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At 90 years old, surf photography legend
LeRoy "Granny" Grannis no longer rides the waves, but his
birthday celebration Sunday proved he and the more than 150,000
photographs he has taken throughout his life won't be forgotten
by his fellow surfers.
About 150 people, including many who themselves were surf
legends, attended the party at the Oceanside Civic Center to
celebrate with Grannis and honor his role in surfing history.
Grannis grew up in Hermosa Beach, began surfing at age 14 and
continued hitting the waves throughout most of his life until he
was 82, his friends said. While a respected surfer, Grannis
gained fame within the surfing community for his photography
during a time when many surfing greats were emerging off the
coasts of Southern California.
"It's such a classic golden time that will never happen that way
again," said Linda Benson of Solana Beach, who was the 1959
female world surfing champion and five-time U.S. champion in the
1960s. "The legends of today that he photographed started it
all. He just captured that golden era."
Grannis began photographing surfers in 1959 and gained
recognition in the 1960s at a time when surfing had its heyday
with the rise of surf magazines, movies and musical groups such
as the Beach Boys.
Many of Grannis's friends and fellow surfers at the party,
sponsored by the California Surf Museum in Oceanside, said they
had known him for years, some practically since their very first
time on a surfboard.
Carlsbad resident Donald Takayama, a five-time U.S. surfing
champion and renowned board designer, said he first met Grannis
in his native Hawaii.
"LeRoy took a picture of me when I was a little kid surfing
without any clothes on in Hawaii," Takayama said. "LeRoy's been
an inspiration to me. (He is) one of the great surfers of
yesteryear."
Grannis's love of the sport was passed on to his two sons and
two daughters, said son John Grannis of Redondo Beach, who
learned to surf at age 4.
"We'd go out early every morning. We'd go to Hawaii every year,"
the younger Grannis said. "He always loved surfing, almost as
much as he loves my mom."
During Sunday's party, Grannis and his wife of almost 68 years,
Katie, wore colorful flower leis and sat at a table often
holding hands while they were swamped with fans, friends and
cameras. On an outside patio, a band played Hawaiian music.
In a brief interview, Grannis said his choice to take up surf
photography was natural for him, but he never expected to be so
recognized for it.
"I was a surfer," he said. "If I knew anything about shooting
anybody, it was surfing."
Through the years, Grannis was known up and down the coast, said
Brad Hall of Carlsbad, who has been a friend of Grannis for more
than 25 years and helped organize the party.
"When he gets up, that's his wave," Hall said. "Everybody stays
off that wave. That's Granny's wave."
And even though Grannis no longer surfs, he has never lost
interest in the sport, Hall said.
"Surfing's his life," Hall said. "His first question every day
when you see him is, 'How's the surf?' "
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