MORE CLASSIC SURF MOVIES 5-9-07
By Corky Carroll

Continuing along the trail of classic surf movies.  Last installment we left off about 1966 and the beginning of the shortboard revolution.  This was one of the most innovative and exciting times in the history of surfing.  Surfboard designs were changing by the day and evolving from the previous age of big heavy clunkers to today's ultra light aerial flyers.  This was an exceptionally difficult period for film makers as things were changing so rapidly that by the time somebody shot a film and got it out to the public everything had changed.

A good example of that was a fantastic film by Jim Freeman and Greg MacGillivary titled “The Sunshine Sea.” This was a beautiful film with some outstanding surfing by Billy Hamilton and Mark Martinson.  Unfortunately for Jim and Greg, and Billy and Mark too, this movie was shot at the very end of the longboard era.  By the time it was ready for release the shortboard craze had begun and was in full swing.  Nobody wanted to see longboard footage; it was the all-new and radical shortboard stuff that was in demand.  Therefore one of the most artistic and well-done surf films of all time was also one of the least seen. 

John Severson made a return into the surf film market with his best, and certainly one of the all time best of that time period, films called “Pacific Vibrations.”  John is an artist and this film reflects that quality in him.  Fantastic footage melded into a story of the changing times in both surfing and in the mood of the youth of America.  The freedom of free surfing and the art of style along with the coming of the Viet Nam war and industrial pollution, crowds and the urge to drop out and get away from it all.   This was one of the real historical surf movies.  

John used a soundtrack of some of the most popular music out at that time.  Unfortunately later on this hurt him in the fact that when it was sold to be shown on the big screens the rights to the music could not be obtained and so the film was shelved.  There are some pirate copies lurking around but they are very grainy in quality and hard to find.  But if you can get your hands on one it would be worth it.  Great bit of surf history.  Also the amazing poster done by Rick Griffin is a real collector’s item.

And the real definitive surf movie of the early 1970's would have to be “Five Summer Stories.”  Another release from Jim Freeman and Greg MacGillivary.  This is their all time signature surf movie.  Over a few years this film sort of grew and reformed itself.  There were a few changes to the five stories and modifications but basically it remained intact and would have to rank as the most seen surf movie of that era.   Also sweetened with a soundtrack of fantastic music performed by the amazing Laguna Beach band HONK this movie and soundtrack has become legendary in status.  It is a just out and out a great surf film.  There is one part in it that still to this day embarrasses me though.  Greg shot a sequence of me surfing at the Pipeline with a microphone duct taped to my chest.   It is really hard to surf and talk at the same time.  At first I got a few good waves but didn't say much.  Then Greg called me in and told me that I had to keep talking the whole time.  So I took off on a couple of waves and tried to do that.  The problem was that the more I talked the less I could surf.  What was left was this embarrassing sequence of me blabbering my mouth off and doing absolutely nothing surfing wise.   I was soooo wishing that he didn't use that, but he did.   Oh well, it was probably not as bad as the “El Rollo” in the “Endless Summer.”

Speaking of the “Endless Summer.”  Last week I did a list of my favorite surf music.   I meant to include the theme to the “Endless Summer” which was performed by the great Capistrano Beach band the SANDALS.  But I ran outta room.  So I wanna add that one in here.   A great piece of surf music history and surf movie history.   Stay tuned, more coming.

 

 

GOT A TATTOO

The Wave ~ 5-9-07
By Corky Carroll


Maybe it's an age-related thing.  I don't know really.  But I had never really gotten into the whole tattoo and piercing thing at all.  Especially on babes.  I came from an age when only sailors had tattoos and only weird native dudes in Africa had piercings.  Well, I still am NOT into piercings but I have broken through my tattoo phobia and actually went out and got my first one.  It will probably be my last because it really hurt.  I am not a macho, macho man; I hate pain.  I thought it was only gonna hurt a little, but noooooooooooo.  It hurt a lot. 

 

Maybe it was the urge to prove to my beautiful wife, the muy, bonita, Karlita that I was a modern man or just to show myself that I am not an old fuddy duddy. The reasons don't really matter in the big picture, because in the little picture I knew that I just had to do it. Mark my pristine body with some body art that would sum up the essence of me.

I mentioned the idea to the muy bonita Karlita over breakfast one day. "I'm thinking about getting a tattoo...." Her lovely brown eyes opened so wide that I could see the whites both above and below.  She answered, as I should have expected, "You are joking, right?"  When she was able to control the laughing, she went into that supportive wife mode that melts me from the inside out.

And so it was that we headed down to the beach to do some investigative research.  Walking on the beach, hand in hand with the muy bonita Karlita, .  In a very real sense, the wide range of 21st century body art gives one pause. While some beach-goers had full sunsets bursting upwards from their tailbones and extending a good half dozen inches upwards, others had far smaller pieces of art in all sorts of interesting places. One woman had flames shooting straight out the top of her bikini bottom.  "Mmmm. Maybe that's the look I want?" I told the muy bonita Karlita, "What do you think of the flame thing?" It's not you," she replied oh-so-sweetly, "we need to find just the right one for you. Something that really says it all."

The muy bonita Karlita kept trying to divert my attention to the colorful array of examples on the men, and I tried. Not really.  I was far more drawn to the study of butterflies, flowers, and small cows than I was to all of the macho guy stuff that screamed "See how much pain I was able to withstand to get this hunkin' huge tattoo?"

The day finally came to do the deed with the ink and the needles. I have to admit that the research was fun, but the idea for MY body didn't come from the beach research ... it came to me in a dream.

The muy bonita Karlita again held my hand and we walked into the tattoo parlor and met Jose, a nice enough dude with a shaved head and almost no un-inked skin on his entire body. "Is this going to hurt?" I had to ask. He grinned and said, "Si mi amigo, mucho."

Forty-five minutes later I walked out, finally marked with my own lifetime stamp. The muy bonita Karlita loves it. She says that it is a testament to who I really am. Way deep inside. And nobody would know like she would.  She knows my heart and soul.

By now you've undoubtedly noticed that I have not yet told you what I got put where. That's because I LOVE A GOOD CONTEST. You've all got my email, corkysurf@aol.com. The first one of you who guesses the what and the where of my first ever (obtained only weeks ago) tattoo is going to win a cool prize.  A custom corky twin fin clock made by my pal Dave at Kahuna Classics in Huntington Beach.  He just made me one and I dig it.

So think, loyal and extremely astute readers, think. What piece of art would truly describe the essence of me? And where would it be placed on this aged like fine wine body?  I can hardly wait to see the guesses.