Rookie 1997.

The New York you don't know.

I think this is the first ad for Rookie. I like how they contrast their version of the city with the famous landmarks and the Zoo York/Supreme/Metropolitan crew. The New York City based company began as a clothing line by Catharine Lyons and Elska von Hatzfeldt that expanded into a proper skateboard entity. I'm mildly surprised Rookie debuted in Big Brother as they seem out of place in that mag, but it makes sense with the NYC connection to Dimitry Elyashkevich. I don't believe they had any other ads in Big Brother and stuck with Slap for the bulk of their existence.

It was nice to see the Knicks win a championship. Nothing against the Spurs, but this was probably New York's best chance to get a ring.

The photos are by Dimitry.

Big Brother - Spring 1997 Number 25

Ryan Wilburn & Anthony Furlong.

Torquing some air.

A pair of Southern rippers blast off for Torque. This was probably both guys first bigger sponsor. Ryan was on Stereo by the end of 1997 before switching over to Consolidated. Anthony is from Georgia and has ridden for Zoo York. That's about all the info I have on him. The graphic design for Torque was pretty decent. That's what caught my eye. It's very much of the middle 1990s, but also avoids the pitfalls of the era.

The park has been empty and the winds have calmed down so I've been going there to skateboard in the evenings lately. It's nice to roll around fast. I'm not really skating so great any more for me and it is wearing me out. I'll get a few tricks every time out that make me think I can still do this and the rest of the time is frustrating. I might just need some new trucks. And on that note, hope everybody has a good weekend.

Pete Thompson took his camera to the Skate Park of Tampa for Anthony's photo.

Ryan: Big Brother - June 1997 Issue 26

Anthony: Big Brother - December 1997 Issue 31

Chad Kramer.

Monster centipede.

Chad is from the Reading, Pennsylvania area. He'd make appearances in the mags when they trekked out east. There's a possibility he skated with Bam Margera and his crew. I don't know anything about him other than he had a lot of ads for Torque and could obviously skate transitions.

I think that's East Coast vert legend Dan Tag in the frontside feeble ad.

One photo is credited to Back. I'm not sure on a full name.

Back tail: Big Brother - Spring 1997 Issue 25

Flip: Big Brother - September 1997 Issue 28

Feeble: Big Brother - October 1998 Issue 41

Richard Kirby & Stormy Pruitt.

Film Grain.

Here's a pair of shredders for Torque. Richard would go on to ride for Santa Cruz and run a company called Big Mess in the 2010s. He has rails on his board, which was uncommon for 1995-96. I think he is wearing some Duffs. Richard might also play in some bands. Stormy is an Atlanta ripper from the 1990s. I don't know too much about him. He'd always pop up any time the mags visited the South.

Richard's photo is by Noah Martineau.

Richard: Slap - February 1996 Volume 5 Number 2

Stormy: Slap - November 1996 Volume 5 Number 11

Thomas Taylor #2.

High Tension.

Torque was an Atlanta based company run by the late Thomas Taylor. He also ran the Stratosphere shop. His son Grant took after the old man and can really tear it up on a skateboard. Thomas sponsored a lot of Atlanta locals along with fellow Southerners for Torque. Sadly, he passed away in 2023.

The photos are by Alf Elder.

Slap - January 1997 Volume 6 Number 1

Marc Johnson #19.

"For careers you say you want to be remembered for your art."

Marc Johnson recently passed away at the age of 49. He started as a teenager from North Carolina who moved to California in the early 1990s for the sake of skateboarding and became one of the best to ever do it over the next three decades. The ups and downs of his life are well known and there's no need for me to restate any of it.

There's something innocently wonderful about these old Maple ads. Skateboarding was improving in 1994-95 and yet it still retained that smaller underground DIY charm. You could tell from the assorted photos and interviews that Marc was bringing something unique to the table. As he grew older and established himself, his philosophy on skateboarding developed fully. He injected humor and levity into the skateboard world at the end of the 1990s when it was needed and that shaped things going forward.

For all of his videos parts and achievements, I always come back to the first third of Marc's part in Lakai's Fully Flared from 2007. I stick to the front end because as the part moves along the skateboarding crosses the line from being fun to being work. He skates to "Goodbye Horses" by Q Lazzarus. I had never knowingly heard that song before and figured it was of the era without realizing it was from 1988. It's a great tune that fits exactly with his tricks and personality. The melody of the song sets a mood that is somehow both melancholic and comfortable. Some of my favorite moves from the part include a frontside 50-50 to back foot flip, a rock to pivot on a natural transition in Australia, and a straight nollie over a bump to bar. I'm not adding anything by saying that a really good part in an important skateboard video is really good, but it's fine to appreciate nice things without overthinking why they are nice things sometimes.

And with that the Shampoo Lounge is closed.

Ed Dominick took the photo in the overseas ad. He might have taken some of the other pictures, too.

Progress: Transworld - June 1995 Volume 13 Number 6

Television: Transworld - July 1995 Volume 13 Number 7

Sunset: Transworld - December 1995 Volume 13 Number 12

Andy Stone & Pepe Martinez #2.

Fine Artists.

Andy and Pepe were staples of the DC scene in the 1990s. The pair were on Element before leaving to ride for Capital. They were part of the original team at Nicotine Wheels, which gave them the connection for when boards started being made. Having two established pros is an effective way to start a new brand on the right foot. Cool photos and solid graphic design also helps a lot. It's too bad there were some issues that led to Capital falling apart. Sadly, Pepe passed away in 2003. I always forget Andy rode for 101 and BBC prior to Element. He works as a civil engineer and has done some skatepark design.

For last week's Chany Jeanguenin post, The Dirt of Luck refers to the album by Helium. This was Mary Timony's band with Ash Bowie of Polvo on bass. They had a couple albums on Matador and two videos that were shown on MTV at least once.

I've been skateboarding a bunch now that the weather is milder and there is more daylight in the evenings. I'm still not really skating great for me and it is a drag. I think I'm just getting old.

Vert Is Dead is taking a late spring break.

It's probably going to be two weeks off. If it winds up being three, don't worry, I'll be back.

Ryan Gee and Lance Dawes were the photographers.

Andy: Slap - August 1996 Volume 5 Number 9

Pepe: Slap - July 1996 Volume 5 Number 7