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Bam Margera

Bam Margera’s screen career grew directly out of skateboarding, a video camera and a willingness to turn his surroundings into a set. Born on September 28, 1979, and raised in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Margera began skating at seven. After receiving a video camera from his father in 1993, he and friends including Chris Raab, Brandon DiCamillo and Ryan Dunn started filming skate tricks and stunts. That footage eventually became the CKY video series, with Margera recording, editing and independently releasing the first film in 1999. The rough, homemade personality of CKY proved central to Margera’s appeal. He was not simply appearing in front of the camera; he was helping shape the pace, music and escalating disorder around him. Jeff Tremaine noticed the videos and recruited Margera and Dunn for MTV’s Jackass, where both became mainstays. Margera subsequently appeared in Jackass: The Movie, Jackass Number Two, Jackass 2.5, Jackass 3D and Jackass 3.5, with a minor appearance in Jackass Forever. His most sustained showcase was Viva La Bam, the MTV series that ran for five seasons from 2003 to 2005. Mixing stunts with reality television, it brought Margera’s family, friends and West Chester home base into the format he had been developing since the CKY years. The result made his screen persona difficult to separate from his real creative circle: skating, music, filmmaking and friendship were all part of the same production. Margera also pursued independent movies on his own terms. He co-wrote, directed and starred in Haggard, playing Valo in a story based on events in Ryan Dunn’s life. He later directed the loose sequel Minghags and released the Christmas-themed Bam Margera Presents: Where the #$&% Is Santa? His credits extend beyond acting to directing, producing, screenwriting and editing—a fitting range for someone whose career began by making the footage himself rather than waiting for a conventional route onto the screen.