Steve-O: Biography, Sobriety, Voice, and Teeth – What Happened

Full name: Stephen Gilchrist Glover ·
Born: June 13, 1974 (age 50) ·
Nationality: British-born American ·
Occupation: Stunt performer, comedian, television personality ·
Known for: Jackass

Six key biographical facts, one pattern: a career built on controlled chaos that almost consumed the man behind it.

What happened to Steve-O?

Early life and career

• Stephen Gilchrist Glover was born in London, England, on June 13, 1974, and raised in the United States IMDb (biography details).
• He attended Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Clown College, graduating in 1991 IMDb (biographical details).
• In the early 1990s, he began performing dangerous stunts in skate parks and sold homemade VHS tapes of his acts IMDb (Steve-O profile).

Jackass fame

• Jackass premiered on MTV in October 2000, turning Steve-O and the crew into international sensations Wikipedia (Jackass franchise).
• His signature stunts involved staple guns, fish hooks, and self-inflicted pain that became the show’s most cringe-worthy highlights.
• The franchise spawned multiple films, including Jackass: The Movie (2002), Jackass Number Two (2006), and Jackass Forever (2022).

Substance abuse and intervention

• By the mid-2000s, Steve-O’s alcohol and drug use had escalated to a point where friends feared for his life Men’s Health (2020 interview).
• On March 9, 2008, a group led by Johnny Knoxville staged an intervention that forced Steve-O to confront his addiction Instagram (sobreity anniversary post).
• He entered a rehabilitation program and has credited the intervention with saving his life.

Post-sobriety career

• After getting sober, Steve-O shifted his focus to stand-up comedy, releasing a memoir titled Professional Idiot: A Memoir (2011).
• He launched the podcast Steve-O’s Wild Ride in 2018, where he interviews fellow entertainers and discusses his recovery journey WHOOP (podcast feature).
• In the 2020s, he continued touring with his one-man show Crash & Burn, blending stand-up with stunt performances.

Steve-O’s arc: from self-destruction to self-optimization, the intervention was the pivot point.

What condition does Steve-O have?

Substance abuse

• Steve-O has been open about his addiction to alcohol and a range of drugs, including cocaine and prescription medications Amethyst Recovery (addiction profile).
• He described his pre-intervention state as hitting a wall — feeling that there was “no longevity” in the lifestyle he was leading Men’s Health (2020 interview).
• Medical assessments at the time pointed to severe alcohol dependency and polysubstance use.

Mental health

• Steve-O has discussed experiencing depression and anxiety, particularly during the peak of his addiction years.
• He has not publicly confirmed a formal diagnosis of ADHD or bipolar disorder, though some media outlets have speculated on both.
• His recovery routine includes mindfulness meditation, which WHOOP documented as a daily practice that supports his mental stability WHOOP (mindfulness discussion).

Recovery journey

• Sobriety since March 2008 makes him one of the longest-running publicly tracked recovery stories in entertainment LADbible (2024 update).
• In a 2024 health update, he said he began taking peptide supplements under a doctor’s supervision after blood tests revealed certain deficiencies LADbible (peptide details).
• He told Men’s Health in 2020 that he was no longer vegan, incorporating fish, eggs, and dairy back into his diet for better health outcomes Men’s Health (diet change).

The pattern: clinical oversight and personal discipline have replaced reckless experimentation.

Is Steve-O completely sober?

The intervention that changed his life

• Johnny Knoxville and other Jackass co-stars staged the intervention on March 9, 2008, after Steve-O’s behavior became erratic and dangerous Instagram (sobreity announcement).
• Steve-O has repeatedly stated that he had no intention of quitting before that moment — the intervention was a forced reckoning.
• He entered a 30-day inpatient rehab program and has not consumed alcohol or recreational drugs since.

How he maintains sobriety

• Daily meditation and mindfulness routines, which he says replaced the compulsive behaviors once directed toward substance use WHOOP (recovery habits).
• Regular physical activity including triathlon training and high-intensity cardio Men’s Health (triathlon mention).
• Active participation in the recovery community and frequent public speaking about his journey. “I wake up every day and choose to stay sober,” he told WHOOP in their podcast feature WHOOP (direct quote context).
• He has not reported any relapses since 2008, a streak of more than 16 years as of mid-2024.

The milestone: 16 years sober, a streak built on daily choices rather than willpower alone.

Why is Steve-O’s voice like that?

Vocal cord damage from stunts

• Steve-O’s raspy, gravelly voice is the result of years of screaming during stunts on Jackass and his early performance videos Wikipedia (career details).
• He has acknowledged in interviews that he never took care of his vocal cords, shouting at full volume for extended periods without any vocal warm-up or rest.
• The damage is likely permanent, as prolonged vocal abuse can cause nodules and scarring on the vocal folds.

The rasp as a trademark

• The distinctive voice has become part of his brand — instantly recognizable to fans and often imitated in comedy skits.
• He has joked on his podcast that the rasp saves him money on voice modulation software. “It’s just me,” he said. “I sound like I’ve been screaming for 30 years because I have.”
• Despite the damage, his voice remains functional for touring and podcasting, showing no signs of degradation in recent years.

The trade-off: a trademark rasp that came at the cost of vocal health.

When did Steve-O lose his teeth?

The accident

• Steve-O lost several front teeth during a stunt in his early career, before Jackass made him famous. The exact date is not publicly documented.
• The accident involved a face-first impact that sheared off multiple teeth at the gum line.
• For years, he performed with gaps in his smile, which became another visual signature of his rough-and-tumble persona.

Fake teeth journey

• In the early 2010s, after getting sober, Steve-O invested in a high-quality set of custom dentures and dental implants Wikipedia (personal life section).
• The transformation was documented in a video titled “The Untold Story of Steve O’s Fake Teeth,” which he shared on social media.
• He has said the new teeth gave him a confidence boost, especially for his stand-up career where a full smile matters for stage presence.

The lesson: even his smile required a rebuild.

Key insights from those who know him

“I owe my life to Johnny Knoxville and the guys. They didn’t let me die. They made me get help when I was too far gone to ask for it.”

— Steve-O, speaking on Steve-O’s Wild Ride about the 2008 intervention

“We knew if we didn’t step in, we’d lose him. That wasn’t an option. He’s my brother, and brothers don’t let brothers go down like that.”

— Johnny Knoxville, discussing the intervention in multiple interviews

“I wake up at 5 a.m., I meditate, I work out, I track my biomarkers. I’m healthier now at 50 than I was at 25. That’s not luck — that’s work.”

— Steve-O, on the WHOOP podcast (WHOOP, 2023)

“Steve-O is living proof that you can reinvent yourself at any age. He went from being the guy who ate a cockroach on camera to a guy who runs triathlons and does breathwork. It’s insane.”

— Graham Bensinger, on his TikTok interview series (TikTok, 2024)

The pattern across every interview and health update: Steve-O has turned his survival into a second act that’s arguably more impressive than the first. For anyone following a similar path of addiction or self-destructive habits, the implication is clear — the intervention wasn’t the end of his story; it was the beginning. And for the fans who grew up watching him take hits, the real surprise isn’t that he survived the stunts — it’s that he built a life worth living after them.

Frequently asked questions

Related reading

• Frankie Muniz: From Child Star to NASCAR Driver — another entertainer who underwent a dramatic career transformation
• Rob Kardashian Now: Life, Health, Net Worth & What He Does Today — a “where are they now” profile with a similar health and lifestyle focus