I've seen stuntman Buddy Joe Hooker for years on television and in the movies. I think Burt Reynolds made a movie about him. What can you tell me about him?
—P. E. Edwards, Waycross, Ga.
Yes, the 1978 movie Hooper was based on hot-dog Tinseltown stuntmen Buddy Joe Hooker (played by Jan-Michael Vincent) and Hal Needham (played by Reynolds). In one of those only-in-Hollywood twists, the filmmakers hired Hooker to perform as Vincent's stunt double. "There were a lot of great stunts in that film because it was a movie about stunts," says Hooker, who began his career at age 11 as an actor on Leave it to Beaver (in a recurring role as Wally's friend Chester). His twin sons, now 13, began following in dad's stunt-double footsteps at age 6 on the movie Spy Kids, taking spills for the movie's lead child star. Hooker's most recent work has been as stunt coordinator for the movies The 40 Year Old Virgin, Skelton Key and Déjà Vu, as well as for TV's Fear Factor.
