Hal Needham

Hal Needham (born March 6, 1931) is an American stuntman and noted film director. Needham was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the son of Edith May (née Robinson) and Howard Needham. He was raised in Arkansas and Missouri. Needham was a paratrooper during the Korean War, worked as a treetopper, and was a billboard model for Viceroy Cigarettes while beginning a career in Hollywood as a motion picture stuntman. Needham's first break was as the stunt dou... more

Hal Needham (born March 6, 1931) is an American stuntman and noted film director. Needham was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the son of Edith May (née Robinson) and Howard Needham. He was raised in Arkansas and Missouri. Needham was a paratrooper during the Korean War, worked as a treetopper, and was a billboard model for Viceroy Cigarettes while beginning a career in Hollywood as a motion picture stuntman. Needham's first break was as the stunt double for actor Richard Boone on the popular TV western Have Gun, Will Travel. Needham trained under John Wayne's stunt double Chuck Roberson and quickly became one of the top stuntman of the 1960s on such films as How the West Was Won, McLintock, The War Lord, and Little Big Man. He doubled regularly for Clint Walker and Burt Reynolds. Needham moved into stunt coordinating and directing second unit action, while designing and introducing air bags and other innovative equipment to the industry. In 1971, he and fellow stuntmen Glenn Wilder, and... less