O said. “Meeting them the way I did was truly empowering, and it gave me the can-do attitude to make my outrageous dreams come true.”

Due to that rock’n’roll lifestyle, however, Steve-O also suffered a stint of serious alcoholism, which landed him in rehab. “When I first became recognizable from appearing on television, I abused my notoriety as much as I possibly could, at the expense of both my health and personal relationships,” Steve-O said. “Ultimately, years later, it was the accumulation of damage that I did which I attribute to my hitting “rock bottom” and finding the motivation to improve my health and relationships.”

Steve-O also shared what he thinks it takes to make all your dreams come true.

“Rather than wait to be discovered, discover yourself,” Steve-O said. “Whatever it is that you intend to do later, start doing it now, get good at it and show people what you’ve done. Actions speak louder than words.”

Written by Brittany Ehlers