Happy Failure

"AT TIMES EVEL KNIEVEL COULD SEEM LIKE THE WORLD’S LEAST SUCCESSFUL SUICIDE. ONE JUMP LEFT HIM IN A COMA FOR A MONTH. BUT THE THRILL OF WATCHING HIM WAS MORE THAN JUST THE VOYEURISTIC DELIGHT IN SPLINTERED METAL AND CRACKED BONE; IT WAS MORE THAN JUST WITNESSING A MAN FALL. AN EVEL KNIEVEL JUMP WAS THE TRIUMPH OF THE UNPREPARED AND INSUBSTANTIAL, OF EVERYTHING THAT FLOATS - DREAMS, FANCIES, CAPRICES - AGAINST THE GRAVITATIONAL DRAG, THE ENDLESS QUANTIFIABLE VARIETIES, OF THE REAL, IT WAS A CASE OF HEROIC FAILURE TRUMPING MUNDANE SUCCESS. INDEED THINKING BACK ON IT, IT SOMETIMES SEEMED AS IF KNIEVEL WASN’T AIMING TO LAND AT ALL. MORE THAT HE WAS SEEKING TO REACH THE ZENITH OF HIS JUMP AND STAY THERE, CAUGHT FOREVER IN THE FREEZE-FRAME OF THE CAMERAS, AS THE TITLE MUSIC PLAYED AND THE CREDITS ROLLED. BUT THE CAMERAS KEPT ROLLING AND KNIEVEL KEPT FALLING. AND EVERY TIME HE JUMPED, AND EVERY TIME HE FELL, IT MADE ME SO GODDAMN HAPPY. "