zirovsky

On July 15, 2025, Netflix released “Trainwreck: Balloon Boy.” It is a documentary about Richard Alan Heene Jr., his wife Mayumi Iizuka Heene and their three sons Bradford Heene, Ryo Heene and Falcon Heene.

Hollywood

Richard has lived in different parts of the United States including Virginia, California, Colorado, Florida and New York. He was already married to Mayumi when he made money offering remodeling and home renovation services. At the time, she was running an at-home video-editing business.

With just a high school diploma, Richard has a long list of jobs he has tried. He used to be a licensed carpentry contractor in Colorado and California, a salesman, a stand-up comedian and an author, he once designed a board game that was unsuccessful, he once cleaned a backyard piled with dog poop for $300 and he has experienced changing light bulbs for a living.

Moreover, Richard is a scientist, an inventor and a storm chaser. One common denominator he and Mayumi had was that they were both aspiring actors.

In August 1997, Richard was pursuing a career as a comedian while Mayumi was playing guitar in a rock band. They met at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, an acting school in Hollywood, California.

While Richard and Mayumi did not successfully pursue a career in acting, the acting school became the starting point of their long-lasting relationship. After getting married, they lived in Fort Collins, Colorado with their three sons.

Balloon Boy

On the morning of October 15, 2009, Richard and Mayumi reported to authorities that Falcon was trapped inside a homemade helium-filled gas balloon shaped to resemble a silver flying saucer. They had released the balloon into the atmosphere from their backyard in Fort Collins.

While two Colorado National Guard helicopters and local police pursued the balloon, which passed through Adams County and Weld County in Colorado, planes were rerouted around its flight path. After an hour, it landed about 12 miles northeast of Denver International Airport in Denver, Colorado.

Falcon was not found inside the balloon so search and rescue crews in Colorado searched for him. In the afternoon, he emerged from the attic of their house where he had been hiding the whole time.

In the evening, Falcon appeared with his entire family on the CNN show “Larry King Live,” where they were interviewed by Wolf Blitzer. Blitzer told Richard, “I don’t know if Falcon can hear me.”

“Did he hear anything?” Blitzer asked Richard referring to Falcon. “Did he hear you screaming out ‘Falcon, Falcon?’”

“He’s asking, Falcon, did you hear us calling your name at any time?” Richard asked Falcon. The boy answered, “Mmm-hmm.”

“You did?” Richard asked Falcon. “Well, then why didn’t you come out?”

“Um.” Falcon paused. “You guys said… that, um… We did this for the show.”

“Man,” Richard said. Mayumi added, “No.”

The authorities and the public described the incident as a hoax. Years later, Bradford, Ryo and Falcon formed a heavy metal band called the Heene Boyz.

On November 13, 2009, Richard Heene pleaded guilty to a felony charge of attempting to influence a public servant and Mayumi pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of false reporting to authorities. On December 23, 2020, they were both pardoned by 43rd Colorado governor Jared Polis.