Its of the era whereby these first wooden boards with metal wheels were meant to teach you how to surf by what was assumed to be easier… This one is in better shape than many… And these are very rare. 21.5″ L x 5.5″ W. RAT FINK by Ed Roth!! However, before skateboards there were scooters, sometimes known as kick scooters and push scooters. Varied forms of scooters have been traced back to the early 1900s, most of them made from wood, metal, or a combination of the two. Scooters had anywhere from two to four wheels. Some of the wheels were metal and others were similar to the wheels on pedal cars. In the 1940s and 1950s, crate scooters made popular sidewalk vehicles. Most crate scooters were handmade. They were relatively inexpensive and simple for kids to construct by using a milk crate or wooden fruit box and metal roller skate wheels attached to a wooden 2 x 4. Eventually kids started removing the boxes and handlebars and just started riding the board with wheels, reminiscent of the famous skateboard scene in the 1985 film. Back to the Future. By the early 1960s, skateboarding started luring participants from the surfer scene. In 1962 a southern California surf shop, Val Surf, began making its own brand of skateboards and struck a deal with Chicago Roller Skate Company for the wheels. The skateboards began to attract everyday surfers who could use the boards when they weren’t in the water, and thus the term “sidewalk surfer” was coined. Additionally, skateboarding gained popularity when Larry Stevenson, publisher of. Promoted it in his monthly magazine. In 1963, Stevenson made the first professional skateboards using the Makaha brand and organized the first known skateboarding contest. That same year saw an evolution in skateboard design with the use of clay (also known as composite) wheels that replaced treacherous metal ones. Moving ahead, in 1964 surf and sailing entrepreneur Hobart “Hobie” Alter joined forces with Vita-Pakt company to make a line of Hobie skateboards; the Hobie line also sponsored several contests and professional skaters. Later that summer, the musical group Jan and Dean performed Sidewalk Surfin. On Dick Clark’s. An event which helped further popularize skateboarding with mainstream society. In 1965, the skateboarding sport peaked as manufacturers tried to keep up with the demand, cranking out an estimated 50 million skateboards between 1963 and 1965. In May, the world’s first skatepark, Surf City in Tucson, Arizona opened to the public.. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. For the Allan Sherman song, see Rag Mop. Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. Is one of several hot rod. Characters created by artist Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. One of the originators of Kustom Kulture. Roth conceived Rat Fink as an anti-hero to Mickey Mouse. Rat Fink is usually portrayed as either green or gray, comically grotesque and depraved-looking with bulging, bloodshot eyes, an oversized mouth with sharp, narrow teeth, and wearing red overalls with the initials R. He is often seen driving cars or motorcycles. In the late 1950s. By the August 1959 issue of Car Craft, “weirdo shirts” had become a craze, with Ed Roth at the forefront of the movement. His T-shirt designs inspired an industry. Rat Fink was advertised for the first time in the July 1963 issue of Car Craft. The ad called it “The rage in California”. Also in 1963, the Revell. Model Company issued a plastic model kit of the character. The initial run of the kit was from 1963 to 1965, but the Rat Fink kit, along with Roth’s other creations, has been re-issued by Revell over the years. Rat Fink continues to be a popular item to this day in hot rod and Kustom Kulture circles in the form of T-shirts, key chains, wallets, toys, decals, etc. Other artists associated with Roth also drew the character, including Rat Fink Comix artist R. Sloane and Steve Fiorilla. Who illustrated Roth’s catalogs. Rat Fink and Roth are featured in Ron Mann. S documentary film Tales of the Rat Fink (2006). Jeannette Catsoulis reviewed in The New York Times. Ogling fins and drooling over fenders, the movie traces the colorful history of the hot rod from speed machine to babe magnet and, finally, museum piece and collector’s item. Along the way we learn of Mr. Roth’s lucrative idea to paint hideous monsters-including the Rat Fink of the title-on children’s T-shirts. A Rat Fink revival in the late 1980s and the 1990s centered on the grunge. Movements, both in the U. West Coast and in Australia Roth drew Rat Fink artwork for the album Junk Yard. By the Australian band The Birthday Party. The band White Zombie produced a song titled “Ratfinks, Suicide Tanks, and Cannibal Girls”. The song was featured in the film Beavis and Butthead Do America. Along with an animated sequence reminiscent of Ed Roth’s artistic style. Fink’s, a bar-and-grille in Milwaukee. Wisconsin, is named in tribute to Rat Fink. There is a Rat Fink poster on the blue wall at stage left in The Pee-wee Herman Show. Skateboard with metal trucks. Old wooden skate deck. Metal wheels for smooth ride. Wooden skateboard with metal wheels. Retro metal wheels skateboard. 60s era skate deck. Vintage skateboard with character. Wooden skateboard with retro charm. Metal wheels for vintage feel. Classic wooden skateboard design. Vintage skateboard for collectors. Antique metal wheels skateboard. Vintage skateboard with history. Wooden deck with metal wheels. Classic skateboard with character. Vintage skateboard from Little Rock, Arkansas.