23. One of the Most Accomplished Stunt Pilots in the History of Hollywood
Paul Mantz (1903 – 1965) was a famous and highly respected aerial racer, stuntman, movie stunt pilot, and film consultant. He caught the itch to fly in early childhood, and as he grew up, his mother often had to step in and stop him whenever he tried to do wild stuff like launching himself off a tall tree with canvas wings. He worked a variety of part-time jobs and saved money to pay for his first flying lesson when he was sixteen.
In 1926, despite the fact that he lacked the requisite college education, Mantz finagled his way into the US Army’s flight school. He pulled that off with forged documents that purported to be from Stanford University. However, he was kicked out a few days before graduation when he performed a dangerous stunt that was witnessed by some of the higher-ups. Mantz then worked in commercial aviation for a while but left that to head for Hollywood when he heard that stunt pilots routinely made money hand over fist there.
