He tried to break a skydiving record β from 23 miles up π . . . On May 1, 1966, New Jersey truck driver Nick Piantanida rose in a helium balloon to 57,600 feet to break Joe Kittinger's freefall record. Mission control heard a sudden hiss β his faceplate had come open. He was rushed down but suffered catastrophic brain damage from decompression. He died four months later, on August 29, 1966.
Source
Craig Ryan, 2003, 'Magnificent Failure: Free Fall from the Edge of Space'; National Air and Space Museum records on Project StratoJump
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