Special effects had camouflaged a wide
ramp between the two wrecked vehicles.
By using sand and angles, this ramp was not visible to the cameras. They put a heavy rubber bumper on the ridge
of the ramp and earlier testing proved that this gimmick would bound the chariot a good six feet into
the air.
[During filming] when the wheels hit the ramp, it looked like
a bomb had gone off beneath the chariot.
It went high into the air. Joe
[Yak’s 21-year-old son who doubled Heston]
hanging on to the top front rail, did a somersault over the front of
the chariot at full arm’s length. The
reins were tied to the center of the top front rail, and Joe, being very strong,
was able to hang onto the rail. He came
down on the reins, which gave the horses a terrific jerk. Naturally, that slowed them down a bit. Joe
grabbed the hitch rail, and turned a flip off to the side, hitting the spina
wall. He was very lucky. He only had a cut on his chin that needed a
couple of stitches, but he never figured out what caused it.
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Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Ben Hur Chariot Race #25
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Yak had originally planned this stunt so that his son would grab special handholds in the front and rear of the chariot to keep him from being thrown in a somersault over the front of the chariot and onto the team. Believing that using the handholds would set him down on the floor of the chariot rather than tossing him up into the air, Joe opted to do the stunt his own way by holding onto the front rail with both hands, which did result in him being pitched over the front of the chariot. Fortunately, Joe was able to get out of that dangerous situation without serious injury. Later, he admitted to his father, “When the wheels hit that ramp, I felt like Mickey Mouse.” Yak replied that Joe had looked like Mickey Mouse. Even so, this stunt remains one of the greatest screen thrills of all time because it is real.
Be sure to double click on this image to enlarge it. That's the only way you can see all the details of this remarkable stunt which could only be done once.
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