CKY (video series)


The CKY video series is a series of videos produced by Bam Margera and Brandon DiCamillo and other residents of West Chester, Pennsylvania. "CKY" stands for "Camp Kill Yourself". The series was the basis for what eventually became Jackass.
Four videos were released, Landspeed presents: CKY, CKY2K, CKY 3, and CKY4: The Latest & Greatest. There is also a CKY documentary DVD, which is a supplemental item in the hard-to-find CKY Box Set, as well as two CKY Trilogy sets, both of which are compilation DVDs featuring scenes from the previous CKY DVDs. The videos were named after Bam Margera's brother Jess Margera and his band CKY.
The videos feature Bam Margera, Brandon DiCamillo, their friends, and Margera's relatives performing various stunts and pranks, interspersed with skate footage of Bam and other professional skateboarders. A trademark of the skating footage was to show unsuccessful trick attempts immediately followed by the same skater pulling the trick off. CKY started when Margera and his friends were in the same graphics arts class at school in West Chester, Pennsylvania. During class, they would go out to a field and film skits, eventually being compiled into the CKY series. In a 2002 interview, Margera said that more than 400,000 copies of the CKY series have been sold.
In 2018, director and producer Joe Frantz confirmed that he had begun remastering all four videos, along with , for HD release in the near future. He had originally discussed his intention of remastering the videos as early as 2011, but struggled with financing the project.

The CKY Crew

In addition to Margera and DiCamillo, the core members of the CKY Crew included Bam's brother Jess Margera, Ryan Dunn, Chris Raab and Rake Yohn. Jess's involvement with the video side of CKY became increasingly limited as CKY the band became popular, and touring and recording commitments took up most of his time.
The first video stars the crew as well as The Gill, Mike Maldonado, Chris Aspite aka Hoofbite, and Kerry Getz. Bam's father, Phil Margera, was also featured in the first video. Bam's ex-girlfriend Jenn Rivell and David Decurtis aka Naked Dave starred in the second video, which also features Bam's mother April Margera. Chris Raab was called Raab Himself in the third video, which also featured CKY band members Deron Miller and Chad Ginsburg as well as Tony Hawk and Brandon Novak. Bam's uncle Vincent Margera aka "Don Vito" starred in the fourth video. Jenn Rivell's daughter is also seen in some clips.
The CKY videos brought Bam and his friends to the attention of Jeff Tremaine who drafted them into the cast of Jackass which aired for three seasons on MTV. Most Jackass skits featuring the CKY Crew were lifted from previously released CKY material or were recorded by the crew in West Chester, while the Los Angeles-based faction of the Jackass team featuring Johnny Knoxville, Wee Man, Chris Pontius and others recorded in California. A subsequent MTV spin-off entitled Viva La Bam followed Bam Margera and his crew as they tortured Bam's family and generally wreaked havoc in West Chester and around the world.

''CKY''

Landspeed presents: CKY, the first film in the CKY series, was released on March 1, 1999. The name Landspeed comes from Landspeed Wheels, which was a subsidiary of Tum Yeto Inc. that made skateboard wheels and clothing from 1998 to 2000. The name CKY comes from Jess Margera's band. The video shows a mixed up variety of random, homemade, crazy humor, and mostly focuses on stunts, pranks, and crazy behavior, as well as skateboarding. The music features original songs by the band CKY, including "96 Quite Bitter Beings". Landspeed originally produced the video, allowing Bam to distribute it in the public domain.

Differences between the VHS and DVD versions

CKY Documentary is a compilation of footage from the first CKY video, it is in a double pack on the CKY Trilogy Round One DVD and CKY the box set DVD and show profiles of each member of the CKY Crew, including some older skits from when Bam was in high school and the story of how CKY was created. It is entirely in black and white.

''CKY2K''

CKY2K, the second film in the CKY series, was released on May 22, 2000. The video features a trip to Iceland, the rental car, a baseball game, "Bran's Freestyle", and other random items. The music features early versions of Flesh into Gear and Sporadic Movement by CKY; as well as many other artists, including an opening scene with Rammstein, Iceland scenes with Björk and Orbital, and a skateboarding scene with Aphex Twin.
Near the end of the video, there is a scene in which a minor exposes his genitalia in front of a public restaurant. The video explained that "this is what happens when you tell Bam you'll do anything to be in CKY." In 2003, the parents of the minor sued. During the hearing, a County Court Judge ruled that images of the plaintiff "must be deleted from future versions" of the video. Subsequently, CKY2K was discontinued due to copyright issues. The first major issue was from Björk.

Iceland

The video was notable for the documentary of their trip to Iceland. The music features "Hyperballad" by Björk where Bam and the crew hang out on the top of a mountain with gorgeous views from the top.
As they stayed in a hotel somewhere in Iceland, Brandon DiCamillo smeared feces on Ryan Dunn while he was sleeping on the bed. Smeared with feces, Ryan fought back by urinating on Brandon sleeping on the floor. Later, they argued in the car about the incident.
The crew does a variety of stunts, including guys riding on furniture on the road as a sled, featuring music by Orbital playing "Halcyon + On + On". Later, Bam was outside Björk's house calling her.

The rental car

Bam drives a Chevrolet Cavalier after paying $9 for extra insurance. With the car, Bam attempts crazy reckless driving maneuvers, knocking over orange cones and skidding turns. The next day, Rake Yohn finished off the already damaged car by setting fire to the radio, which completely burned the entire car. The music features an early version of "Sporadic movement" by CKY.

Differences between the VHS and DVD versions

CKY 3, the third film in the CKY series, was released in 2001. Soon after its release Margera and DiCamillo were sued over the fight scene involving Mike Vallely. The issue was settled out of court in 2006. It was also the first of the videos to be taken off the market due to copyright restrictions. Some of the musicians were unhappy with Margera using their music without their permission. This would later happen with CKY2K and the box set including all three videos and the documentary.

''CKY4: The Latest & Greatest''

CKY 4, the fourth and final film in the series, was released on November 10, 2002. It has a marked improvement in editing techniques compared to the other films, mostly due to Bam Margera's newly acquired wealth and ability to purchase motion picture film cameras and use advanced post-production facilities. However, it also features a lot of older video material, some unseen, some extended and some off-cuts from previous CKY films. Scenes include Don Vito's "50 Shots of Peach Schnapps" and Ryan Dunn rolling off a roof in a barrel.
CKY4 is the only CKY video to be censored, and one of the few DVDs to have been censored three times.
On November 2, 2014 MTV premiered a special in dedication of the CKY Videos, featuring new interviews of the crew, as well as unreleased footage documenting the series as a whole. The special was directed by longtime CKY Crew member and cinematographer Joe Frantz.

CKY high definition re-releases

The CKY high definition re-releases are an upcoming project that CKY Crew member and director-producer Joe Frantz announced on a 2011 episode of Radio Bam. He stated the same will be done with as well. On January 19, 2014, Frantz gave an update on the project via his Facebook page, stating:
On December 2, 2018, Frantz gave an official update on the project, stating that production is now underway.