The Jimmy Kimmel-Richard Heene connection takes off

Like every late-night yakker, Jimmy Kimmel has made his share of Balloon Boy jokes; witness the skit above, in which his security guard supposedly floats over Fort Collins. But Kimmel claims a closer connection to balloonatic Richard Heene than most of his colleagues, declaring that a few years back, a...
By Michael RobertsOctober 21, 2009
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Like every late-night yakker, Jimmy Kimmel has made his share of Balloon Boy jokes; witness the skit above, in which his security guard supposedly floats over Fort Collins. But Kimmel claims a closer connection to balloonatic Richard Heene than most of his colleagues, declaring that a few years back, a mutual acquaintance passed along the following offer: For $25,000, Dick would put Jimmy’s name on the side of a rocket and blast it into space.

Looks like that deal, as well as Heene’s reality-TV/attention whore dreams, exploded on the launchpad.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword‘s news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor’s degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master’s degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

michaelrobertscolo@gmail.com

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