William Earnest "Spider" Matlock (June 30, 1901,

St. Joseph, Missouri St. Joseph is a city in and county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri, Buchanan County, Missouri, United States. A small portion of the city extends north into Andrew County, Missouri, Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the princ ...

– January 27, 1936) was an American stuntman, stunt pilot, car racing promoter, driver and mechanic.

Stunt flying

One day, an airshow was scheduled at the Burdette Air Port and School of Aviation in Los Angeles. When the performers did not show up, Ronald MacDougall, a part-owner of the airport, persuaded Matlock (a student at the aviation school) and Ken Nichols to help him. After five minutes of instruction (according to Nichols), the pair performed as

wing walkers A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...

, with MacDougall flying the airplane. 13 Black Cats

The burgeoning field of

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

reached Hollywood, and stunt pilots were needed. In 1924, MacDougall, Nichols and Matlock, formed a group called the Black Cats, later renamed the

13 Black Cats The 13 Black Cats, also known as the 13 Flying Black Cats or simply the Black Cats, was a 1920s group of Los Angeles–based performers who would do stunts, primarily using airplanes and also including motorcycles and automobiles, for a set price. ...

, to set standards and rates for aerial stunts for movies. Each of the Black Cats was supposed to have a name that was 13 letters long, which is how Matlock acquired the nickname "Spider", MacDougall got "Bon" and Nichols "Fronty". Among other things, they charged $1500 to blow up an airplane in mid-air. Matlock was once asked to do just that at by a newsreel company. Something went wrong; explosives had been rigged on the wings with a switch with a 30-second delay, but went off prematurely before Matlock could parachute to safety. Fortunately, he survived. As the 1920s came to a close, the 13 Black Cats succumbed to increased safety regulations and cut-rate competition.

Auto racing

Matlock also participated in auto racing, becoming "a promoter, driver and starter in California 'outlaw' racing circles". He was the

riding mechanic A riding mechanic was a mechanic that rode along with a race car during races, and who was tasked with maintaining, monitoring, and repairing the car during the race. The various duties included manually pumping oil and fuel, checking tire wear, ...

for winning

1930 Indianapolis 500 The 18th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, May 30, 1930. The race was part of the 1930 AAA Championship Car season. Pole position winner Billy Arnold took the lead on lap 3, and led ...

driver Billy Arnold. They also teamed together for the 1931 and 1932 races, but crashed both times while leading, in the 162nd and 59th laps, respectively. The first time, Matlock was flung , but landed on some grass and only suffered a collarbone broken in three places. The second time, he was badly injured, with a skull fracture and many broken bones (a collarbone, six ribs, a shoulder, pelvis and hip), but was back racing in six weeks, only to break his nose and a thumb in yet another racing crash. He also teamed with

Ernie Triplett Ernest Leo Triplett (September 25, 1906 – March 5, 1934) was an American racing driver. He was the American Automobile Association Pacific Southwest champion in 1931 and 1932. Triplett died from injuries sustained in a crash during a AAA Pacifi ...

in the 1933 Indianapolis 500. He was scheduled to compete as a driver in the 1936 race for Ford, but his luck finally ran out. He and driver

Al Gordon Alan Gordon (born June 22, 1953) is an American comic book creator primarily known as an inker and writer. He is best known for his 1990s work on DC Comics' '' Legion of Super Heroes'' and the ''Justice League of America'', Marvel Comics' ''Fant ...

crashed at

Ascot Speedway Ascot Park, first named Los Angeles Speedway and later New Ascot Stadium, was a dirt racetrack located near Gardena, California. Ascot Park was open between 1957 and 1990. The track held numerous United States Auto Club (USAC) national tour ra ...

in Los Angeles on January 26, 1936; Gordon died that day, while Matlock succumbed the following day. He appeared as himself (uncredited) in the 1932 auto racing film '' The Crowd Roars'', starring

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor and dancer. On stage and in film, he was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He won acclaim and maj ...

References

External links

Photograph
of (left to right) Matlock and fellow Black Cats Al Johnson and "Fronty" Nichols

wing walking A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...

on the top wing of a biplane piloted by Black Cat "Bon" MacDougall
June 1935 ''Popular Mechanics'' article "Riding Race Cars for a Living"
written by Matlock
YouTube video of his 1932 Indy 500 crash

Photograph of Matlock and Billy Arnold in the #5 car at the 1932 Indy 500

Photographs of Matlock
in the UCLA Library Digital Collection {{DEFAULTSORT:Matlock, Spider 1901 births 1936 deaths American stunt performers People from St. Joseph, Missouri Racing drivers from Missouri Riding mechanics Sports deaths in California Stunt pilots Wing walkers