The Full Burn: On the Set, at the Bar, Behind the Wheel, and Over the Edge with Hollywood Stuntmen

A thrillingly written look inside the crash-bang world of the professional stuntman—the first reported book to venture into this wild corner of the movie business.
In The Full Burn, bestselling author and acclaimed journalist Kevin Conley takes readers inside one of the most fascinating and dangerous jobs in the world. With bravura storytelling and full access to many of the legends of the field (including Uma Thurman’s double for Kill Bill and the genius behind the Jason Bourne movies, among many others), Conley gives a passenger’s-seat view of the stuntman’s life: the history, the culture, and the tricks of the trade, showing how—and why—stuntmen do what they do.
What’s the greatest stunt ever performed? Why is the divorce rate among stuntmen so high? What’s it like to go to work not knowing whether you’ll come back? What’s it like for your wife? What’s the scariest trick a stuntman does? Conley delivers the answers in the form of vivid tales from his subjects’ lives—and, in trying to answer the last question, one from his own, when he subjects himself to the rite of passage known as the “full burn.” Funny, gripping, and packed with amazing stories, this is an irresistible book for anyone who loves the movies.

Kevin Conley (above, on fire) is the author of the national bestseller Stud: Adventures in Breeding. A former editor at the New Yorker, he has written for GQ, Sports Illustrated, and the New York Times Magazine, among others. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, Amy, and their four children.