Melanie Lynn Clapp: Fashion designer who once shared love with celebrity stuntman

Melanie Lynn Clapp is a celebrity spouse, former fashion designer and interior decorator. The beautiful blonde stepped into the limelight as a result of her romantic relationship and marriage with one of Hollywood’s greatest stuntmen.

The actor does not seem to be lucky in the romance department as he has been married twice. Was he the problem or were his respective wives the problem? Here is all you need to know about Johnny Knoxville’s first wife, Melanie Lynn Clapp and why they divorced.

Melanie Lynn Clapp’s biography

Melanie Lynn Clapp was born in 1964 as Melanie Lynn Cates in Austin, situated in the US state of Texas. She subsequently moved to Los Angeles in pursuit of her career.

She was living a quiet life before she became the wife of the famous actor and stuntman, Johnny Knoxville. She has maintained a low profile since her divorce from her ex-husband in 2008.

Melanie Lynn Clapp’s career

Melanie Lynn Clapp began her career as a fashion designer. To actualise her dreams, Clapp, who was in her early 20s, moved to Los Angeles.

She started as a jewellery and clothing designer working with Urban Outfitters and Warner Bros Retail. As time went on, it seems Clapp discovered a new passion as she made a career switch. She switched from being a fashion designer to becoming an interior designer skilled in remodelling homes and interiors.

With her new passion, she worked hard and made a name for herself. She founded her own interior design company named Side Street Home. Her work as an interior designer earned her praise and recognition from all and sundry.

Clapp has gone ahead to establish her business in the cities of Nashville, Los Angeles, and Austin where she lives.

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Melanie Lynn Clapp’s net worth

As a talented interior designer and former fashion designer, Melanie Lynn Clapp’s net worth is estimated to be around $500,000.

Asides from her work, as the ex-wife of the Jackass star, her wealth also comes from the divorce settlement she got from her ex-husband.

Melanie Lynn Clapp’s family

Details of Clapp’s family are sparse and unknown to the public. She, however, became famous for being the wife of talented actor and stuntman, Johnny Knoxville. As such, the actor is the only member of her family known to the public.

Knoxville achieved stardom by taking part in uncomfortable, painful and sometimes hazardous stunts and pranks while creating and starring in MTV’s Jackass series (2000-02). What made him a fan favourite and propelled his film career, however, was not his masochistic behaviour but his energy and laid-back attitude. He was cast in mainstream movies such as The Dukes of Hazzard (2005) and indie films like John Waters’ A Dirty Shame (2004). His Jackass spin-offs were also successful at the box office and his fans included rowdy teenage boys, admiring young women and an interesting amount of hipster appreciation. Knoxville’s unusual appeal made him a Hollywood phenomenon that was hard to classify.

Clapp and Knoxville tied the knot in a budget-friendly ceremony at the Elvis Chapel in Las Vegas on May 15, 1995. Shortly after, the couple welcomed their daughter, Madison Tatiana Clapp, on January 4, 1996. Unfortunately, after 11 years of marriage, Clapp and Knoxville separated in July 2006. Johnny filed the divorce papers on July 3, 2007, and it was finalised in March 2008. In July 2009, the final divorce arrangement was settled. After the divorce was finalised in a Los Angeles court, People reported that the stuntman agreed to pay $6,000 monthly in child support for their daughter. The couple also split their bank account evenly and share joint custody of their daughter. 

According to reports as at the time of their divorce, the actor cited “irreconcilable differences” as grounds for their divorce, but fans beg to differ. Many claimed that the marriage was not all that rosy because of alleged infidelity on Knoxville’s part with his The Duke of Hazzard co-star, Jessica Simpson.

Rumours were swirling around the time Jessica Simpson was filming the 2005 remake of The Dukes of Hazzard that she was having an affair with her co-star, Knoxville. Knoxville was married to Clapp at the time, prompting him to deny the rumours on multiple occasions.

Tampa Bay Times quoted him in August 2005 as saying: “It’s obviously not true. I’ve got a daughter and a wife and she’s got a husband and it affects the families involved. Luckily, my wife and I have a dialogue. We talk about it.” Knoxville also refuted the allegations to GQ, saying: “It’s not true. Jessica and I are just friends. She’s a great girl and all that, but all the rumours — I just kind of take it in stride. But it’s kind of hurtful to the families that are involved.” Despite Knoxville’s denials, the rumours persisted.

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About 15 years after rumours of an affair between Simpson and Knoxville first surfaced, the two had seemingly moved on — until Simpson made a stunning admission in her book, “Open Book.” According to BEST LIFE, she confessed that an “emotional affair” did take place while they were both married to other people. In her memoir, the actress explained that she was able to share her true thoughts and feelings with Knoxville, and he accepted and even embraced her vulnerabilities. Although they never took their relationship further physically, she felt like what they had still went against her beliefs of saving sex for marriage. In the end, she felt her actions were worse than a physical affair.

Away from her famous ex-husband, Clapp’s daughter, just like her father, ventured into the world of acting and writing. She has acted in the films Jackass 3.5 and Jackass 3. She attended Oakwood School before graduating from Oberlin College in Ohio. She is the founder and editor of Chickenbutt Magazine, which is printed quarterly.

Melanie Lynn Clapp’s Instagram 

Clapp is not active on any social media platform.

However, her ex-husband is on Instagram with the username: @johnnyknoxville. He is a popular figure who has 4.1 million followers and counting.

Melanie Lynn Clapp’s age

Clapp’s birth month and birthday are not known. But her birth year is reported to be 1964, making her 59 years in 2023.

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