Bill Shirk (born May 3, 1945 in Indianapolis, Indiana) is an American escape artist, radio personality, broadcast entrepreneur and actor.
Shirk has owned and started radio stations in Muncie, Indianapolis, Cloverdale and Lebanon, Indiana.
[2][3][4] While playing a major role in Indianapolis radio during the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s and early 2000s, Shirk was also making his mark in the escape artist industry.
In 1977, Shirk was buried alive for 79 hours with a ten-foot python, two tarantulas and a rattlesnake, which received worldwide coverage and a donation from President Jimmy Carter.
The film revolved around his fictionalized efforts to save his radio station from a greedy corporation and featured several of his highly publicized stunts, including a straitjacket escape while hanging upside down from a helicopter 1600 feet in the air.