Google paid tribute to Kitty O’Neil on her 77th birthday with a doodle showcasing the famous American stuntwoman and actress in a yellow jumpsuit. Despite her deafness since childhood, she became one of Hollywood’s renowned stunt drivers, and even held the women’s absolute land speed record until 2019.
Despite being afflicted with multiple diseases that caused her to become deaf at a young age, Kitty O’Neil became a highly regarded stuntwoman and actress, and is considered to be one of Hollywood’s most accomplished performers, having worked as a stunt double in numerous films and TV shows. Born in Texas in 1946, O’Neil’s disabilities did not prevent her from achieving great success in the entertainment industry.
In 1976, while driving a hydrogen peroxide-powered three-wheeled rocket car, O’Neil achieved the women’s absolute land speed record with an average speed of 825.127 kmph and a top speed of 999 kmph. This remarkable feat earned her the title of the “fastest woman in the world.” Additionally, she established the women’s high-fall record of 127 feet (39 m) while performing as a stunt double in the 1979 episode of the Wonder Woman TV series, which she surpassed later.
Kitty O’Neil passed away from pneumonia in 2018 at the age of 72. She was posthumously awarded the Oscars in Memoriam award in 2019. Her remarkable achievements were also featured in a biopic about her life called “Silent Victory: The Kitty O’Neil Story,” which was released in 1979 and highlighted her record-breaking land speed accomplishment.
In 1979, a biopic titled “Silent Victory: The Kitty O’Neil Story” was released, and in 2019, she was posthumously awarded the Oscars in Memoriam. O’Neil passed away in 2018 at the age of 72 due to pneumonia.
