Warriors of Radness x Anthony Friedkin P.O.P. Pier Tee

Warriors of Radness‘ ‘P.O.P. Pier T‘, a photo print of the infamous pier shot by Anthony Friedkin is available now. The Pacific Ocean Park Pier was built in the late 1950s in Santa Monica, California. Built to compete with Disneyland, it drew 20,000 on opening day, July 28, 1958. But by the late 60s attendance plummeted mainly due to an urban renewal project begun by the city which ended up demolishing buildings in the area and closing streets leading to the park. It finally closed in 1967, fell to ruins, and became a heavily localized surfing break, especially for a bunch of local “Dogtown” skateboarders that would be known as the Z-Boys. Besides the intensity of more surfers than waves at the spot, dilapidated and busted pylons sticking out of the water made for a dangerous ride. Rare footage of the surfing at the pier can be seen in the 2001 documentary, “Dogtown and Z-Boys”. The P.O.P. Pier T is $42 and available exclusively at select WOR retailers, and at Reserve Online.

Anthony Friedkin was a young surfer and photographer back then and shot the most brilliant photo of the Pier in its later days. Tony has also accomplished a significant amount of relevant work since. His photographs are included in major museum collections including New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the J. Paul Getty Museum, along with numerous private collections. In 2008 he was included in a historical group show and coinciding book called, “This Side of Paradise” which examines the dynamic relationship between Los Angeles and the art of photography from the 1860s to the present.