Rufus Hannah
Encyclopedia
Rufus Hannah also known as Rufus the Stunt Bum, is an American advocate for homeless rights who became known for his role in the early Bumfights
videos: in 2000, while himself a homeless alcoholic, he was paid $5 to be filmed running headfirst into a stack of milk crates.
Hannah has fathered five children, and is twice-divorced.
.
down a flight of stairs, ramming his head into steel doors so hard that he today suffers from epilepsy
, and beating up Donald "Donnie" Brennan, another homeless man, so badly that Brennan's leg was broken in two places and required surgical intervention. Brennan, an army veteran
, and Hannah (who was injured in basic training), were paid an average of $10 per stunt. Both men were also paid to get "Bumfights" tattoo
s: Hannah's tattoo was across his knuckles and Brennan's was on his forehead.
In 2002, Hannah and Brennan testified in the criminal trials of the producers of Bumfights, on several charges, including the soliciting of felonies; the defendants were acquitted on the majority of charges and sentenced to community service
for conspiring to stage an illegal fight (in 2005, they were sentenced to 6 months in prison for having failed to complete the community service).
Hannah and Brennan also filed a civil suit against the producers; the producers agreed to pay an unspecified amount in damages, and to no longer use Hannah and Brennan's images for promotional purposes.
Hannah has been sober since 2003, and is now a property manager. He spends 40 hours a week painting apartments, constructing fences, and many other things. He hopes to one day to get the 'Bum Fights' tattoo removed from his knuckles. In 2010 he released a book co-written with Barry Soper entitled 'A Bum Deal: An Unlikely Journey from Hopeless to Humanitarian' detailing his ordeal from becoming a homeless alcoholic, his time during the filming of Bumfights and his struggle to get sober.
Bumfights
Bumfights is a film series produced by Indecline Films. The videos feature teenagers, homeless men in the San Diego, San Francisco and Las Vegas metropolitan areas fighting and attempting amateur stunts in exchange for money, alcohol, and other incentives...
videos: in 2000, while himself a homeless alcoholic, he was paid $5 to be filmed running headfirst into a stack of milk crates.
Hannah has fathered five children, and is twice-divorced.
Biography
Hannah was raised in Swainsboro, Georgia. He started drinking at 14, despite having a "good family." He was a construction worker until the age of 27, when he joined the U.S. Army. He was soon discharged after injuring himself during basic training. After his injury, he started drinking heavily, leading to his homelessness and alcoholism. In the early 1990s, he moved to California, where he was approached by Ryan McPherson to produce BumfightsBumfights
Bumfights is a film series produced by Indecline Films. The videos feature teenagers, homeless men in the San Diego, San Francisco and Las Vegas metropolitan areas fighting and attempting amateur stunts in exchange for money, alcohol, and other incentives...
.
Bumfights
He subsequently was filmed performing other "stunts" for the Bumfights videos, including riding a shopping cartShopping cart
A shopping cart is a cart supplied by a shop, especially supermarkets, for use by customers inside the shop for transport of merchandise to the check-out counter during shopping...
down a flight of stairs, ramming his head into steel doors so hard that he today suffers from epilepsy
Epilepsy
Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
, and beating up Donald "Donnie" Brennan, another homeless man, so badly that Brennan's leg was broken in two places and required surgical intervention. Brennan, an army veteran
Veteran
A veteran is a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field; " A veteran of ..."...
, and Hannah (who was injured in basic training), were paid an average of $10 per stunt. Both men were also paid to get "Bumfights" tattoo
Tattoo
A tattoo is made by inserting indelible ink into the dermis layer of the skin to change the pigment. Tattoos on humans are a type of body modification, and tattoos on other animals are most commonly used for identification purposes...
s: Hannah's tattoo was across his knuckles and Brennan's was on his forehead.
In 2002, Hannah and Brennan testified in the criminal trials of the producers of Bumfights, on several charges, including the soliciting of felonies; the defendants were acquitted on the majority of charges and sentenced to community service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
for conspiring to stage an illegal fight (in 2005, they were sentenced to 6 months in prison for having failed to complete the community service).
Hannah and Brennan also filed a civil suit against the producers; the producers agreed to pay an unspecified amount in damages, and to no longer use Hannah and Brennan's images for promotional purposes.
Hannah has been sober since 2003, and is now a property manager. He spends 40 hours a week painting apartments, constructing fences, and many other things. He hopes to one day to get the 'Bum Fights' tattoo removed from his knuckles. In 2010 he released a book co-written with Barry Soper entitled 'A Bum Deal: An Unlikely Journey from Hopeless to Humanitarian' detailing his ordeal from becoming a homeless alcoholic, his time during the filming of Bumfights and his struggle to get sober.
External links
Synopsis of an episode of VH1 News Presents, focusing on Bumfights, featuring Hannah and Brennan- Former 'bum' beats the bottle by Michael Stetz of the San Diego Union-Tribune