My 1st Blog: Bam Margera Recalls Ryan Dunn As 'The Happiest Person'

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Bam Margera Recalls Ryan Dunn As 'The Happiest Person'

'I've never lost anybody that I care about; he's my best friend,' Margera says of late co-star.
By Gil Kaufman

Ryan Dunn and Bam Margera
Photo: Michael Loccisano/ Getty Images

Just a day after his close friend and "Jackass" co-star Ryan Dunn was killed in a fiery car crash, Bam Margera made his way back home to Pennsylvania on Tuesday and gave his first interview about the loss of his longtime cohort.

Bursting into tears as he remembered Dunn, Margera told a local Fox affiliate, "I've never lost anybody that I care about; he's my best friend."

For photos of Dunn throughout his career, click here.

On Tuesday, police said the investigation into the crash that killed Dunn, 34, and friend Zachary Hartwell, 30, revealed that Dunn's Porsche may have been traveling at speeds of up to 130 mph when it jumped a guardrail and crashed into a ravine before bursting into flames. A coroner's report revealed that both men died of blunt force trauma from the impact of the wreck and burns from the resulting fire.

"I was in Arizona with some friends having the best time with friends," Margera said of when he heard the news about Dunn, who co-starred on MTV's "Jackass" series, its three spin-off movies and Margera's "Viva La Bam" and "Bam's Unholy Union."

"He was the happiest person, the smartest guy with so much talent," Bam continued. "He had so many things going for him. ... It is not right. ... It was the worst phone call I ever got in my life."

Asked how he is going to get through the loss of the man he considered to be his brother, a choked-up Margera said, "I can't ... I can't."

Bam's parents, who first broke the news about Dunn's death on Monday and who considered him part of their family, spoke out about the tragedy as well.

"He's gonna be really missed by everybody," April Margera told NBC News on Tuesday, noting that she had often spoken to Dunn about his tendency to drive too fast. "Oh yeah, I've yelled at him for lots of things," she said, adding that Dunn was not a big drinker.

The coroner's office said on Tuesday that toxicology results for both men — which would help determine whether alcohol was involved in the crash — would be released in four to six weeks. In the hours before the crash, Dunn was photographed drinking at Barnaby's of America, a bar in West Chester, Pennsylvania, leading some to speculate that he was drunk before the accident occurred. But an employee of the bar told MTV News that he "didn't seem intoxicated."

"He seemed like he was having a good time, hanging out with friends," the employee said. "[He] only had a couple beers here. As far as we're concerned, the biggest thing, our hearts go out to the family and friends, and his loss is a big loss to our community. The biggest thing we're worried about is his friends and family."

April also speculated that drinking was not a factor in the crash. "He was always responsible [with drinking and driving], so I can't imagine that he would do that," she said. "[I'm] sick because it's a waste, sick because I loved him, sick because he was talented, sick because I can't believe he's gone."

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