SkateBoarder Magazine circa 1975
There was so much aggression... they were more like a street gang than a skate team.


rolling stone, april 17, 2003
"Might well be the most comprehensive biography ever written about a pop act while it was still in its prime."


Book Description
In the early 1970s, the sport of skateboarding had so waned from its popularity in the 1960s that it was virtually non-existent. In the Dogtown area of west Los Angeles, a group of young surfers known as the Zephyr Team (Z-Boys) was experimenting with new and radical moves and styles in the water which they translated to the street. When competition skateboarding returned in 1975, the Z-Boys turned the skating world on its head. . Dogtown The Legend of the Z-Boys is a truly fascinating case study of just how an underground sport ascended on the world. These are the stories and images of a time that not only inspired a generation but changed the face of sport forever. The Legend of the Z-Boys has been described as "The Dogtown text book" and an insightful companion piece to the movie: "DogTown and Z-Boys". . Spanning 1975 – 1985, the first section of the 240 page book includes the best of the "DogTown" articles written by C.R. Stecyk III as they originally appeared in SkateBoarder Magazine. The second half compiles 100’s of never before seen skate images from the archive of Glen E. Friedman - many of which appear in the movie. Both Stecyk and Friedman acted as executive producers and advisors for the award winning film, Dogtown and Z-Boys to be released nationwide simultaneously by Sony Picture Classics in April 2002.


About the Author
GLEN E. FRIEDMAN - Considered the most important photographer of his generation, Glen E. Friedman has been a unique documentarian since the age of 12, and soon thereafter his first published photo appeared in SkateBoarder magazine. Over the past 25 years he has photographed some of the most idealistic, interesting and rebellious cultural icons around, documenting the rise of the hard-core punk rock scene in the late 70's/early 80's with such bands as BLACK FLAG, DEAD KENNEDY's, MINOR THREAT and even producing the 1st album for SUICIDAL TENDENCIES (also from DogTown) and later the rise of rap music in the mid 1980's with groups such as PUBLIC ENEMY, RUN-DMC, and the BEASTIE BOYS. He was one of the first to publicize these groups nationally and many of his photographs are recognized as the subjects' definitive portraits. Glen E. Friedman has compiled images from his 25-year involvement within the rebelious cultures of skateboarding, punk and hip-hop music into two collections, Fuck You Heroes (1994) and Fuck You Too (1996). Selections from these books became the Fuck You All photography exhibit, which has toured internationally since 1997. In 1998 Friedman released The Idealist which showcases Friedman's unique perspective and asthetic. CRAIG STECYK III's role as a painter, photographer, graffiti-artist and journalist, played a pivotal role in spreading the influence of the Z-Boys throughout American youth culture. He has been working professionally in film and video production, as a writer, art director, production designer and photographer, since the late 1960s. In DogTown - The Legend of the Z-Boys, Glen E. Friedman says of Stecyk: "I personally credit this man as the single largest influence on my work. If I could consider anyone a mentor it would be him. Stecyk is a true artist and one of the most creative individuals I have ever encountered. The man is way beyond genius." and "Stecyk often credits me for uncovering and documenting some of the original radical energies of DogTown's skate heyday. But if it weren't for the instigation and inspiration of his articles, which so vividly told the story of our environment [and all included in this volume], I doubt that my life's work would have the influence it does."