Inside Richard Branson's Many Near-Death Experiences

When Branson married his second and current wife, Joan Templeman, he wanted to make a splashy entrance. He jumped from a helicopter into a pool — but accidentally missed the deep end and, in his own words, "smashed my legs" in the shallow end (via CNN).

In 2004, he was starring in his own show, "The Rebel Billionaire." For the show, he agreed to bungee jump off Victoria Falls (pictured) in southern Africa. He ended up with a head injury after hitting something on the way down.

Three years later, he jumped off Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas to promote new flights to the city on his airline, Virgin America. It was a 40-foot drop, KVBC news reported. Strong winds made him fall faster than he expected, and he slammed backward into one of the buildings, ending up with quite a few cuts and bruises (via CNN). Back on the ground, he spoke to the crowd briefly before heading off for medical treatment, per KVBC. That's only the tip of the iceberg of Branson's stunts.

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