Echo Beach tells the story of the Newport Beach surf scene in the eighties. Originally a reference to the steep, fast breaks between 52nd and 54th Streets, the name “Echo Beach” came to signify an entire era of Southern California surf culture. A group of innovative, extra-rebellious local surfers rose to global prominence not only for their new level of athleticism in the sport of surfing, but also for their (then) whacked-out contributions to style, fashion, business, culture and the arts. Neon colors, new styles, and a general loudness pervaded the Echo Beach scene, along with the usual cornucopia of drugs, girls and parties that always abounds in any surf scene worth its salt.
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The film features interviews with a hefty line-up of Echo Beach connoisseurs, including Bob Hurley, Bob McKnight, Peter Townend, Mike Moir and a host of others. A screening of the film will be showing locally on August 6th, at the Lido Theatre, 3459 Via Lido, Newport Beach 92663, at 7:00pm and again at 8:30pm. The last showing sold out fast, so get your tickets in advance and check out this story of a too-often-overlooked slice of surfing history.
