Fountain Hills resident Phillip Roberts has released his debut historical fiction novel, “The Luckiest Fool on Earth,” which explores the extraordinary life of Alvin “Shipwreck” Kelly, a 1920s daredevil who rose to fame by doing one thing better than anyone else: sitting on top of flagpoles.
Flagpole sitting, Roberts explained, was “an act of endurance” during an era hungry for spectacle. With radio still in its infancy and television decades away, Americans craved sensational stunts.
Daredevils competed to break records, attract crowds and earn a living through publicity. At one point, Kelly became the most famous of them all.
