Carl Boenish

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Carl Boenish (b. April 3 1941 d. July 7 1984) considered the father of modern BASE jumping, was a freefall cinematographer, who in 1978 filmed the first jumps from El Capitan using ram-air parachutes and freefall tracking technique. This approach defined modern BASE jumping. These jumps were repeated, not as a publicity exercise or as a movie stunt, but as a true, recurring recreational activity. These were the jumps that popularised BASE jumping more widely among parachutists, likely because Carl filmed them and presented the footage exceptionally well. Carl also published BASE Magazine to promote safety in this new sport.

[edit] Cinematography

Carl's cinematography work included the 1969 John Frankenheimer parachuting film classic The Gypsy Moths, starring Burt Lancaster and Gene Hackman, and a National Geographic Explorer segment on jumps from El Capitan.

Carl died in a BASE jump off the Troll Wall in Norway.