Quite Continental

“We could be in the middle of putting out the magazine, but if someone
said the surf is up, this place would be deserted in five minutes.”

In honor of International Surfing Day today, a few pictures I’ve been saving for awhile of John Severson, the original founder, editor and publisher of Surfer Magazine, taken in San Clemente in 1966 by photographer Bill Ray for Life Magazine.  At the time of the feature, Severson was 32.  The photos show a bit of his life at the office (where he preferred to spend only 3 hours a day…in flip flops), as well as with his wife Louise, and their two daughters, Anna and Jenna.  I especially like the one of the girls parading while Severson plays the tuba.

“I had an attache case once and found that the more I kept it around, the more things I found to put in it and bring home from the office.  So I put it away and get along just fine without it.”

“Each year when you go back to the surf, there is a certain amount of fear of the waves to conquer.  Anyone who hasn’t been on the waves in quite a while and says he’s not afraid when he first returns is a liar.”

If you would like to read the original article, you can find it here.

Tagged: Bill Ray, John Severson, Journalism, Photography, San Clemente, Surfer Magazine, Surfing