Surfing In California in the early '60's.Surfing In California in the early '60's.Surfing In California in the early '60's.
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A documentary of California surfing in the early 1960's.
In the context of "The Endless Summer", "Dogtown and Z Boys" and "Big Wednesday" . . . "The Living Curl" covers a time right after the first Gidget movie when surfing caught on like wildfire in Southern California.
"The Living Curl" relives the early days of surfing in the sixties thru the eyes of young film-maker and surfer, Jamie Budge. His "home movies" of himself and his friends soon evolved into classic footage of the top surfers of the day at their best, at their home breaks.
Many of the legends of Malibu such as Miki Dora, Johnny Fain, Dewey Weber, Harold Iggy, Bob "Porkchops" Barron, Lance Carson and Dave Rochlen are featured in their prime, "inventing" maneuvers that became the mainstays of modern surfing.
Surfers such as Mike Doyle, L.J. Richards, Rusty Miller and Robert August show the styles that made them the first royalty of surfing in Southern California.
"New" up and comers, like Corky Carroll, David Nuuhiwa, John Peck, Rick Irons, Mark Martinson, Jackie Baxter are shown pushing the envelope of the surfing of the day to new frontiers that includes the first cheater fives, backside bottom turns, tube rides in contests and aggressive beach break surfing.
When surfing backside at the time was considered to be a disadvantage, Budge shows how various surfers such as Richard Roche and John Peck turned this disadvantage into a positive pursuit of a new dimension of the sport.
Although snowboards, wakeboards and sandboards hadn't been invented yet, it is interesting to see the surfers of that time carving the sand slopes of Point Mugu on sawed off water skis.
Before the "invention" of the skateboard, Budge documents one of the first conversions of roller skates to a board for early experiments in "Sidewalk Surfing".
Pioneering innovation runs throughout the film, from Miki Dora riding a 7ft. 11in. "short board" (circa 1962) to Jamie Budge exploring the inside of tubes and his own nose rides with a home made "water proof" camera.
"The Living Curl" takes the audience on a brisk trip thru surfing in Southern California in the early sixties. It is indeed a "trip" to see Pacific Coast Highway filled with woodie wagons, Volkswagon buses, Plymouth coupes and wing tailed Chevrolets.
And nostalgic to see Topanga Beach hosting the production of "Beach Blanket Bingo", with "extras" Miki Dora and Johnny Fain. To see Stanley's Diner at its best, before the freeway off-ramp put an end to surfing there forever. And to witness the Oil Piers when they were main stop on days when the surf was too small for Rincon itself.
Budge's commentary as a historian of the time is both "informative and funny", says Scott Starr of starrfilms.com
Although Budge's humor is a bit sophomoric at times, "The Living Curl" includes a bit that fellow surf-film maker Jim Freeman once said is, "The funniest gag ever in a surf film".
Balsa Bill says, "At the time, my friends and I said it was the best surf film we'd seen." and "Jamie was the most under-rated surf film makers of the sixties".
Surfing Legend Mike Doyle once said about Jamie's films: "Thank you . . . after watching your films, it felt just like I was there."
As it says on an early poster for Jamie Budge's, "The Living Curl": "His movie is for the audience he's part of, the California Surfer ".
"The Living Curl" relives the early days of surfing in the sixties thru the eyes of young film-maker and surfer, Jamie Budge. His "home movies" of himself and his friends soon evolved into classic footage of the top surfers of the day at their best, at their home breaks.
Many of the legends of Malibu such as Miki Dora, Johnny Fain, Dewey Weber, Harold Iggy, Bob "Porkchops" Barron, Lance Carson and Dave Rochlen are featured in their prime, "inventing" maneuvers that became the mainstays of modern surfing.
Surfers such as Mike Doyle, L.J. Richards, Rusty Miller and Robert August show the styles that made them the first royalty of surfing in Southern California.
"New" up and comers, like Corky Carroll, David Nuuhiwa, John Peck, Rick Irons, Mark Martinson, Jackie Baxter are shown pushing the envelope of the surfing of the day to new frontiers that includes the first cheater fives, backside bottom turns, tube rides in contests and aggressive beach break surfing.
When surfing backside at the time was considered to be a disadvantage, Budge shows how various surfers such as Richard Roche and John Peck turned this disadvantage into a positive pursuit of a new dimension of the sport.
Although snowboards, wakeboards and sandboards hadn't been invented yet, it is interesting to see the surfers of that time carving the sand slopes of Point Mugu on sawed off water skis.
Before the "invention" of the skateboard, Budge documents one of the first conversions of roller skates to a board for early experiments in "Sidewalk Surfing".
Pioneering innovation runs throughout the film, from Miki Dora riding a 7ft. 11in. "short board" (circa 1962) to Jamie Budge exploring the inside of tubes and his own nose rides with a home made "water proof" camera.
"The Living Curl" takes the audience on a brisk trip thru surfing in Southern California in the early sixties. It is indeed a "trip" to see Pacific Coast Highway filled with woodie wagons, Volkswagon buses, Plymouth coupes and wing tailed Chevrolets.
And nostalgic to see Topanga Beach hosting the production of "Beach Blanket Bingo", with "extras" Miki Dora and Johnny Fain. To see Stanley's Diner at its best, before the freeway off-ramp put an end to surfing there forever. And to witness the Oil Piers when they were main stop on days when the surf was too small for Rincon itself.
Budge's commentary as a historian of the time is both "informative and funny", says Scott Starr of starrfilms.com
Although Budge's humor is a bit sophomoric at times, "The Living Curl" includes a bit that fellow surf-film maker Jim Freeman once said is, "The funniest gag ever in a surf film".
Balsa Bill says, "At the time, my friends and I said it was the best surf film we'd seen." and "Jamie was the most under-rated surf film makers of the sixties".
Surfing Legend Mike Doyle once said about Jamie's films: "Thank you . . . after watching your films, it felt just like I was there."
As it says on an early poster for Jamie Budge's, "The Living Curl": "His movie is for the audience he's part of, the California Surfer ".
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- jamiebudge
- Dec 12, 2008
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $10,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 30 minutes
- Color
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