Jan and Dean, which one was a poser?

Check out this clip of Jan and Dean lip-syncing Sidewalk Surfin’ on American Bandstand. August 22, 1964. Dick Clark talks with audience a little bit about skateboarding (a young man’s game?) and half the “band” actually does sidewalk surf on the stage. There’s even a little bit of dorking around during the lip sync session. […]

weirdhobie

What is this thing?

Makaha Commander, allegedly from 1960, but probably not. The construction looks to be fiberglass or epoxy of some sort, maybe bakelite? It’s not nothing super interesting except for… What the heck is that thing on the rear axle? Bigger view after the jump.

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Hanna Barbera: A Huckleberry of Magillas

I was trying to track down a better picture of some Hanna Barbera saftey cards from 1965 because one of them has the hapless Magilla Gorilla pulling a classic wilson. In the process I found Magilla skating in an uncredited image that looks like a still from a cartoon. Casting the net wider turned up […]

scooterpie-burrys

Burry’s Scooter Pie

The 60’s were the true, toy store fad era of skateboarding. At no other time would you expect to be able to purchase a serviceable piece of sporting equipment from a snack food manufacturer. Yes, manufacturers have been sticking scooter handles on skateboards since shortly after the handles were torn off scooters to make the […]

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Tommy Said So

This is an excellent 60’s era window display for the Continental Surf Skater. Tommy Ryan, San Diego’s Skate Board Champion says “Get the Winning Continetal Surf Skater Here!” – As advertised on TV. How cute: Little Tommy looks adorable and the industry is still using the two word qualifier “Skate Board.” There was a Tommy […]

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Screening: Ultimate Flex Machine and Skater Dater

The Hollywood Theater is showing to 16mm skateboarding films on Monday, February 16 at 7:00 pm in Portland, Oregon. Tickets are only $5 so that’s a no brainer if you’re on the fence. You’ve probably seen Skater Dater before, but you’ve not likely seen the Australian film Ultimate Flex Machine. These prints are owned by […]

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Tiffany Eubank Scotch and Cowabunga from 1965

I couldn’t find out a single thing about who this Tiffany Eubank is. There are too many current day Tiffany Eubanks littering social media for Google to be much help. I believe she must have been an English model or actress. She was featured in a series of ads for Ushers Green Stripe scotch doing […]

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So Sturdy They Support an Adult!

1965 was a good year for skateboards in catalogs. Here’s a page from a Sears catalog featuring Sears branded skateboards, which are essentially Nash-style copies, some like the Spyder are so similar that the were likely made by Nash. The ad copy has some choice bits like “So sturdily built it supports an adult” and […]

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Blue Surf-ari

It’s been a long time since I’ve made a Saturday Starrs post. This is a clip from the 1967 film Blue Surf-ari, archived and digitized by noted surf/skate historian and photographer Scott Starr.