Hollywood stuntman and actor Ronald Rondell Jr., best known for being set on fire for the iconic cover photo of Pink Floyd’s album Wish You Were Here, has died at the age of 88 in Missouri, reports Baltimore Chronicle citing BBC. He passed away on August 12 in a nursing home. Rondell is survived by his wife and one son, while another son, Reid, who was also a stuntman, tragically died in 1985 during a helicopter stunt for the TV series Airwolf.
Born in California in 1937, Rondell started his career as a teenager in the early 1950s. Over time, he became known for his stunt performances, one of the most notable being in the 1963 adventure film Kings of the Sun, where he jumped from a burning, falling pole.
Later, Rondell worked as a stunt coordinator, including on the film Batman & Robin. However, his most famous appearance came in 1975 when he posed for the Pink Floyd album cover Wish You Were Here, shaking hands with another stuntman while engulfed in flames.
Photographer Aubrey Powell, who shot the image, recalled in 2020 that Rondell was hesitant at first, considering the act riskier than many movie stunts. Although his costume and wig were treated with fireproof material and his skin was covered with protective gel, during the 15th attempt a gust of wind blew flames onto his face, burning off an eyebrow and part of his mustache.
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