James Knaub obit

 James “Jim” William Knaub Has Died

He was not on the list.

James “Jim” William Knaub, 1956-2024, finished his race Monday, Nov. 18 in Long Beach, California.

He was born to Leola and George Knaub in Corona, California, on Jan. 5, 1956, minutes after his twin sister, Debra Cathleen. They were raised in Lakewood, California, with their brothers and sisters, Cheryl Knaub (Larry Lea), Fred Knaub (Mitzi), and Stanley Knaub.

Knaub was an Olympic Trials pole vaulter who made it to the semifinals in 1976, In 1978, he was hit by a car while riding his motorcycle, paralyzing him from the waist down. In place of pole vaulting, he embraced wheelchair racing, winning the Boston Marathon five times, the L.A. Marathon three times and holding every wheelchair racing world record from the 5K through marathon distances.

He was also an actor, appearing in shows such as “Airwolf,” “The A-Team,” “The Love Boat,” “M*A*S*H” and “Happy Days.” In later years, he started a fundraising campaign, The PCH Cleanup Project, to encourage people to spend time outdoors and pick up litter.

He was preceded in death by his parents and brother Stanley. He is survived by his sister Deb (Curt Walker), brother Fred (Mitzi) and sister Cheryl Lea.

Actor

Ernest Borgnine, Jan-Michael Vincent, and Alex Cord in Airwolf (1984)

Airwolf

6.7

TV Series

Ben Foran

1986

1 episode

 

William Christopher, Jamie Farr, and Harry Morgan in AfterMASH (1983)

AfterMASH

5.6

TV Series

Holbrook

1984

1 episode

 

Lee Majors and Heather Thomas in The Fall Guy (1981)

The Fall Guy

7.1

TV Series

Travis Tyler

1983

1 episode

 

The Man Who Loved Women (1983)

The Man Who Loved Women

5.3

Carl

1983

 

George Peppard, Mr. T, Dirk Benedict, and Dwight Schultz in The A-Team (1983)

The A-Team

7.5

TV Series

Jamie Collins

1983

1 episode

 

Polly Holliday, Beth Howland, and Linda Lavin in Alice (1976)

Alice

6.8

TV Series

Arnold

1983

1 episode

 

Fred Grandy, Bernie Kopell, Ted Lange, Gavin MacLeod, and Lauren Tewes in The Love Boat (1977)

The Love Boat

6.3

TV Series

Arthur

1982

1 episode

 

Johnny the Dog in Here's Boomer (1980)

Here's Boomer

6.5

TV Series

Magic

1982

1 episode

 

Lorne Greene, Andrew Stevens, Julie Adams, and Sam J. Jones in Code Red (1981)

Code Red

7.1

TV Series

Victor

1981

1 episode

 

Alan Alda, David Ogden Stiers, Gary Burghoff, William Christopher, Jamie Farr, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, and Loretta Swit in M*A*S*H (1972)

M*A*S*H

8.5

TV Series

Pvt. Markham

1981

1 episode

 

Ron Howard, Henry Winkler, Marion Ross, Tom Bosley, Erin Moran, Don Most, and Anson Williams in Happy Days (1974)

Happy Days

7.4

TV Series

Don Konig

1979

1 episode