Category: 1960s
-
Gerry Bowden
A photo from 1965 of a crew of young skateboarders hanging out from the Polk County History Center based in Bartow, Florida led me to their database to see if I could find out more about the girls who were included. Two of the skaters were named – Gerry Bowden and Paul Daniel III. I…
-
1960s News Clippings Part 2
Every so often I do a deep-dive into newspaper clippings, which are often just average kids on the street having a good time. I have a new batch of photos and stories from the 1960s. Check out 1960s News Clippings Part 1 for the initial motherlode! Back to Top
-
Celebrity Skaters 2
I’ve got another batch of celebrity sightings to share, starting with Lucille Ball in 1965, followed by Brooke Shields and Sandy West in the 1970s. See: “Celebrity Skaters” from back in 2022 for a feature on Jodie Foster, Farah Fawcett and Katharine Hepburn, not to forget the story on Gloria Steinem! For an episode of…
-
Canadian Skurfing
In Canada, we do things and call things a little differently than our American counterparts. Thanks to a friend and former Skirtboarder, Frédérique Luyet I was directed towards archival footage and an article from the CBC about “skurfing.” The definition of “skurfing” according to the Canadian newspaper, The Globe and Mail was “a craze which…
-
Dutch Female Skaters
The Netherlands has a long history of skateboarding dating back to the 1960s when Mr. Beenhakker, the owner of the Eerste Sprangse Metaalwaren Industrie (ESMI) roller-skate factory in Deurne, expanded into skateboards. The owner is interviewed in a fantastic vintage film on the NCRV Teen Magazine from November 5, 1965. The film includes a group…
-
Linda Finley
In 1964, C&D Skateshop in southern California organized a team of youth who were avid surfers to provide demonstrations as part of the “Skate Board Division” of the Surf Team. There’s a vintage group photo with everyone on the team barefoot, including one Linda Finley in the middle, possibly at a contest since there’s trophies…
-
Dogs on Skateboards
It’s hard to resist a pet, let alone a puppy on a skateboard! Lately, there’s been a variety of dogs, kittens, birds and even a tiny turtle going viral online as they embrace skateboarding. A perfect hit of dopamine for any skater. But this isn’t a contemporary phenomenon. Jenny Goodman, age 10, received some attention…
-
Gloria Steinem
Gloria Steinem is an iconic journalist, activist, and feminist, who co-founded the magazine Ms. in 1972. So, you can imagine my delight when I stumbled upon photos of Gloria on a skateboard from 1965! The posed photos were taken by Yale Joel for her article on Pop Culture called “The Ins and Outs of Pop…
-
Badass Barefoot skaters
It takes a certain level of confidence to skateboard barefoot, but back in the 1960s and 1970s many preferred it, especially those with a background in surfing. This era was also pre-grip tape, so it was more likely that surf wax or adhesive spray was applied to boards, as described in this article by Jenkem…
-
Gail Yarbrough
If you’re a surfer in the Pacific Northwest, “The Point” just south of Seaside, Oregon is a cherished spot, located where the Pacific Ocean meets Tillamook Head. Gail Yarbrough (Williams), who was originally from California, where she competed in skateboarding, was surfing The Point in the 1970s, and according to a Facebook page called Oregon…
Womxn Skateboard History 