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Jamie Hyneman

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Jamie Hyneman
Hyneman in 2016
Born
James Franklin Hyneman

(1956-09-25) September 25, 1956 (age 68)
Marshall, Michigan, U.S.
Alma materIndiana University
Occupation(s)CEO, M5 Industries
Years active1985–present
Spouse
Eileen Walsh
​
(m. 1989)​
Websitem5industries.com

James Franklin Hyneman (born September 25, 1956)[1] is an American special effects expert who was co-host of the television series MythBusters alongside Adam Savage, where he became known for his distinctive beret and walrus moustache. He is also the owner of M5 Industries, the special effects workshop where MythBusters was filmed.

He was an early competitor in Robot Wars, but his robot Blendo was deemed too dangerous for competition.[2] He is the inventor of the Sentry,[3] an unmanned firefighting robotic vehicle. He is also one of the designers of the aerial cable robotic camera system Wavecam used in sports and entertainment events.[4]

Early life

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Hyneman was born in Marshall, Michigan, and grew up on a farm in Columbus, Indiana. He said, "I was a problematic kid, to be sure. I left home when I was 14 and hitchhiked all over the country." As a child, Hyneman would spend time at Indiana University, where his mother was a graduate librarian.[5][6] At age fifteen, he owned a pet store in a shopping mall in Columbus.[7] Hyneman graduated from Columbus North High School in 1974.[8]

Academic life

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He earned a degree in Russian linguistics from Indiana University Bloomington.[9]

In November 2021, Hyneman was appointed professor of practice at LUT University in Lappeenranta, Finland, for a five-year term until November 2026, and gave his first lecture on prototypes on November 18, 2021.[10][11]

Honorary degrees

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He received an honorary Doctor of Engineering degree from Villanova University on May 16, 2010, and gave a commencement address.[12][13] On November 25, 2011, Hyneman was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Twente for his role in the popularization of science and technology.[14] In February 2017 he was named one of the fourteen new honorary doctors of technology by Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology LUT.[15][11]

Career

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MythBusters Tory Belleci, Kari Byron, Hyneman, Grant Imahara, and Adam Savage in 2012.
Hyneman and a Blue Angels team member at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma prepare for the Sonic Boom Sound-off episode in 2009

Hyneman has worked as a boat captain,[16] certified divemaster,[16] wilderness survival expert, linguist, pet store owner,[7] animal wrangler, machinist, concrete inspector, and chef. He co-hosted MythBusters from 2003 to 2016.[17]

Special effects work

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Hyneman owns the special effects company M5 Industries in San Francisco. Some of his achievements in commercials include the can-spitting vending machine seen in 7 Up commercials, and his patented two-wheeled football shoe from Nike Lab commercials.[18]

Other appearances

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Hyneman and Adam Savage portray two army junk-sellers in the film The Darwin Awards. They appear during the story of the rocket-car, which they partially reproduced in the MythBusters series's pilot episode and retested twice more.[19]

President Barack Obama meets with Hyneman and Adam Savage in the White House Library on July 27, 2010

Hyneman made a cameo appearance along with Savage on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on the May 1, 2008 episode "The Theory of Everything",[20] where they play inspectors giving thumbs-up after seeing a shirt soaked in pepper spray catch fire when shot by a taser. They tested this myth on MythBusters and declared it confirmed with certain types of pepper spray.[21]

He and Savage executive produced and appeared as judges on the game show Unchained Reaction, which premiered in March 2012.[22] The two also voiced characters on The Simpsons episode "The Daughter Also Rises" as a parody of themselves, the "MythCrackers", which prompts Bart and Milhouse to experiment in a similar fashion. Both Hyneman and Savage also voiced stormtroopers in the Phineas and Ferb Star Wars special.[23]

Personal life

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In 1984, Hyneman met science teacher Eileen Walsh when he owned a sailboat diving charter business in the Virgin Islands. Hyneman and Walsh married in 1989.[24][25] Hyneman is an atheist.[26] He has stated that, while he has not been formally diagnosed, he suspects he displays characteristics of autism spectrum disorder.[27]

References

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  1. ^ The Editors of Chase's (2009). Chase's Calendar of Events 2009. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional. p. 472. ISBN 978-0-07-159956-6. Archived from the original on 1 May 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
  2. ^ "The Combat Robot Hall of Fame". runamok.tech. Archived from the original on 1 May 2024. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  3. ^ Dupzyk, Kevin (13 November 2018). "The Tank That's Tougher Than Wildfire: How Jamie Hyneman Turned an Armored Personnel Carrier Into the Future of Firefighting". Popular Mechanics. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024.
  4. ^ "'MythBusters' make surprise appearance at SolidWorks World 2006". SolidWorks. January 23, 2005. Archived from the original on 2018-11-18. Retrieved 2018-11-17.
  5. ^ "'MythBusters' pair experiments at the Morris". Archived from the original on 2022-06-17. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  6. ^ Dwyer, John Stephen (May 5, 2010). "The men behind the MythBusters". Blast Magazine. Archived from the original on 2010-11-04. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
  7. ^ a b "Cannibal Mouse: The MythBusters Episode You'll Never See". YouTube. (Archived at Ghostarchive)
  8. ^ "MAN OF MYTH | the Republic News". 27 April 2016. Archived from the original on 30 November 2023. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  9. ^ Zimmerman, Keith; Zimmerman, Kent (2004). MythBusters: The Explosive Truth Behind 30 of the Most Perplexing Urban Legends of All Time. Simon Spotlight Entertainment. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-4169-0929-3.
  10. ^ "Jamie Hyneman appointed Professor of Practice at LUT University - News - LUT". www.lut.fi. Archived from the original on 2021-11-15. Retrieved 2021-11-15.
  11. ^ a b Salovaara, Outi (November 18, 2021). "Myytinmurtaja-professori Jamie Hyneman paljastaa syyn, miksi pitää Suomesta – saunomaan hän ei kuitenkaan suostu" [MythBusters professor Jamie Hyneman reveals the reason why he likes Finland – however, he refuses to go to the sauna]. Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Archived from the original on November 23, 2021. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  12. ^ "MythBusters Co-Host Jamie Hyneman To Deliver Villanova University's 2010 Commencement Address". Villanova University. 22 April 2010. Archived from the original on 23 February 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  13. ^ "Meet Jamie and Adam". Discovery Channel. Archived from the original on 1 May 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  14. ^ van der Veen, Wiebe (29 June 2011). "UT awards honorary doctorates to MythBusters, two leading scientists and a business pioneer". University of Twente. Archived from the original on 17 January 2012. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
  15. ^ "LUT's new honorary doctors include academic scholars, business leaders and Mythbuster Jamie Hyneman - News - LUT". www.lut.fi. Archived from the original on 2017-02-14. Retrieved 2017-02-13.
  16. ^ a b "Skepticality: The MythBusters". www.skepticality.com. Skeptic Magazine. 12 December 2006. Archived from the original on 13 July 2015. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  17. ^ Wiltz, Chris (30 January 2017). "After the Myths: An Interview with MythBusters' Jamie Hyneman". DesignNews. UBM Americas. Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  18. ^ US patent 6458008, Jamie Hyneman, "Remote Control Device with Gyroscopic Stabilization and Directional Control", issued 2002-10-01 
  19. ^ "The Darwin Awards (2006)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on 2010-03-02. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
  20. ^ "CSI: The Theory of Everything Cast List". tv.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2010-10-07.[permanent dead link‍]
  21. ^ "Fireball Stun Gun". MythBusters. Season 2010. Episode 146. 2 June 2010. Discovery Channel.
  22. ^ Hibberd, James (January 20, 2012). "'MythBusters' hosts launching new show". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 2012-01-22. Retrieved 2012-01-20.
  23. ^ ""Phineas and Ferb" Phineas and Ferb Star Wars (TV Episode 2014)". Archived from the original on 2015-11-10. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  24. ^ "MythBusters Behind The Scenes Interview". Discovery UK. Archived from the original on 2009-03-21.
  25. ^ "Adam Savage Interview - Part 1". The Sneeze. August 23, 2005. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
  26. ^ "KPCS: Adam Savage #99". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2022-03-10. Retrieved 2014-11-25.
  27. ^ Salovaara, Outi (2021-11-18). "Myytinmurtaja-professori Jamie Hyneman paljastaa syyn, miksi pitää Suomesta – saunomaan hän ei kuitenkaan suostu" [Myth-busting professor Jamie Hyneman reveals the reason why he likes Finland - however, he does not agree to a sauna]. Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 2024-11-18.
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