Where in the World is The Human Fly?

Where in the World is The Human Fly?

RICK ROJATT – THE HUMAN FLY

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If ever there was a story that needed to be made into a feature film, it’s the story of Rick Rojatt – The Human Fly.

His most famous stunt was almost certainly the one you see pictured above, he mounted himself atop a Douglas DC-8 wearing a thin cotton suit, gave the  thumbs up and was then flown at speeds in excess of 280 mph at 5000ft. The plane encountered a light rain shower during the flight and pain of being hit bywater droplets at almost 300mph was so excruciating that Rick passed out, then needed 6 weeks of hospitalisation to recover.

The comic book company Marvel created a character based around The Human Fly with the catchphrase “The wildest superhero ever, because he’s real!” and Rick Rojatt would travel around the country, always in costume, to attend charity events. These events were elaborately staged and there’d invariably be a comic book villain waiting at each event to steal the money that had been raised. The Human Fly would triumph over him in the end and the children in attendance would almost lose their minds with glee.

The last recorded stunt performed by The Human Fly took place at the Montreal Olympic Stadium in 1977, he was to ride a specially built rocket-powered Harley-Davidson over 27 busses with a view to beating Evel Knievel’s world record of 13. His rocket-bike was built by Ky Michaelson and the story around the bike, the jump and the aftermath are well worth a read.

The below video is a 7 minute trailer for The Human Fly 101, a docu

June 23rd, 2011 · 8 Comments
Human Fly (comics)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Human Fly is the name of two comic book characters in the Marvel Comics universe, one a super-villain that was an occasional antagonist of Spider-Man, and the other a superhero. Additionally, Human Fly was the title of a short-lived series in the late 1950s reprinting some of Fox's Blue Beetle strips from the 1940s. It was published by Super Comics.

Human Fly
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Human Fly was the nickname of at least five stunt entertainers of the 20th century who would scale the exteriors of tall buildings in the United States:

Harry Gardiner (active 1905–1918)
Harry Gardiner
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the Scottish footballer, see Harry Gardiner (footballer).
Harry Gardiner
Human Fly crawls up walls of Camden NJ Courthouse cropped Feb 10 1915.png
Harry Gardiner in 1915
Born Erik Weisz
(1871 – after 1923)
New York City
Occupation Illusionist, escapologist, stunt performer, actor
Harry H. Gardiner (1871 – after 1923),[1] better known as the Human Fly, was an American man famous for climbing buildings. He began climbing in 1905, and successfully climbed over 700 buildings in Europe and North America, usually wearing ordinary street clothes and using no special equipment.

Contents  [hide]
1 Climbs
2 References
3 External links
4 See also
Climbs[edit]
Some of the famous climbs Gardiner performed:

October 7, 1916 in Detroit – The Detroit News had hired Gardiner to attract attention to the News‍ '​ ad-taking office by climbing up the 12-story Majestic Building at 12:15 PM. He wore all white, tennis shoes and rimless spectacles.
January 30, 1917 in Birmingham, Alabama – Gardiner scaled the 16-story "Empire Building" at the so-called Heaviest Corner on Earth.
1918 in Vancouver – Gardiner climbed up the outside of the 17-story World Building known today as the Sun Tower to promote Victory Loans.[2] The Vancouver World newspaper was published in this building at the time.
November 11, 1918 in Hamilton – Gardiner climbed the Bank of Hamilton building to celebrate the end of World War I. While climbing the side of the building, Gardiner stuck his head into one of the open windows and signed some insurance papers. He also purchased a $1,000 bond. The 47-year-old professional Fly admitted that he had to try for insurance at the Bank of Hamilton because it had so far been impossible for him to gain insurance elsewhere, since he was considered a high risk. This spectacle brought much attention to the Bank of Hamilton.
Gardiner is mentioned in a story of present day skyscraper climber Alain Robert, The New Yorker magazine, April 20, 2009.[3]

References[edit]
Jump up ^ Largo, Michael (2007). The Portable Obituary: How the Famous, Rich, and Powerful Really Died. p. 114.
Jump up ^ "Immense throng witnesses "Human Fly" scale Tower building in front of Sun offices". Vancouver Sun (Vancouver). November 1, 1918. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
Jump up ^ Collins, Lauren (April 20, 2009). "The Vertical Tourist. Alain Robert’s obsession with skyscrapers". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
External links[edit]
Detroit News
Hamilton vintage postcards
Hamilton Public Library
See also[edit]
Dan Goodwin
George Polley (active 1910–1920)
George Polley
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)
George Gibson Polley was an American pioneer of (the then-unnamed act of) buildering, or climbing the walls of tall buildings, earning him the nickname "the human fly".

According to himself, he began his climbing career in 1910 when an owner of a clothing store promised him a suit if he would climb to the roof of the building. He succeeded.

Over his career Polley climbed over 2000 buildings. In 1920 he climbed the Woolworth building but was arrested, just when he reached the 30th floor and had 27 floors to go, for climbing without official permission. He also climbed 500 ft up the Custom House Tower in Boston. He would often spice up his performance by pretending to slip and fall from a windowsill to another.

George Polley died at the age of 29 due to a brain tumor.

See also[edit]
Harry Gardiner, another "human fly" of the same era.
Henry Roland
Henry Roland
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Henry D. Roland
Born March 2, 1894
Germany
Died October 8, 1937 (aged 43)
Ottway / Greeneville, Tennessee
Cause of death
Fall from height[1]
Other names The Human Fly
Ethnicity German
Years active 1924-1937
Known for Free climbing tall buildings
Spouse(s) Anna Roland (m. ?. – div. 1928)
Blannis Roland
Children Helen
Parent(s) Henry Roland, Sr.[1]
Henry Roland, also known as D.D. Roland, was an American and daredevil and "human fly" [2] who became famous for free climbing buildings around the country in the 1920s and 1930s.[3][4] He began his high flying antics in 1924 to public acclaim. Roland identified himself as The Human Fly, a name that was also used by several other performers with similar acts.[5]

Career[edit]
Roland traveled the country with his act and climbed buildings as far apart as Texas[6] and Montana.

Roland's high profile stunts included climbs of the Cleveland Hotel,[7] the Davis County Courthouse,[3] the Kearny County Courthouse,[8] Allentown National Bank,[9] Roland's 1926 climb of the Tribune Building in Tampa, Florida attracted more than 15,000 viewers.[10] Roland survived one highly publicized fall in his career: "he fell from the third floor of the McAlpin Hotel in New York City. He crashed through an awning on the way down and this broke the force of the fall. It nearly cost him his life, however, and only after many months in a hospital was he able to continue his dare devil occupation." Even a close brush with death could not keep Roland from performing, and he worked to make his shows ever more thrilling after his return.

Death[edit]
Roland's final act occurred in Greene, Tennessee in 1937.[11] He again fell during a stunt but this time there was no awning to break his fall.[12] A contemporary trade magazine set up what happened: "It had long been his ambition to develop a new act that would give more thrills than his former acts, and last winter he realized it by bringing out a high trapeze and awaying pole routing, performed without a safety net, 110 feet above the ground. At the Ottway Fair, Greenville, Tenn.,[sic] October 7, while completing the finale of his trapeze, a forward somersault to ankle catch, a gust of wind blew his trapeze bar from under him and he fell to his death." [13] His death certificate identified a "broken right femur, broken bones of hands, probably internal injuries, probably fractured skull" and concluded that he was killed by a "crush injury" secondary to his fall.[1]

References[edit]
^ Jump up to: a b c Fox, H.W. (7 October 1937), Certificate of Death (ELECTRONIC COPY OF ORIGINAL TYPED PAPER DOCUMENT) (Death certificate), Greene County, Tennessee: State of Tennessee, State Department of Health, Division of Vital Statistics
Jump up ^ "Man balancing on two chairs at edge of tall building roof". LOOK Magazine. 1937. Retrieved 14 March 2013. D. D. Roland human fly
^ Jump up to: a b Evans, Rudy. "HENRY "DARE-DEVIL" ROLAND, THE AMAZING HUMAN FLY". Davis County Courthouse. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
Jump up ^ "It happened here". The Morning Record. 22 September 1975. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
Jump up ^ B. R. Hoffman (31 October 2012). Life After: A Biography. WestBow Press. pp. 5–6. ISBN 978-1-4497-6956-7. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
Jump up ^ "The Human Fly Performed Here". The Crosbyton Review. 17 May 1929. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
Jump up ^ "2,000 Persons See Human Fly Climb Building". Herald-Journal. Mar 28, 1926. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
Jump up ^ Roy T. Bang (1952). Heroes Without Medals: A Pioneer History of Kearney County, Nebraska. Warp Publishing Company. p. 128. Retrieved 24 February 2013.
Jump up ^ "`Human Fly' Buzzes Roofs". The Morning Call. July 23, 1992. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
Jump up ^ "Plans to Climb Bank Building". The Evening Independent. Feb 18, 1926. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
Jump up ^ "The Final Curtain". The Billboard. 16 October 1937. p. 33. ROLAND -- D.D., 42, aerialist and human fly, a native of Pennsylvania, killed in a 62-foot fall while performing at Greeneville (Tenn.) Community Fair October 7.
Jump up ^ "Fall Kills Aerialist". Associated Press in Los Angeles Times. Oct 8, 1937. p. 2. GREENEVILLE (Tenn.) D. D. Roland, veteran trapeze performer, was injured fatally late today when he plunged more than sixty feet from a pole on which he was performing at the Ottway Community Fair.
Jump up ^ Cooke, William (Oct 30, 1937). "Tribute to Late D. D. Roland, Noted 'Human Fly' and Aerialist". The Billboard. p. 50. It had long been his ambition to develop a new act that would give more thrills than his former acts, and last winter he realized it by bringing out a high trapeze and awaying pole routing, performed without a safety net, 110 feet above the ground. At the Ottway Fair, Greenville, Tenn., October 7, while completing the finale of his trapeze, a forward somersault to ankle catch, a gust of wind blew his trapeze bar from under him and he fell to his death.
Categories: 1894 births1937 deathsStunt performers
John Ciampa (active 1942–1952)
John Ciampa
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Ciampa (1922–1970) John was an Italian-American acrobatic stuntman and entertainer known by the stage names of the Human Fly, the Flying Phantom and the Brooklyn Tarzan.

As a child, Ciampa had been fascinated by the acrobatic agility of film stars such as Errol Flynn and Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. and by the character of Tarzan of the Apes as portrayed by Elmo Lincoln and later Johnny Weismuller. Inspired by his screen heroes, Ciampa began to climb trees and buildings in his Brooklyn neighborhood at a young age, persisting with the activity into his teenage years and early adulthood.

Contents  [hide]
1 Career in the entertainment business
2 Appearance in Gizmo! documentary
3 References
4 External links
Career in the entertainment business[edit]
By 1942 Ciampa's unusual hobby had gained him some local notoriety. Coincident with the release of the feature film Tarzan's New York Adventure, Ciampa was featured in a Paramount Pictures newsreel exhibiting some of his feats of acrobatic buildering and freestyle tree climbing.

A bricklayer by profession, Ciampa also worked in the entertainment business throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s, starring in Larry Sunbrock's Rodeo and Thrill Circus in New York City and then traveling with the circus to various U.S. and Canadian cities. Notably, his act did not include the typical, tightly choreographed feats of circus acrobatics such as trapeze swinging or trampolining, but rather improvised climbing and leaping stunts making use of scaffolding and circus rigging. Spectators were frequently alarmed by the apparently ad libbed and obviously dangerous nature of his performances. In 1947 Ciampa was arrested for having scaled the exterior of the Astor Hotel as a publicity stunt for the Sunbrock Circus, concerning onlookers who feared that he might have been attempting suicide.

In 1950 Ciampa performed in the Olsen and Johnson comedy show "Pardon Our French", in which he startled theater audiences by leaping between boxes and running along balcony railings high above the stage, occasionally while costumed as a gorilla and billed as "Ciampa, the Swinging Ape". When the show toured to Boston, Ciampa's antics ran foul of local safety ordinances and he was required to reduce the height at which he performed his stunts.

Appearance in Gizmo! documentary[edit]
The 1977 documentary film Gizmo! included footage from the Paramount newsreel of John Ciampa's climbing and jumping stunts, but did not credit Ciampa and ran the footage together with unrelated film of German stuntman Arnim Dahl, causing some confusion as to their identities.

In the Gizmo! sequence, Ciampa is first seen eating a spaghetti dinner with his family before running outside, acrobatically climbing a tree, leaping between buildings, running up a wall, quickly scaling a tall drainpipe, climbing a narrow alleyway by pressing his hands and feet against opposite walls and then repeating the latter feat with a young boy riding on his back, before waving to the camera from a rooftop.

Arnim Dahl is then seen jumping on board a tram, and Dahl is featured for the remainder of the sequence.

References[edit]
The Milwaukee Journal, June 5, 1947: "Sandwich Man's 'Human Fly' Stunt Puts Him in Bad"
Billboard Magazine, June 14, 1947
The Montreal Gazette, July 25, 1947
New York Theatre Critics' Reviews, Volume 18, 1950
Billboard Magazine, September 16, 1950
The Milwaukee Journal, November 5, 1950: "The Flying Phantom - Our old friend, the Human Fly, comes back with some new tricks"
Theatre World Magazine, Volume 7, 1951
External links[edit]
John Ciampa featured between 0:00 and 0:55 in an excerpt from the 1977 documentary "Gizmo!"
George Willig, who climbed New York City's World Trade Center in 1977.
George Willig
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Willig (born June 11, 1949) (aka "the human fly" or "the spiderman") is a mountain-climber from Queens, New York, United States, who climbed the South Tower (2 WTC) of the World Trade Center on May 26, 1977, about 2½ years after tightrope walker Phillippe Petit walked between the tops of the two towers.

Contents  [hide]
1 Life and climb
2 See also
3 References
4 External links
Life and climb[edit]
Before the stunt, Willig was a toymaker.

At the time of the climb, 2WTC was the third tallest building in the world, behind 1 WTC and the Willis Tower. It took Willig 3.5 hours to scale the tower. New York City Mayor Abraham Beame fined him $1.10, one cent for each of the skyscraper's 110 stories.

Willig visited the towers a year before the stunt and took measurements for the equipment he would need. He made special clamps that fit into the window washing tracks of the South Tower. The clamps he designed would lock into place when they were pulled down by his body weight. They would release when he decided to raise them. Once he built the equipment, he went to the World Trade Center 4 to 5 times at night to test the equipment. He began his climb at 6:30 a.m. that Thursday morning. As he was climbing, two police officers, one a suicide expert, were lowered down in a window washing basket to try to get Willig to give up. Willig swung away from the officers so they could not grab him. Willig and the officers talked, and the suicide expert realized that Willig knew what he was doing and was not a threat. The officer passed him a pen and paper, and Willig signed it "Best Wishes to my co-ascender." Police helped him to the top of the tower, by pulling him through a tiny window hatch at 10:05 a.m. and he was arrested. Willig said he could hear the crowd cheering from ground level. His climb received plenty of attention because it took 3½ hours to complete, allowing news cameras and spectators to gather. The only significant problem Willig ran into was irregularities in window washing tracks. However, he was prepared for this because he brought a small hammer to fix the irregularities. He signed his name and the date on a piece of metal on the observation deck of the South Tower, which was still visible until the tower was destroyed on September 11, 2001.

The stunt paved the way for appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, Good Morning America, The Merv Griffin Show, and ABC's Wide World of Sports. He also got jobs as a stuntman on The Six Million Dollar Man, Trauma Center, and Hollywood Beat.

In 1979, he published a book called Going It Alone (ISBN 0-385-14726-0).

During the 1990s, Willig lived in California's San Fernando Valley, working as a remodeler of commercial buildings.

After the 9/11 attacks that destroyed both towers of the World Trade Center, Mr. Willig publicly said he regretted climbing the towers, as his actions may have brought them to the attention of terrorists. But he later told CNN that was just an initial, emotional reaction and that he was still glad to have climbed the towers.[1]

See also[edit]
Dan Goodwin
Philippe Petit
Owen Quinn
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "America Remembers: The Significance of the World Trade Center". Transcript of Larry King Weekend. CNN. October 27, 2001.
Gillespie, Angus K. Twin Towers the Life of New York City's World Trade Center Rutgers University Press 1999
Glanz, James and Eric Lipton. City in the Sky. New York: Times Book, 2003.
External links[edit]
Tall Stories (But True) Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
Categories: Urban climbersLiving peopleWorld Trade Center1949 births
The Human Fly can also refer to:

Rick Rojatt, a costumed Canadian stunt rider active in the 1970s

Human Fly (comics) is also the name of two fictional characters in Marvel comic books (one of whom was based on Rojatt).
"Human Fly (song)", a 1978 song by The Cramps.
the activity of Velcro jumping.
a 1972 album by Richard Thompson titled Henry the Human Fly.
Disambiguation icon This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Human Fly.
If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.
Contents  [hide]
1 Publication history
2 Fictional character biography
2.1 Richard Deacon
2.2 Human Fly (superhero)
3 Powers and abilities
4 In other media
4.1 Television
4.2 Film
5 References
6 References
Publication history[edit]
The Human Fly first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #10 (1976), and was created by Len Wein, Bill Mantlo, and Gil Kane. The character subsequently appears in The Amazing Spider-Man #192-193 (May–June 1979), Spider-Woman #30 (September 1980), Moon Knight #35 (January 1984), Spectacular Spider-Man #86 (January 1984), and Amazing Spider-Man #276 (May 1986), in which he was killed by the Scourge of the Underworld. The story of the Fly in Spectacular Spider-Man #86 was drawn by Fred Hembeck, who (in his personal caricature form) had a guest appearance in that particular issue.[1] The Fly received an entry in the original Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #4, and The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Spider-Man #1 (2005).

The superhero the Human Fly starred in Marvel Comics' The Human Fly #1–19 (Sept. 1977 — March 1979).

Fictional character biography[edit]
Richard Deacon[edit]
Human Fly
Amazing Spider-Man Annual 10.jpg
Cover to Amazing Spider-Man Annual #10, 1976. Pencils by Gil Kane, inks by John Romita.
Publication information
Publisher Marvel Comics
First appearance The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #10 (1976)
Created by Len Wein
Bill Mantlo
Gil Kane
In-story information
Alter ego Richard Deacon
Team affiliations Savage Six
Sinister Sixteen
Notable aliases Fly
Abilities Superhuman strength and agility
Flight
Wall-crawling
Compound eyes
Acid vomit
Sharp wings
Richard Deacon, born in Newark, New Jersey, was a small-time criminal who was shot by the police and left for dead after an unsuccessful kidnapping attempt, which was foiled by Spider-Man. Stumbling into the laboratory of Dr. Harlan Stillwell (whose brother Farley Stillwell created the Scorpion for J. Jonah Jameson), Deacon coerces the scientist into saving his life. Overhearing an offer Jameson made with Stillwell to fund the creation of a new superhero, Deacon insists he be the subject of the experiment. Stillwell imprints the genetic coding of a common fly onto Deacon, empowering him and healing him of his bullet wounds. Deacon kills Harlan Stillwell and uses his newfound powers to further his criminal ambitions. He first uses Jameson as bait to get revenge on Spider-Man, but due to his inexperience he is no match for him and is defeated.[2]

Some time later, the Fly begins to display fly-like tendencies like eating garbage.[3] He also develops physical mutations, including facet eyes.[4] The Fly attacks Spider-Man after Spencer Smythe handcuffed him — along with Jameson — to a bomb. The Fly hurls the two from a rooftop and leaves them for dead. Once freed from the shackle, Spider-Man tries to stop the Fly from stealing an art exhibit, but the villain knocks him down and escapes. Soon afterwards, the police catch the Fly using S.H.I.E.L.D. equipment.[5]

Traveling to Los Angeles, the Fly seeks out Dr. Karl Malus, who confirms that his powers are fading and he will soon be powerless. Malus recommends that he get a new set of powers using a blood transfusion from another superbeing, which would most conveniently be the locally operating Spider-Woman. With his powers already at less than a third their usual strength, however, he is unable to defeat her and is apprehended. Afterwards, Malus uses some of the Fly's DNA to temporarily mutate Scotty McDowell into the similarly powered Hornet.[4]

The Fly is freed from prison and his powers restored by untold means. He subsequently battles Moon Knight, leaving the hero temporarily paralyzed, and again seeks revenge against Jameson and Spider-Man.[6] Partnered with the Black Cat, Spider-Man once more defeats the Fly.[3]

Over time, Deacon's mutation increases. After escaping from a mental institution, Deacon is killed by Scourge of the Underworld (who was disguised as a sanitation worker) while trying to take revenge on Spider-Man.[7]

The Human Fly is among the eighteen criminals that were murdered by Scourge of the Underworld to be resurrected by Hood using the power of Dormammu as part of a squad assembled to eliminate the Punisher.[8] He now has acid vomit that can melt steel, and wings strong enough to deflect cannon fire and sharp enough to cut a dump truck in two.[9] The Fly, now craving human flesh, devours a prostitute in a private room, and then fights a group of armed guards who burst in, vomiting deadly acid on them. When he assaults another woman in the hallway, the Punisher confronts him.[10] Punisher uses his knife to cut one of Human Fly's wings in half. A group of his fellow criminals (disguised as Avengers from another time and place) intervene as Bird-Man manages to get the Human Fly to safety. His wing regenerates rather quickly.[11] He battles the Punisher again with Letha and Lascivious, and is defeated when the Punisher throws him into Lascivious.[12]

The Human Fly is apprehended by Agent Venom,[13] but he is able to escape a prisoner transport to the Raft when the Hobgoblin attacks the transport trying to kill the Human Fly for stealing money from the Kingpin.[14] Human Fly is later recruited by the third Crime Master to become a member of his Savage Six.[15]

He is then hired by Boomerang and Owl to become a member of the Sinister Sixteen.[16]

Human Fly (superhero)[edit]
Human Fly
Human Fly 1.jpg
Cover to issue #1 of The Human Fly, September 1977. Art by Al Milgrom.
Publication information
Publisher Marvel Comics
Created by Bill Mantlo
The second Human Fly was a young man of unknown identity who was severely injured during a car crash. After a long hospitalization, including a number of reconstructive surgeries in which much of his skeleton was replaced by steel, he took on the masked identity of the Human Fly. As the Human Fly, he performed daredevil stunts to benefit various charities, especially those helping children with disabilities.

His activities often drew him into conflict with criminals, who were often seeking to rob the charity events at which he performed. Additionally, he drew the attention of Spider-Man, who thought he might be the villain of the same name.

The character was based on real-life stuntman Rick Rojatt.[17] The comic book carried the tag line "The Wildest Super-Hero Ever — Because He's Real!", and photographs of someone in a Human Fly costume appeared in the books. Jim Shooter, a high-ranking member of Marvel's editorial staff at the time of publication, said in 2007 that the photos were indeed of Rojatt.[18]

Powers and abilities[edit]
The Richard Deacon version of Human Fly has the abilities of flight, wall-crawling, and superhuman strength and agility. He also has compound eyes. Following his revival at the hands of Hood, Human Fly now has acid vomit that can melt steel and wings that are strong enough to deflect cannon fire and sharp enough to cut a dump truck in two. The wings soon regenerate if they are torn off.

In other media[edit]
Television[edit]
A different character with the same name appeared in two episodes of the 1967 Spider-Man Series.
In the Spider-Woman episode "Spider-Woman and the Fly", a crazed scientist named Dr. Hagel became a giant fly. The Fly was able to find out Spider-Woman's alter-ego. However when he was turned back to normal, he forgot everything about Spider-Woman's true identity.
The super-villain Human Fly made a cameo appearance on the Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends episode "Attack of the Arachnoid". He was seen in Ryker's Island with Electro, Klaw, and Blastaar.
Film[edit]
An independent film based on the superhero Human Fly is in development.[19]
References[edit]
Jump up ^ Spectacular Spider-Man #86
Jump up ^ Amazing Spider-Man Annual #10
^ Jump up to: a b Spectacular Spider-Man #86
^ Jump up to: a b Spider-Woman #30
Jump up ^ Amazing Spider-Man #192-193
Jump up ^ Moon Knight #35
Jump up ^ Amazing Spider-Man #276
Jump up ^ Punisher vol. 7 #5
Jump up ^ "Comic Book Resources: Human Fly".
Jump up ^ Punisher vol. 7 #7
Jump up ^ Punisher vol. 7 #8
Jump up ^ Punisher vol. 7 #9
Jump up ^ Venom vol. 2 #15
Jump up ^ Venom vol. 2 #16
Jump up ^ Venom vol. 2 #17
Jump up ^ Nick Spencer (w), Steve Lieber (p), Rachelle Rosenberg (i). "Department of Revenge-Ucation" The Superior Foes of Spider-Man #12 (4 June 2014), United States: Marvel Comics
Jump up ^ The Human Fly at Rocketman Enterprises
Jump up ^ Shooter, Jim. Back Issue #20 (Jan. 2007).
Jump up ^ http://www.deadline.com/hollywood/page/3/
References[edit]
The Fly (Deacon) at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
A satirical discussion of Marvel's series on the Human Fly/Rick Rojatt
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Rick Rojatt
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rick Rojatt
Rick Rojatt ( – ) is a Canadian stuntman, and the inspiration for the Human Fly comic book character.[1]

Early life[edit]
Rojatt performed a 250 mph wingwalking stunt on top of a DC-8 airliner flown by Clay Lacy over the Mojave desert and Texas.

In 1977, Rojatt contracted a Hydrogen peroxide rocket powered Harley-Davidson Sportster motorcycle to be built to jump 27 school buses at the Montreal Olympic Stadium during a Gloria Gaynor concert beating Evel Knievel's record jump of 13 busses.[2] He then retired from public life.

References[edit]
Jump up ^ Tea Krulos. Heroes in the Night: Inside the Real Life Superhero Movement. p. 45.
Jump up ^ Ky Michaelson. Rocketman: My Rocket-Propelled Life and High-Octane Creations. p. 78.
External links[edit]
AVWEB-YouTube Video interview of Clay Lacy flying the Human Fly
YouTube Interview
1977 Montreal Olympic Stadium jump
Where in the World is The Human Fly?

Inspired by The New York Times‘ successful effort to crowdsource a solution to a Nazi mystery, I’ve decided to try something similar in these slightly less august digital pages. Instead of identifying a photographer who documented the brutality of war, my goal is to find out whatever became of Rick Rojatt, a Canadian stuntman who performed daredevil feats under the moniker The Human Fly.

Perhaps you’re familiar with Rojatt’s alter ego, as it was the basis for a short-lived Marvel Comics series in the late 1970s. While the comics made the rounds, Rojatt cashed in by traveling around North America, walking on airplanes and piloting jet-powered motorcycles. He also created for himself quite a mythical backstory, as related in this 1976 People profile:

Rojatt, a Canadian, says he once was a Hollywood stunt man—although the California union has no record of him. He also says he was in an auto accident in North Carolina six years ago which killed his wife and 4-year-old daughter and badly injured him. He had 38 operations in four years, he says, which allowed him to walk again but left him with a body that is “60 percent steel parts.” He says he conditions himself by rising at 3 a.m., running six miles and then plunging into a bathtub full of ice cubes.

But at the very height of his fame, Rojatt suddenly disappeared. The fact that he never appeared without his trusty mask made his incredibly difficult to track—he kept his face concealed even when collected his appearance fees from event promoters. Rojatt’s fate has been the subject of much speculation, the best of which is compiled here. I’m rather fond of the theory that he swapped daredevilry for folk rock, but I fear that the true explanation isn’t quite so pleasant.

I thus appeal to Microkhan readers who may have deep contacts in Canadian stuntman circles. Any idea of what Rojatt did after he ditched the mask for good?

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Tags: comics·daredevils·Rick Rojatt·The Human Fly·The New York Times
8 COMMENTS SO FAR ↓
Mr. Shrimp // Jun 23, 2011 at 10:45 am

I’m sorry I can’t help you, but this is very timely, given the FBI’s more old-fashioned “crowd-sourcing,” i.e., TV ads, that resulted in the capture of Whitey Bulger and his companion.

The mask here is a real problem. Can’t say I’ve seen anyone in that getup recently. Good luck.

Brendan I. Koerner // Jun 23, 2011 at 10:49 am

@Mr. Shrimp: My fave detail from the Bulger story is how they FBI ran ads in Plastic Surgery News, because his girlfriend loved to get nipped and tucked. Pretty brilliant, and pretty foolish of the lady to be so vain about her appearance while on the lam.

Steven Goldmann // Jul 25, 2011 at 4:49 pm

Have you seen this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T78Ulnh01hg

Take a look. Quite eye opening. There is a story behind the story… But I can tell you Rick does not want to be found.

Brendan I. Koerner // Jul 26, 2011 at 10:56 am

@Steven Goldmann: Wow, definitely hadn’t seen that. Will try and get this on the front page soon–good post material for a book-writing day.

I’m eternally fascinated by people who shun the spotlight. Recognition is what so many of us strive for all our lives, yet never really garner. And then there are people who just don’t seem to care–or actively recoil from the opportunity to capitalize on the adoration of the public. An interesting phenomenon, to say the least, and one that I never tire of learning about.

The Human Fly, Cont’d | Microkhan by Brendan I. Koerner // Jul 27, 2011 at 11:04 am

[…] claim to have solved the mystery of The Human Fly’s identity and current whereabouts, which I wrote about a month ago, I’m happy to report that Microkhan has at least uncovered another thread to the tale. […]

Glen Mullaly // Mar 29, 2012 at 5:57 pm

Thanks for the info and links to that great short with more clips than I’ve seen in years. I was a big fan as a kid growing up in Canada, and the mystery always intrigued me. Here’s hoping the story makes it’s way into the public soon.

Sumner // Jun 28, 2012 at 12:38 pm

Also found this – an interview with the pilot of The Human Fly’s plane, Clay Lacy:

http://www.airportjournals.com/Display.cfm?varID=0309001

Brendan I. Koerner // Jul 2, 2012 at 8:41 am

@Sumner: Fantastic find–thanks for sharing. Love that detail about how The Human Fly’s legs looked after being flown through a hailstorm
He changed his name to George Patrick and lives in tent in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia.