Voting Station

Jill Kinmont Boothe

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Athlete

The Resume

    (February 16, 1936-February 9, 2012)
    Born in Los Angeles, California
    Alpine skier
    Won six medals at the national junior championships
    First person to win the national junior and senior slalom titles in the same year (1954)
    Paralyzed below the shoulders in an accident at the Snow Cup in Alta, Utah (January 30, 1955)
    Married John Boothe (1976)
    Subject of the movies 'The Other Side of the Mountain' (1975) and 'The Other Side of the Mountain Part 2' (1978)

Why she might be annoying:

    The spot where she wiped out was dubbed the 'Kinmont bump,' which seems a dubious honor. (I'm pretty sure South Lake Tahoe doesn't have a 'Sonny Bono tree.')
    She has been called a victim of the 'Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx' since the accident occurred three days after the magazine featuring her on the cover hit the newsstands.
    UCLA refused to allow her to pursue a degree in education because they felt her paralysis made her 'unemployable.' (She eventually earned her teaching credentials from the University of Washington.)
    'The Other Side of the Mountain' was named one of the 10 worst sports movies of all time by Sports Illustrated.

Why she might not be annoying:

    Three years after her accident, she wrote a letter to Roy Campanella, telling him that being in a wheelchair was 'not as bad as it sounded.'
    Her fiancee Dick Buek died in a plane crash (1957); another boyfriend, Bud Werner, died in an avalanche (1969).
    When a Los Angeles school district's physician kept talking about the 'tragedy' of her accident, she responded, 'That's nothing. The only tragedy is if you won't hire me because of this injury.'
    She taught students who were handicapped or had learning disabilities for over 20 years.
    She established a scholarship fund for American Indian students.
    She was a prolific watercolor painter.
    She said, 'I never thought of myself as a different person after my accident. Though maybe that's the key to my success.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 3 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 12 Votes: 58.33% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 18 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 222 Votes: 74.32% Annoying