Surfing History: The Sixties Influence and Change on our Sport. (part 2)

Due to winds of change and a conservative press in a radical time, surfings image started to decline nationally. When the press and public started to talk about surfing, words like, “beach bum”, “anti-social” and “drug-induced” entered in. Time Magazine wrote “riding a board through the surf is like going on hashish. The addicts – and there are 18,000 of them in the U.S – have their own fashions in everything from hair cuts to swimsuits. They speck a lingo of words like “hook” and “tube” and “wipe out”. They listen to apostles, who preach: when the surf is good, you’ve got to go and get it. Work is secondary. Once you’re about 30, then it’s time to take a solid job.”

This sort of word play continued in the media when the 563-karat “Star of India” sapphire and 21 other gems were stolen from New York’s Museum of Natural History, by a burglar nicknamed “Murph the Surf” Murphy. “Murph the Surf” made for good headlines even though he wasn’t a surfer or had anything to do with surfing. For years afterwards “Murphy the Surf”, the jewel thief marred the image of surfers.

Just when surfings' image seemed doomed, a low budget, privately made surf flick called Endless Summer hit the screen. Endless Summer reached out to social worlds beyond surfing and generated a positive image, public windfall and has been called the most important and influential statement made about surfing in this century. (Lueras 144) Bruce Brown, 28, from Dana Point California was the creator of the most successful documentary ever made, and his film was selected as one of 14 movies to represent the U.S at the Moscow Film Festival. (NY Times ’67) Brown’s Endless Summer unexpectedly catapulted surfing into its longest and most influential public relations ride ever.

“Just get away from the shady turf, and baby catch some rays on the sunny surf. And when you catch a wave, you’ll be sitting on top of the world.” (Beach Boys) These lyrics rang out in the ears of surfers and wanna-bes everywhere. Surf music was born, and became inseparable with the surf culture. Trying to separate surf music is like trying to have corn flakes without the milk. Surf music was greatly influenced by rockabilly and rhythm and blues. Group like Dale and the Del Tone, Chuck Berry, Duane Eddy were playing to crowds of 4,000 while the Beach Boys were in their infancy.

Surf History Part 3