We talk sports and cinema in Episode 18 of “In The Front Row with Mike Vaccaro”. Our guest is former college and professional baseball player turned Hollywood stuntman Daniel Hargrave. Growing up in Hurdle Mills, N.C., Hargrave played various sports, but fell in love with baseball thanks to his father and grandfather, who paid him for hitting homeruns. His play was eventually noticed by college scouts and was offered a scholarship to play at UNCW in Wilmington, N.C. where he excelled on the diamond. He and the Seahawks won a conference title and made two NCAA Regional appearances. Hargrave shares his thoughts on one memorable comeback victory. After a short stint in pro ball, Hargrave got his first taste of stunt work thanks to his brother, and longtime stuntman, Sam. Sam Hargrave invited Daniel to be part of the production of the movie “Warrior”. But not ready to move to Hollywood just yet, Hargrave returned to UNCW as an assistant coach and also worked for his future wife’s family business. In 2013 Hargrave gave stunt work a second try on the set of “Hunger Games” doubling for actor Liam Hemsworth. Finally a full-time stuntman, Hargrave has worked on a number of TV and movie productions and eventually replaced his brother as the double for actor Chris Evans portraying Captain American in the Marvel Universe. Hargrave shares stories from the set including the Captain vs. Captain fight scene brought to life by Sam fighting Daniel. Now an accomplished stuntman himself, Daniel tells us about winning the 2018 Taurus World Stunt Award for Best Fight from the movie “Atomic Blonde” and how he keeps his body healthy and strong for his stunts. Hargrave also shares his future goals and lessons learned from former UNCW head coach Mark Scalf. We also get a guest appearance from 4-year-old future baseball player and stuntman Hendrix Hargrave.
