1926: The Wonder Man

April 28, 2024

By AHNZ

Died today in New Zealand history, 28 April, 1926. English-American daredevil and sexagenarian Bobby Leach didn’t make it out of Auckland alive. He had come here to cash in on his fame and publicise his next suicide mission: going over Niagara Falls in a barrel.

He he slipped on an orange peel on Queen Street, Auckland, at the end of February and fell so badly his leg had to be amputated but the procedure did not save his life.

“Meet Bobby Leach “The Wonderman”” – Auckland Star (1926,) Papers Past

“Bobby” Leach, the man who wont over Niagara Falls in a barrel, died to-day. A month or two ago he slipped on an orange peel in the street and broke his leg, which had to bo amputated.” – PA, Evening Post (1926,) Papers Past

“He went over the falls in his steel ‘barrel’ in 1911, the first man to do so and the second person to survive, however he spent 6 months in hospital recovering from multiple injuries. He toured afterwards, recounting his experiences and showing his barrel at vaudeville shows. On a publicity tour of New Zealand in 1926 he slipped on an orange peel (some say banana) and injured his leg, which became infected and gangrenous, necessitating an amputation. He died of complications 2 months later and was buried in Hillsborough Cemetery, Auckland, New Zealand.” – NZH&H (2015)

The relevant thing is that New Zealanders were interested in ‘The Wonder Man’ and his films and stories and would pay money to hear tell of it. It was an era where risk-prone lifestyles were tolerated. It’s your life to throw off a watery cliff if you like Nobody’s going to try to stop you except for an autograph.

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Image ref. New Zealand: History & Natural History, Facebook (2015); Colour by AHNZ (2024)

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