On this episode of the Sofa King Podcast, we look at the incredibly wild and sometimes rough backstory and life of Duane “Dog the Bounty Hunter” Chapman. Chapman is of course famous for his reality shows, where he shows the perfect admixture of compassion and violence while he is hunting bail jumping criminals. He was so good at his job that he landed the heir to the Max Factor fortune in just 60 days, while the FBI had been looking for him for over three years! Dog’s back story shows a really rough life that should never have turned to him making his way to the right side of the law.

Chapman grew up in Denver to an abusive father. He became an emancipated minor early in life due to bruises discovered on his body from home violence. At the age of 15, he moved to Phoenix, Arizona and with the help of a fake ID he made himself. He joined the Devils Disciples, a criminal motorcycle club. While here, he did all the things that a “One Percenter” biker gang member would do, and he earned his nickname Dog. He fell into a life of drug use, drug deals, burglary, and certainly things he’ll never talk about. After several years of this life, he got arrested for first degree murder.

His friend shot a man while making a drug deal, and being the oddly soft hearted guy he was, Chapman went home and called 911 to make sure the victim was okay. This phone call (and frankly, his own screw up) led the cops to him. He was arrested and sentenced to five years, even though he wasn’t even in the building.

In jail, he became a counselor for other prisoners, and he also landed the coveted job of cutting hair for the warden and guards. After chasing down a fellow inmate who was about to get shot by the COs, he was given the nickname Bounty Hunter. “Dog the Bounty Hunter” was born. He got out for good behavior (and a chat with the warden), and he couldn’t find any work as an ex-felon. A judge let him do a bounty to drop some past child support, and the rest was history.

From there, he went straight to the post office to find the top ten fugitives list and caught one of them within days. He started collecting bounties and befriended cops and the FBI, which led to him meeting Tony Robbins and working for him during his self-improvement seminars. From here, he met various celebrities and eventually landed his own famous TV show. So, how did he catch Andrew Luster, the Max Factor heir in Mexico? Why did this get Dog arrested and make him a fugitive from the Mexican law? What happened years later when Mexico had him extradited for his crimes? How popular was his show, and how did he meet is famous wife and soul mate Beth? How and when did Beth die? How did Dog go from having a price on his head in prison to being a prison super star? Is he a racist, as the leaked phone call with his son suggests? Is he really Native American, or is that something he cashes in on and exploits? How did he meet Ozzy Osbourne, and how did that help his show? Listen, laugh, learn.

Visit Our Sources:

https://www.biography.com/performer/duane-chapman

https://www.travelfuntu.com/entertainment/dog-bounty-hunter/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duane_Chapman

https://screenrant.com/dog-bounty-hunter-dark-secrets-trivia-facts/

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/dog-the-bounty-hunter-dead/