Untitled Document

Santa Monica, 1921-24

Despite the ravages of World War I, the period following the war was rich in Western culture. In 1921 alone, D.H. Lawrence published Women In Love; Ezra Pound was still creating brilliant poems; Rafael Sabatini's pirate adventure Scaramouche was a best seller and; Die Walküre was the first Wagnerian opera to be staged at the Paris Opéra since before the war.

Going near unnoticed, a German politico by the name of Adolf Hitler was beginning to cause trouble in Germany, as his "storm troopers" (SA) began to terrorize political opponents.

"I first rode California surf in 1921," wrote Tom Blake in his 1935 classic Hawaiian Surfboard, the first book to devote itself to surfboards and surfriding.

"The Vultee boys started around that time," Blake continued. "Preston Peterson, I saw ride a first break wave at Ocean Park about 1924, when he was nine years old. He had been riding several years then... [by] 1933 Peterson was the best on the Pacific Coast and his cleverness is equal to the best at Waikiki."

Living in Santa Monica, Blake worked as a lifeguard, a swimming instructor, and later as a movie stunt double. "Don't forget," Gary Lynch reminded me, "long before Peterson, Blake started working in the movies [1922] because of his water talent, building the first trail for the rest of the surfing pack to later take advantage of."

It was while working as a lifeguard at the Santa Monica Swimming Club that Blake uncovered the redwood plank he first surfed on. "Like all of the boards of the day," wrote Gary, "this one was heavy and cumbersome. With nobody around to teach him, he paddled the board out to sea" and attempted to catch a wave. "He took a big pearl dive and it freaked him out. He did not try again for a month or two." When he did eventually catch a wave, that was both a turning point in Tom Blake's life and Twentieth Century surfing.

Malibu First Ridden, 1926

Back in Santa Monica, Tom started building his own surfboards. One of the first people to own a Blake surfboard was Sam Reid. He and Blake would be the first surfers to ride California's most central of surf meccas, Malibu Point, in September of 1926.

Originally home to the members of the Chumash and Gabrielino tribes, Malibu had been inhabited for approximately 7,000 years. The word "Malibu" is a corruption of the Chumash word Maliwu, the name of the Chumash village located at the mouth of Malibu Canyon, near Malibu Point. Following the area's takeover by the Spanish in 1805, 13,316 acres of shoreline and adjacent mountain land were granted by the Spanish government to Jose Tapia, a former soldier, as Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit.

Frederick and May Rindge purchased the ranchland in 1887, following the American takeover from the Spanish. The Rindge family soon began an intense struggle with the new state of California to seclude Malibu by preventing construction of the intended public highway planned to run along the coast.

"The story of Malibu is very interesting," noted 1966 world champion surfer Nat Young, in his 1983 History of Surfing. "Rancho Malibu had been handed down to Rhoda May Ringe [sic] in 1905 when her husband Frederick died. She built her own railroad from the pier in Malibu to the northern end of her ranch at the Ventura County line. In 1926 Rhoda May Ringe was forced to give up." Before she did so, she had gone as far as hiring armed guards to keep out trespassers and dynamiting highway construction attempts. She eventually exhausted her financial resources in court battles, which she lost. The state opened the highway through Malibu in 1929. First known as the Roosevelt Highway, it is now what we all know as "Highway 1," or the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH).

"She had fought a battle with the authorities," continued Young, writing of Rhoda May Rindge, "for 17 years," to preserve her 26 miles of coastal land. Mrs. Rindge "had been ridiculed by the press for standing in the way of p rogress, and had gone four times to the California Supreme Court." In the process, "She completely exhausted her considerable fortune."

What became known as the "Malibu Colony" began when May Rindge began leasing her shoreline property to writers and entertainers. The exclusive community is now inhabited by movie stars, musicians and other celebrities. "It's interesting to consider," pondered Young, "that had [she] gone along with government access to her land she would probably have been able to keep her ranch and thus all the coastal land from Topanga to the Ventura County line." This is certainly one of the most beautiful stretches of coastal California.

Toward the end of the period of Rhoda May Rindge's battle with the State of California, in September 1926, Tom Blake and Sam Reid made their foray into Malibu. Reid recalled the day vividly:

"Visualize, if you can, a beautiful September day in California. On this day, the first wave was ridden at what was then Malibu Ranch, stretching from Las Flores Canyon to Oxnard, and owned by Samuel K. Rhindge [sic]. The coast hiway was then a two lane road, dirt most of the way. Tom Blake had stopped by the Santa Monica Swimming Club to pick me up. In those days, cowboys with guns and rifles still rode the Malibu Ranch, and the gate at Las Flores Canyon had a 'Forbidden -- No Trespassing' sign on it. We took our 10' redwoods out of the Essex rumble seat and paddled the mile to a beautiful white crescent-shaped beach that didn't have a foot print on it. No buildings and, of course, no pier! There was no audience but the seagulls."

Story courtesy Malcolm Gault-Williams & Legendary Surfers


	Santa Monica, 1921-24 Despite the ravages of World War I, the period following the war was rich in Western culture. In 1921 alone, D.H. Lawrence published Women In Love; Ezra Pound was still creating brilliant poems; Rafael Sabatini's pirate adventure Scaramouche was a best seller and; Die Walküre was the first Wagnerian opera to be staged at the Paris Opéra since before the war. Going near unnoticed, a German politico by the name of Adolf Hitler was beginning to cause trouble in Germany, as his "storm troopers" (SA) began to terrorize political opponents. "I first rode California surf in 1921," wrote Tom Blake in his 1935 classic Hawaiian Surfboard, the first book to devote itself to surfboards and surfriding. "The Vultee boys started around that time," Blake continued. "Preston Peterson, I saw ride a first break wave at Ocean Park about 1924, when he was nine years old. He had been riding several years then... [by] 1933 Peterson was the best on the Pacific Coast and his cleverness is equal to the best at Waikiki." Living in Santa Monica, Blake worked as a lifeguard, a swimming instructor, and later as a movie stunt double. "Don't forget," Gary Lynch reminded me, "long before Peterson, Blake started working in the movies [1922] because of his water talent, building the first trail for the rest of the surfing pack to later take advantage of." It was while working as a lifeguard at the Santa Monica Swimming Club that Blake uncovered the redwood plank he first surfed on. "Like all of the boards of the day," wrote Gary, "this one was heavy and cumbersome. With nobody around to teach him, he paddled the board out to sea" and attempted to catch a wave. "He took a big pearl dive and it freaked him out. He did not try again for a month or two." When he did eventually catch a wave, that was both a turning point in Tom Blake's life and Twentieth Century surfing. Malibu First Ridden, 1926 Back in Santa Monica, Tom started building his own surfboards. One of the first people to own a Blake surfboard was Sam Reid. He and Blake would be the first surfers to ride California's most central of surf meccas, Malibu Point, in September of 1926. Originally home to the members of the Chumash and Gabrielino tribes, Malibu had been inhabited for approximately 7,000 years. The word "Malibu" is a corruption of the Chumash word Maliwu, the name of the Chumash village located at the mouth of Malibu Canyon, near Malibu Point. Following the area's takeover by the Spanish in 1805, 13,316 acres of shoreline and adjacent mountain land were granted by the Spanish government to Jose Tapia, a former soldier, as Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit. Frederick and May Rindge purchased the ranchland in 1887, following the American takeover from the Spanish. The Rindge family soon began an intense struggle with the new state of California to seclude Malibu by preventing construction of the intended public highway planned to run along the coast. "The story of Malibu is very interesting," noted 1966 world champion surfer Nat Young, in his 1983 History of Surfing. "Rancho Malibu had been handed down to Rhoda May Ringe [sic] in 1905 when her husband Frederick died. She built her own railroad from the pier in Malibu to the northern end of her ranch at the Ventura County line. In 1926 Rhoda May Ringe was forced to give up." Before she did so, she had gone as far as hiring armed guards to keep out trespassers and dynamiting highway construction attempts. She eventually exhausted her financial resources in court battles, which she lost. The state opened the highway through Malibu in 1929. First known as the Roosevelt Highway, it is now what we all know as "Highway 1," or the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH). "She had fought a battle with the authorities," continued Young, writing of Rhoda May Rindge, "for 17 years," to preserve her 26 miles of coastal land. Mrs. Rindge "had been ridiculed by the press for standing in the way of p rogress, and had gone four times to the California Supreme Court." In the process, "She completely exhausted her considerable fortune." What became known as the "Malibu Colony" began when May Rindge began leasing her shoreline property to writers and entertainers. The exclusive community is now inhabited by movie stars, musicians and other celebrities. "It's interesting to consider," pondered Young, "that had [she] gone along with government access to her land she would probably have been able to keep her ranch and thus all the coastal land from Topanga to the Ventura County line." This is certainly one of the most beautiful stretches of coastal California. Toward the end of the period of Rhoda May Rindge's battle with the State of California, in September 1926, Tom Blake and Sam Reid made their foray into Malibu. Reid recalled the day vividly: "Visualize, if you can, a beautiful September day in California. On this day, the first wave was ridden at what was then Malibu Ranch, stretching from Las Flores Canyon to Oxnard, and owned by Samuel K. Rhindge [sic]. The coast hiway was then a two lane road, dirt most of the way. Tom Blake had stopped by the Santa Monica Swimming Club to pick me up. In those days, cowboys with guns and rifles still rode the Malibu Ranch, and the gate at Las Flores Canyon had a 'Forbidden -- No Trespassing' sign on it. We took our 10' redwoods out of the Essex rumble seat and paddled the mile to a beautiful white crescent-shaped beach that didn't have a foot print on it. No buildings and, of course, no pier! There was no audience but the seagulls." Story courtesy Malcolm Gault-Williams & Legendary Surfers