CKY (video series)

The CKY video series is a series of videos produced by Bam Margera and Brandon DiCamillo and other residents of West Chester, Pennsylvania. "CKY" stands for "Camp Kill Yourself".[1] The series was the basis for what eventually became Jackass.

"CKY4" redirects here. For the airport in Canada, see Killarney (Killarney Mountain Lodge) Water Aerodrome.
CKY (video series)
The covers for all four videos: CKY, CKY2K, CKY3, and CKY4
Directed byBam Margera, Joe Frantz, Ryan Gee, Brandon DiCamillo
Produced byBam Margera, Joe Frantz, Cat in Color
Written byBam Margera, Brandon DiCamillo
StarringBam Margera
Brandon DiCamillo
Ryan Dunn
Chris Raab
Rake Yohn
Brandon Novak
Narrated byBrandon DiCamillo
Music byCKY
CinematographyJoe Frantz
Edited byBam Margera, Joe Frantz, Cat in Color
Production
company
Bam Margera Productions
Distributed byLandspeed, Ventura Distribution, SLAM! Films, Revolver Entertainment
Release date
1999–2002
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Four videos were released, Landspeed presents: CKY (later called CKY), CKY2K, CKY3, and CKY4: The Latest & Greatest. There is also a CKY documentary DVD, which is a supplemental item in the hard-to-find CKY Box Set, as well as two CKY Trilogy sets, both of which are compilation DVDs featuring scenes from the previous CKY DVDs. The videos were named after Bam Margera's brother Jess and his band CKY.

The videos feature Bam Margera, Brandon DiCamillo, their friends, and Margera's relatives performing various stunts and pranks, interspersed with skate footage of Bam and other professional skateboarders.[2] A trademark of the skating footage was to show unsuccessful trick attempts immediately followed by the same skater pulling the trick off. CKY started when Margera and his friends were in the same graphics arts class at school in West Chester, Pennsylvania. During class, they would go out to a field and film skits, eventually being compiled into the CKY series. In a 2002 interview, Margera said that more than 400,000 copies of the CKY series have been sold.[3]

In 2018, director and producer Joe Frantz confirmed that he had begun remastering all four videos, along with Haggard: The Movie, for HD release in the near future. He had originally discussed his intention of remastering the videos as early as 2011, but struggled with financing the project.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]

The CKY Crew
See also: CKY Crew

In addition to Margera and DiCamillo, the core members of the CKY Crew included Bam's brother Jess Margera, Ryan Dunn, Chris Raab (Raab Himself) and Rake Yohn. Jess's involvement with the video side of CKY became increasingly limited as CKY the band became popular, and touring and recording commitments took up most of his time.

The first video stars the crew as well as The Gill (Ryan Gee), Mike Maldonado, Chris Aspite aka Hoofbite, and Kerry Getz. Bam's father, Phil Margera, was also featured (uncredited) in the first video. Bam's ex-girlfriend Jenn Rivell and David Decurtis aka Naked Dave starred in the second video, which also features Bam's mother April Margera (uncredited). Chris Raab was called Raab Himself in the third video, which also featured CKY band members Deron Miller and Chad Ginsburg as well as Tony Hawk and Brandon Novak. Bam's uncle Vincent Margera aka "Don Vito" starred in the fourth video. Jenn Rivell's daughter is also seen in some clips.

The CKY videos brought Bam and his friends to the attention of Jeff Tremaine who drafted them into the cast of Jackass which aired for three seasons on MTV. Most Jackass skits featuring the CKY Crew were lifted from previously released CKY material or were recorded by the crew in West Chester, while the Los Angeles-based faction of the Jackass team featuring Johnny Knoxville, Wee Man, Chris Pontius and others recorded in California. A subsequent MTV spin-off entitled Viva La Bam followed Bam Margera and his crew as they tortured Bam's family and generally wreaked havoc in West Chester and around the world.

CKY
CKY
Original 1999 VHS release
Directed byBam Margera
Produced byJoe Frantz, Bam Margera, Cat in Color
Written byBam Margera, Brandon DiCamillo
StarringThe CKY crew
Music byCKY
CinematographyBam Margera, Ryan Gee
Distributed byTum Yeto (1999); Ventura Distribution (somewhere later in 1999)
Release date
  • 1999 (1999)
Running time
approx. 45 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Landspeed presents: CKY, the first film in the CKY series, was released on March 1, 1999. The name Landspeed comes from Landspeed Wheels, which was a subsidiary of Tum Yeto Inc. that made skateboard wheels and clothing from 1998 to 2000. The name CKY comes from Jess Margera's band. The video shows a mixed up variety of random, homemade, crazy humor, and mostly focuses on stunts, pranks, and crazy behavior, as well as skateboarding. The music features original songs by the band CKY, including "96 Quite Bitter Beings". Landspeed originally produced the video, allowing Bam to distribute it in the public domain.

Differences between the VHS and DVD versions
  • The copyright was taken off because it has Tum Yeto references.
  • In the opening credits, the Landspeed title was taken off.
  • A scene was also removed. It featured Brandon DiCamillo running around a Christmas parade as Santa Claus, because the real Santa was late. No one at the parade except for Bam and his crew knew that Brandon wasn't involved with the parade.
  • In the Round 1 version of CKY there are clips removed, not only the Santa clip, but things such as bits and pieces and extended skits, and to make up for that it has more extra footage at the end than before.
  • Some skits in the DVD version are edited or cut short. Such as, Bam sings two Bon Jovi songs in the street to strangers in the VHS version (they cut one of them in the DVD version).

CKY Documentary

CKY Documentary is a compilation of footage from the first CKY video, it is in a double pack on the CKY Trilogy Round One DVD and CKY the box set (quadruple pack) DVD and show profiles of each member of the CKY Crew, including some older skits from when Bam was in high school and the story of how CKY was created. It is entirely in black and white.

CKY2K
CKY2K
Directed byBam Margera
Produced byJoe Frantz, Cat in Color
Written byBam Margera and Brandon DiCamillo
StarringThe CKY crew
Music byCKY
CinematographyRyan Gee, Joe Frantz
Distributed byVentura Distribution
Release date
  • 2000 (2000)
Running time
approx. 44 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

CKY2K, the second film in the CKY series, was released on May 22, 2000. The video features a trip to Iceland, the rental car, a baseball game, "Bran's Freestyle", and other random items. The music features early versions of Flesh into Gear and Sporadic Movement by CKY; as well as many other artists, including an opening scene with Rammstein, Iceland scenes with Björk and Orbital, and a skateboarding scene with Aphex Twin.

Near the end of the video, there is a scene in which a minor exposes his genitalia in front of a public restaurant. The video explained that "this is what happens when you tell Bam you'll do anything to be in CKY." In 2003, the parents of the minor sued.[11] During the hearing, a County Court Judge ruled that images of the plaintiff "must be deleted from future versions" of the video.[12] Subsequently, CKY2K was discontinued due (in part) to copyright issues. The first major issue was from Björk.

Iceland

The video was notable for the documentary of their trip to Iceland. The music features "Hyperballad" by Björk where Bam and the crew hang out on the top of a mountain with gorgeous views from the top.

As they stayed in a hotel somewhere in Iceland (the hotel at the airport), Brandon DiCamillo smeared feces on Ryan Dunn while he was sleeping on the bed. Smeared with feces, Ryan fought back by urinating on Brandon sleeping on the floor. Later, they argued in the car about the incident.

The crew does a variety of stunts, including guys riding on furniture on the road as a sled, featuring music by Orbital playing "Halcyon + On + On". Later, Bam was outside Björk's house calling her.

The rental car

Bam drives a Chevrolet Cavalier after paying $9 for extra insurance. With the car, Bam attempts crazy reckless driving maneuvers, knocking over orange cones and skidding turns. The next day, Rake Yohn finished off the already damaged car by setting fire to the radio, which completely burned the entire car. The music features an early version of "Sporadic movement" by CKY.

Differences between the VHS and DVD versions
  • The warnings were taken off from the beginning of the VHS version, and used in the beginning of the DVD menu, which then shows Bam playing with HIM.
  • A small note at the end of "Bran's Freestyle" by CKY, and featured some clips after the credits, showing Bam Margera filming for seven teen sips, which includes a short preview of his film at the very end of the video. In the DVD version, the end credits were cut short and instead played "One Last Time" by HIM and featured alternate footage, including more furniture sledding and Bam commanding his father Phil to do push-ups.

CKY3
CKY3
Directed byBam Margera
Brandon DiCamillo
Produced byJoe Frantz, Bam Margera, Cat in Color
Written byBrandon DiCamillo and Bam Margera
StarringThe CKY crew
Music byCKY
CinematographyJoe Frantz, Ryan Gee
Distributed byVentura Distribution
Release date
  • 2001 (2001)
Running time
approx. 45 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

CKY3, the third film in the CKY series, was released in 2001.[13] Soon after its release Margera and DiCamillo were sued over the fight scene involving Mike Vallely.[14] The issue was settled out of court in 2006.[15] It was also the first of the videos to be taken off the market due to copyright restrictions. Some of the musicians (or their legal representation) were unhappy with Margera using their music without their permission. This would later happen with CKY2K and the box set including all three videos and the documentary.

CKY4: The Latest & Greatest
CKY4: The Latest & Greatest
Directed byBam Margera
Produced byJoe Frantz, Bam Margera, Cat in Color
Written byBam Margera
StarringThe CKY crew
Music byCKY
CinematographyJoe Frantz, Ryan Gee
Distributed bySlam Films/Ventura Distribution
Release date
  • 2002 (2002)
Running time
approx. 100 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

CKY 4, the fourth and final film in the series, was released on November 10, 2002. It has a marked improvement in editing techniques compared to the other films, mostly due to Bam Margera's newly acquired wealth and ability to purchase motion picture film cameras and use advanced post-production facilities. However, it also features a lot of older video material, some unseen, some extended and some off-cuts from previous CKY films. Scenes include Don Vito's "50 Shots of Peach Schnapps" (bonus feature) and Ryan Dunn rolling off a roof in a barrel.

CKY4 is the only CKY video to be censored, and one of the few DVDs to have been censored three times.

  • A DVD Easter egg showed Bam Margera and his then-girlfriend mid-coitus with altered color mixes to avoid nudity. This wasn't the first time CKY videos had attracted trouble of this sort, but none of the previous videos cut legal sexually themed scenes until this one, in mid-2003.
  • In 2002, Brandon DiCamillo and CKY drummer Jess Margera wrote a rap about Masters of the Universe characters Skeletor and Beast Man engaging in extreme homosexual behavior, called Skeletor vs Beastman. Mattel, owners of the Masters of the Universe franchise, heard about the rap, and were displeased. Margera was sent a cease-and-desist order, and subsequent editions of the DVD have replaced this video with skateboarding footage.
  • CKY guitarist Chad Ginsburg, a large fan of punk rocker G.G. Allin, visited his grave one day and after consuming an entire bottle of Jim Beam bourbon (Allin's favorite beverage), he proceeded to urinate on the grave and left an autographed copy of Infiltrate.Destroy.Rebuild., which was later stolen. Mixed in between the grave footage is CKY performing Allin's song "Bite It, You Scum".
  • At the end of the "lil key key" Chris Raab's skit, there was an Easter egg that was also cut in 2003 for unknown reasons.

CKY: The Greatest Hits

On November 2, 2014 MTV premiered a special in dedication of the CKY Videos, featuring new interviews of the crew, as well as unreleased footage documenting the series as a whole. The special was directed by longtime CKY Crew member and cinematographer Joe Frantz.[16]

CKY high definition re-releases

The CKY high definition re-releases are an upcoming project that CKY Crew member and director-producer Joe Frantz announced on a 2011 episode of Radio Bam. He stated the same will be done with Haggard: The Movie as well. On January 19, 2014, Frantz gave an update on the project via his Facebook page, stating:

I'm in the process of raising funds and a cutting distribution deal to bring HAGGARD 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY EDITION to hi definition. THIS IS NO PLUG, believe me…It's very difficult to get the funds I need to do this correctly, and I've been working at it in all my spare time for a year... It will take some time, and a lot of work and passion on my part. I love this film with all my heart and will eventually get it out, with all the lost scenes in tact [sic], plus a lot more of the "behind the scenes" stuff you all loved. Thanks all for the support, it means everything to me!

[17]

On December 2, 2018, Frantz gave an official update on the project, stating that production is now underway.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]

gollark: You can easily generate hypothetical scenarios containing massive hardships and low happiness, or probably the opposite.
gollark: There is absolutely no guarantee of symmetry in it.
gollark: Yes, you MAY end up tricking yourself into generating some happiness from the terminal cancer, but *mostly* you'll die, and/or feel very bad about the terminal cancer.
gollark: Not currently, and not for a while.
gollark: I don't want to however.

References
  1. Higgins, Matt (July 17, 2005). "BackTalk: QUESTIONS FOR BAM MARGERA; On the Air, And in the Air". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  2. "Bam Margera, 21, making the leap to fame". Tribune News Service. Jul 19, 2001. Archived from the original on January 3, 2013. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  3. "Bam Margera interview from 2002 at the Jackass: The movie premiere".
  4. "Joe Frantz". www.facebook.com.
  5. "Joe Frantz on Instagram: "#CKY HD UPDATE #1 Keep your eyes open for future updates! ❤️"". Instagram.
  6. "Joe Frantz on Instagram: "#CKY HD UPDATE #2 history lesson & dilemma Stay tuned for updates! ❤️"". Instagram.
  7. "Joe Frantz on Instagram: "#CKY HD UPDATE #3 Why I was severely frightened! Stay tuned for more updates! 😘"". Instagram.
  8. "Joe Frantz on Instagram: "#CKY HD UPDATE #4 Work flow notes"". Instagram.
  9. "Joe Frantz on Instagram: "#CKY HD UPDATE #5 How good can it possibly look?"". Instagram.
  10. "Joe Frantz on Instagram: "#CKY HD UPDATE #6 Why I'm going nuts!"". Instagram.
  11. "Parents sue MTV after son appears nude in stunt video". Philadelphia Inquirer. Jan 16, 2003. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  12. "Judge: Remove teen from video - A West Chester couple have sued over". Philadelphia Inquirer. Jan 28, 2003. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  13. Tim, Glomb (Aug 22, 2001). "Bam Premiers CKY3". EXPN. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  14. "Sayers vs Bam Margera". Federal District Court. Oct 28, 2005. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  15. Hucks, Karen (Sep 29, 2006). "Viva la resolution: Bam settles fight lawsuit". News Tribune. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  16. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-11-01. Retrieved 2014-10-29.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. https://www.facebook.com/JoeFrantzFilms?fref=ts
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