Elvis gets his mop tightened up in Memphis – 1956
Elvis Presley has always been larger than life. In the modern era, his name is known even by people who have never heard his music or watched his films. But he wasn’t always the legends he is today. The “King of Rock N Roll” was born in the small town of Tupelo, Mississippi in 1935. In 1954 he started to pursue his passion for uptempo music in Memphis and by 1956 he released his very first single called Heartbreak Hotel. From that moment, his light burned fast and bright and he took the world by storm. Dozens of number one songs and movies later, Elvis became a shadow of his former self. Ballooning in weight and age starting to creep up on him, Elvis became addicted to prescription pills and was found dead on a toilet in 1977. He was 42 years old.
In the 1940’s, surfers looked for other people to surf with since hardly anyone rode waves back then – 1938
Surfing in California started off as a fun pre-war distraction with only a few people learning the ancient Hawaiian sport in the 1920’s. Surfer Tom Blake is the main person to introduce the sport to California after having spent time in Hawaii and trying surfing himself. In 1929, Blake built himself a hollow board with and by 1931, he received a patent for his hollow surfboard design. This simple adjustment in the surfboards length and weight made it more attractive to people and soon the sport gained momentum. By the 1960’s, over a million people were surfing thanks to movies like Gidget and Blue Hawaii starring Elvis.