J.N. Roberts obit

JN Roberts Passes

 He was not on the list.

Legendary desert racer JN Roberts, known as the “King of the Desert,” who spent much of his career as a Hollywood stunt person, passed away at his home in Helena, Montana, on August 18. He was 84.

James Nelson Roberts became a desert racing icon in the 1960s and ’70s, cutting his racing teeth in AMA District 37. At one time, Roberts won 27 consecutive races, and he’s won just about all the “biggies” at the time, like Barstow-to-Vegas (four times), the Mint 400, the Baja 500 and the Baja 1000, including the Mexican 1000 in 1967 with teammate Malcolm Smith. He also represented the U.S. at the ISDT in 1971 and ’72.

Roberts also appeared in the iconic motorcycling documentary, On Any Sunday.

Roberts got into the Hollywood stunt business when, according to Stunts Unlimited, the organization of which he was a member, “fellow motorcyclist, future film director, and Stunts Unlimited co-founder Hal Needham introduced JN to the exclusive Viewfinders motorcycle club, a group of stuntmen and Hollywood actors who shared a passion for desert racing. Among its members were Ronnie Rondell and Glenn Wilder, also co-founders of Stunts Unlimited, and legendary actor Steve McQueen.

“After Needham established himself as a successful director, he helped JN launch his career as a stuntman. JN quickly proved himself on both two and four wheels, performing memorable motorcycle and car stunts for film and television and doubling for stars including Charles Bronson and Paul Newman.”

Roberts was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2009. He was also a member of the Hollywood Stuntmen’s Hall of Fame.CN.

Stunts

John Cleese, Brendan Fraser, Scooper, Binx, Tookie, Zakery, Emely, and Hopper in George of the Jungle (1997)

George of the Jungle

5.6

stunts

1997

 

Dante's Peak (1997)

Dante's Peak

6.1

stunts

1997

 

Kurt Russell in Escape from L.A. (1996)

Escape from L.A.

5.7

stunts (uncredited)

1996

 

Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)

Mr. Holland's Opus

7.4

stunts

1995

 

Keanu Reeves in Speed (1994)

Speed

7.3

stunts

1994

 

Mickey Rourke and Lori Singer in F.T.W. (1994)

F.T.W.

5.3

stunts

1994

 

White Sands (1992)

White Sands

6.0

stunts

1992

 

Billy Campbell in The Rocketeer (1991)

The Rocketeer

6.6

stunt performer

1991

 

Randy Quaid in Cold Dog Soup (1990)

Cold Dog Soup

5.6

stunts

1990

 

Tom Cruise in Days of Thunder (1990)

Days of Thunder

6.1

stunts

1990

 

Tango & Cash (1989)

Tango & Cash

6.4

stunts

1989

 

Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach (1988)

Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach

4.7

stunts

1988

 

Robert Downey Jr., Jami Gertz, and Andrew McCarthy in Less Than Zero (1987)

Less Than Zero

6.4

stunts

1987

 

Rolling Vengeance (1987)

Rolling Vengeance

5.6

stunt player

1987

 

Sean Connery, Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro, Andy Garcia, and Charles Martin Smith in The Untouchables (1987)

The Untouchables

7.8

stunts

1987

 

Sylvester Stallone, David Mendenhall, and Rick Zumwalt in Over the Top (1987)

Over the Top

5.9

stunts

1987

 

Morgan Stewart's Coming Home (1987)

Morgan Stewart's Coming Home

5.6

stunt player

1987

 

Miracles (1986)

Miracles

5.3

stunts

1986

 

Black Moon Rising (1986)

Black Moon Rising

5.5

stunt player

1986

 

Chuck Norris in Invasion U.S.A. (1985)

Invasion U.S.A.

5.5

stunts

1985

 

Chevy Chase in Fletch (1985)

Fletch

6.9

stunts

1985

 

A Summer to Remember (1985)

A Summer to Remember

7.0

TV Movie

stunt coordinator

1985

 

Al Pacino in Scarface (1983)

Scarface

8.3

stunts

1983

 

Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, and Christie Brinkley in National Lampoon's Vacation (1983)

National Lampoon's Vacation

7.3

stunts

1983

 

Dan Aykroyd, Fran Drescher, Donna Dixon, Lynn Whitfield, and Lydia Lei in Doctor Detroit (1983)

Doctor Detroit

5.3

stunts

1983

 

Barry Bostwick and Persis Khambatta in Megaforce (1982)

Megaforce

3.7

stunts

1982

 

Timothy Hutton in Taps (1981)

Taps

6.8

stunts

1981

 

Honky Tonk Freeway (1981)

Honky Tonk Freeway

5.2

stunts

1981

 

Border Pals

TV Movie

stunts

1981

 

Foolin' Around (1980)

Foolin' Around

6.0

stunts

1980

 

John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, and The Blues Brothers in The Blues Brothers (1980)

The Blues Brothers

7.9

stunts

1980

 

Burt Reynolds in Hooper (1978)

Hooper

6.4

stunt performer (as J. N. Roberts)

1978

 

Zero to Sixty (1978)

Zero to Sixty

5.1

stunts

1978

 

Sally Field, Burt Reynolds, and Jackie Gleason in Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

Smokey and the Bandit

7.0

stunts (uncredited)

1977

 

Bound for Glory (1976)

Bound for Glory

7.2

stunts

1976

 

A Small Town in Texas (1976)

A Small Town in Texas

5.6

stunts

1976

 

Peter Fonda and Warren Oates in Race with the Devil (1975)

Race with the Devil

6.6

stunts (uncredited)

1975

 

Jim Brown, Fred Williamson, and Jim Kelly in Three the Hard Way (1974)

Three the Hard Way

6.2

stunts (uncredited)

1974

 

The Stone Killer (1973)

The Stone Killer

6.1

stunts (uncredited)

1973

 

Robert Blake, Billy Green Bush, Royal Dano, and Mitchell Ryan in Electra Glide in Blue (1973)

Electra Glide in Blue

7.0

stunt rider

1973

 

Charles Bronson in The Mechanic (1972)

The Mechanic

6.8

stunts (uncredited)

1972

 

Sometimes a Great Notion (1971)

Sometimes a Great Notion

6.9

stunts (uncredited)

1971

 

Dustin Hoffman in Little Big Man (1970)

Little Big Man

7.5

stunts (uncredited)

1970

 

Angel Unchained (1970)

Angel Unchained

5.1

stunts

1970

 

John Wayne, Rock Hudson, Jan-Michael Vincent, Antonio Aguilar, Bruce Cabot, Roman Gabriel, Big John Hamilton, Ben Johnson, Lee Meriwether, Melissa Newman, and Merlin Olsen in The Undefeated (1969)

The Undefeated

6.6

stunts (uncredited)

1969

 

Actor

Christian Slater and John Travolta in Broken Arrow (1996)

Broken Arrow

6.1

Moss

1996

 

Demi Moore in The Seventh Sign (1988)

The Seventh Sign

5.8

Jimmy's Guard

1988

 

Erik Estrada and Larry Wilcox in CHiPs (1977)

CHiPs

6.5

TV Series

Biker

1981

1 episode

 

Catherine Bach, Ben Jones, Denver Pyle, John Schneider, and Tom Wopat in The Dukes of Hazzard (1979)

The Dukes of Hazzard

7.1

TV Series

Powers

1979

1 episode

 

Zero to Sixty (1978)

Zero to Sixty

5.1

1978

 

Robert Blake, Billy Green Bush, Royal Dano, and Mitchell Ryan in Electra Glide in Blue (1973)

Electra Glide in Blue

7.0

Belly Flop (uncredited)

1973

 

Charles Bronson in The Mechanic (1972)

The Mechanic

6.8

Gang Leader (uncredited)

1972

 

Sometimes a Great Notion (1971)

Sometimes a Great Notion

6.9

1971

 

A Time for Dying (1969)

A Time for Dying

5.7

Bob Ford

1969

 

Self

2019 BFGoodrich Tires Mint 400 powered by Monster Energy

TV Special

Self - Grand Marshal

2019

 

On Any Sunday: The Next Chapter (2014)

On Any Sunday: The Next Chapter

7.1

Self

2014

 

MotoGeezers

Video

Self

2009

 

Full Circle: Malcolm Smith and J.N. Roberts - The Legend Lives On

Self - Lead character

2007

 

Dust to Glory (2005)

Dust to Glory

7.3

Self

2005

 

Motorcycle Experience (1976)

Motorcycle Experience

8.2

Self

1976

 

On the Line (1971)

On the Line

8.0

Self

1971

 

Steve McQueen in On Any Sunday (1971)

On Any Sunday

7.7

Self - Desert Racer (uncredited)

1971