A New HBO Series, ‘The Dark Wizard,’ Examines the Life and Death of Climbing Legend Dean Potter

Dean Potter isn’t a name you forget. On May 16, 2015, the famous climber and BASE jumper fell to his death after a wingsuit flight in Yosemite. He was 43 years old.

I had just started working for Outside as a news writer and social media manager a couple of weeks earlier. I stumbled upon the news on an old climbing forum, and those far more senior than I worked to verify the facts. Even as someone not deeply embedded in the hardcore climbing scene and brand new to the outdoor industry at the time...