Balloon Boy's Rise and Fall

A clear fall day in Fort Collins, CO, brought an unusual sight: a large silver Mylar balloon shaped like a flying saucer. The balloon allegedly held 6-year-old Falcon Heene. Falcon's father, Richard Heene, said this.saidhe tested the balloon in the backyard. The boy climbed inside and accidentally untethered it.

Emergency workers and sheriff's deputies from three counties worked to rescue Falcon. The National Guard sent two helicopters to try and land the balloon and rescue Falcon. During the balloon'sThe flight lasted ninety minutes.it reached 7,000 feet before landing softly 50 miles away at a reservoir north of Denver International Airport.

The "Balloon Boy" story quickly gained traction.Cable news covered the story.. This story had striking visuals, simple understanding, and a child in danger. Networks focused on Balloon Boy above all other news that day. At 2:42 pm, CNN anchor Kyra Phillips covered the story from a town hall event hosted byPresident Obama was involved.For the next couple of hours, the entire world waited anxiously for what happened to Falcon and the balloon.The entire world watched.People waited breathlessly for what happened to Falcon and the balloon.

The Balloon Boy story became viral on social media. Before the balloon landed, the story already trended, taking seven of ten topics on Twitter.Twitter, and people made Balloon Boy parody accounts.

Rescuers found the downed balloon empty. Early assumptions suggested Falcon had fallen out during the flight. Authorities searched the 50 miles between the Heene home and the landing site.The assumption was Falcon fell out during the flight.Authorities searched the fifty miles between the Heene family home and the landing site, assuming Falcon had fallen out.

Later that afternoon, Falcon came out from the family's garage attic.Falcon was alive.Heene explained Falcon got into trouble playing with the balloon earlier. To avoid punishment, he hid in the attic. While hiding, Heene said Falcon fell asleep, unaware of the noise outside.

Once Falcon was safe, the story quickly fell apart. CNN's Wolf Blitzer interviewed Richard, Mayumi, Falcon, and Falcon's two older brothers, Ryo (then 8) and Bradford (then 10). Blitzer asked Heene a simpleA question arose on CNN.: "Did [Falcon] hear anything (while hiding)? Did he hear you screaming out, 'Falcon! Falcon!'"

Falcon said he heard the calls. When his dad asked why he did not come out, Falcon replied, "You guys... said that we did this for the show."

The "show" Falcon mentioned was a reality show about the Heenes his father pitched to different networks. Later, the entire Balloon Boy stunt aimed to boost family publicity and sell the show.

The only problem with their plan was relying on a 6-year-old to keep his story straight.

Richard Heene wanted wealth via reality TV fame.Heene and Mayumi.They appeared in two 2008 episodes of the ABC series.The show was Wife Swap.In the episodes, Heene acted as an odd, self-described "amateur scientist." He acted erratically. He poured milk on his temporary spouse, Karin, at one point.

Before seeking reality TV stardom, Heene tried several jobs. He pursued stand-up comedy in Los Angeles, meeting Mayumi there. He ran a contracting business focused on home renovations. He also worked as an amateur storm chaser and inventor. As a storm chaser, Heene often launched homemade inventions into storms to break them apart. He also created several inventions not related to storms that he hoped to use.He hoped to take on.He hoped to take on Shark Tank.He hoped to take on Shark Tank.

Legal issues from the Balloon Boy stunt ended that ambition.

Richard Heene built the balloon himself as an inventor, though it may not have intended to stage a hoax. According to 5280,5280. Heene first thought of a helium-filled, insulated balloon for air races. His initial plan involved launching the balloon from his family's backyard. If successful, Heene aimed to host an air racing event in Arizona or Utah for inventors to race their dirigibles across the desert.

The balloon measured 20 feet across. It used 16 plastic sheets and two rolls of duct tape. A plywood basket was attached to the bottom; Falcon allegedly hid there.

Observers and investigators noticed something suspicious. Initially, Richard Heene did not call the police when he thought Falcon was missing from the balloon.Instead,he called the Federal Aviation Administration, then the local news station KUSA-TV.

News director Patti Dennis stated Heene asked her station to send a news helicopter for a potential rescue. After that call, Heene finally contacted local law enforcement.

During the investigation, a Denver man named came forward with information about Heene.Robert Thomas came forward with information about Heene. Thomas worked with Heene on the balloon project as a researcher. Through his lawyer, Thomas claimed Richard Heene told him about the hoax months before the launch.Thomas claimed Richard Heene told him about the hoax months before the launch.

Thomas said Heene believed in the Mayan apocalypse, which predicted the world would end in 2012. Thomas claimed Heene hoped the fame from the stunt would fund a bunker for the family to escape the sun exploding.

Weeks later, the truth came out.On October 23, 2009, Mayumi Heene confessed to investigators. She admitted the family planned the stunt to boost marketability. She stated she and her husband knew Falcon hid inside the house the whole time.On October 23, 2009, Mayumi Heene admitted to investigators the family planned the stunt to boost marketability. She said she and her husband knew Falcon hid inside the house the whole time.

A reporter for5280The box contained thousands of family documents. It held past-due and foreclosure notices, showing the Heenes had financial trouble before the incident.

The box contained 12 pages of notes from Mayumi's lawyer. Mayumi laid out the whole story in the notes. Mayumi provided Richard's motive and much evidence of planning. On September 30, 2009, Richard worked on the balloon's design. On October 14, he told Mayumi the story of.Lawnchair LarryA man attached 45 helium-filled weather balloons to a lawn chair in 1982. He flew 3 miles above Los Angeles. Richard planned to copy Larry's stunt with Falcon, avoiding risk to his son.

One month after Mayumi confessed, she and Richard faced custody, charges, and sentences for the hoax. On November 13, 2009, hepleaded guiltyto attempting to mislead a public servant, a felony. The court sentenced him to 90 days in jail and a $36,000 fine. Mayumipleaded guiltyto making a false police report, a misdemeanor. She received a 20-day weekend jail sentence.

Both parents received four years of probation. This probation stopped them from making money from the hoax.

"This case is about deception, exploitation—of the Heenes' children, the media, and people's emotions—and money," saidDistrict Judge Stephen Schapanski.

After the Balloon Boy incident, the Heenes moved to Florida. This allowed Richard to focus on hisinventionsBuilding on his experience as an amateur storm chaser and inventor, he created new devices for the consumer market.

The inventions included:

- The "HeeneDuty Truck Transformer," a robotic truck lift that lifts up to 2,400 pounds, letting drivers load vehicles in minutes.

- The "Bearscratch," a piece of tree bark mounted to the wall. This lets people scratch hard-to-reach spots on their backs like a bear.

- And a hand-cranked device that shakes out ketchup or other condiments from a bottle. That device was called "Your Shake Down"

The balloon is no longer with the Heene family. In 2011, while under probation, RichardauctionedRichard auctioned the balloon in 2011 for charity to help survivors of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The family posted a video on their website, enticing bidders to offer up to $1 million to "own a piece of documented media history while benefiting those in need."

The balloon wassoldto the owner of a sports card company, who paid $2,502.

In 2012, the Heene family started their next project: a heavy metal band named "Heene BoyzFalcon plays bass and sings lead vocals; Bradford handles guitar; Ryo plays drums. The band claims to be the world's youngest heavy metal band. They draw from Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, and Metallica.

As of 2019,Heene Boyz formed, the world’s youngest metal band, with Balloon Boy as the lead vocalist.The Heene Boyz released four albums: the 2012 release.Chasing Tornadoes.the 2013 release.American Chili.the 2014 release.Fingered it out.and the 2015 release.American Chilly.In 2016, the Heene Boyz released.released.a pro-Trump track called "Youth of America for Trump."

The band remains active in 2019. Earlier that year, they put out an interactive independent movie, also known asAmerican Chilly.which starred the three brothers.

Richard Heene still insists the Balloon Boy event was not a hoax, despite his wife's confession and all other proof. On a 2015Today Show.In a Today Show interview, he claimed he and Mayumi truly believed Falcon was inside the balloon when it launched. When asked about pleading guilty to a felony, Heene explained he had to take the plea deal to avoid Mayumi's deportation.

He also stated that he and his family would not act differently, even if they could. "We have a policy in our life that you don't live with regrets," hesaid."Because then you become a victim and victims cannot help themselves."