I remember someone telling me that there was a baseball player that cracked his neck too much and died of an aneurism because of cracking his neck. Can it really do that? Or is it just another old wives tale?
Anyone?
Well, an aneurism is basically a weak spot in a blood vessel. If it bursts, it can kill you. According to this site, the sound of joints cracking is produced by gas moving in the synovial fluid or by the movement of tendons, neither of which has anything to do with the blood vessels. So I’d say it’s an old wives’ tale, probably propagated by someone who is creeped out by the sound of cracking joints.
Well, there is this: Chiropractic Neck Manipulation and Strokes
Well, the short answer is no. Although the vertebral artery does live in a bony canal in the back of the neck where it ascends into the skull (through the foramen magnum, if you must know), and although fractures or dislocations of the neck can certainly violate the vertebral artery, an injury to the artery from “cracking the neck” would certainly be reportable (I’ve cracked my neck for years).
Conversely, an aneurism is a localalized weakening of the artery wall, usually where it divides, and congenital in most cases (at least brain aneurisms; aneurisms of the aorta are a different discussion). It is not related to “cracking” the neck.
whut DRBOB sed.
You an MD/DO style doctor, DRBOB? Or Bill W.'s good buddy? Or both?
Always nice to see more medical professionals in the ranks of us dopers. 
I have been HUMBLED so many times by y’all and your seemingly endless grasp of information I am THANKFUL to see a question fall into my field of expertise. 
I distinctly recall hearing a news story a year or two ago about a man who tore a blood vessel in his neck when cracking it himself, and died within minutes.
However, Google is not much help, and I don’t have a Lexis-Nexis subscription.
I started cracking my neck in high school by twisting my head with my hands, and now I have enough range of motion that I can do it hands free. So I remembered that story very well. In fact, I remember that I was driving home, and can even remember the approximate location on the freeway (on the 210 westbound in Azusa).
Unfortunately, the date of the story is not part of my memory.
My neck cracking really freaks people out sometimes… if I have enough tension stored in my shoulders and haven’t cracked my neck in a while, I just tilt my head to the left and then try to point my chin up to the ceiling and kraa-a-a-a-ack!
Ahhh…