Surf Film Maker Kicks Out

[surfhorn]

I'm sorry to have to pass this along. Hal was a friend of mine whom I met while living in SoCal and surfing at Topanga. His cousin Tom Shea was my surf/ski partner for many years. Hal also filmed my old band Square Roots for use in his films.

-Dan

HAL JEPSEN RIP
Famous surf moviemaker dies at 66

Hal Jepsen, longtime surf moviemaker from Topanga, passed away on February 2nd at age 66. Jepsen had battled and appeared to have beaten cancer over the last few years, but was hospitalized Jan 3rd and died of liver failure.

Jepsen graduated from UCLA in 1968 with a B.A in Business; he worked for Coldwell Banker until his boss told him one day he shouldn't surf, that he should pick up golf. He immediately quit his job and started producing surf films.

Jepsen was most famous for his first film, Cosmic Children, which showcased Jeff Hakman and Barry Kanaiaupuni on the North Shore during the fabled winter of 1969. He made three other full-length surf films, A Sea for Yourself ('73), Super Session ('75) and We Got Surf, as well as three other shorter films.

Due to the fact that Jepsen tended to use his own record collection for the soundtracks of his films -- Cosmic Children featured Hendrix, the Stones, and Cream -- they generally did not enjoy release on DVD.

Click here for a clip of Cosmic Children

A memorial paddle out is being planned. Stay tuned for details.
-- Marcus Sanders

[surfhorn]

ooops just testing.
dy

[utahpaul]

Sorry to hear about Hal Jepson. Here's a story for ya. Once when I was still living in southern California we had three straight days of gale force southwest winds. First day it blew the ocean flat. Second day a little south windswell started to show. Third day there were large south wind waves showing at Playa del Rey where I always checked the swell. It was winter, but I headed for Malibu, wondering - just maybe... Well Malibu was terrible, wind too south and onshore, but on the way back Topanga looked to me like the North Shore. It was really big, very strong offshore, and no rocks - it was breaking on a mud bank (it was a season of very heavy rains) in about 18 inches of water. Just exploding. Bigger than I've ever seen it before or since, even the big south swells.

The Topanga guys were trying to take off up at the point and just getting annihilated. Never made a one. And they were good surfers. They always intimidated me some when the houses were still at Topanga. I was a skinny little kid (OK so I still am) and they were like, surf stars. So I still kind of wanted to stay away from them. But I thought, this is great, nobody out here towards the shorebreak. I can do this. So I waited for a lull and try it - no way, I get creamed on the way out. Washed back in. I finally punch through it, and wait for a set wave. This was before the leash days. (I always had the shaper put handles in for me, but it didn't help this day). I take off and freefall into oblivion. Kind of a freight train that just ate me alive. Just like the guys up at the point. My board washes down almost to Charthouse. Takes me like 20 minutes to walk down and get it and walk back. There's a big sandbar/mudbar starting near the Topanga traffic light that it washed onto. I paddle out again, and repeat the same procedure. This time I skipped down the face before I got worked. Same 15 - 20 minute walk to retrieve my board. By now I'm cold, tired, and nearly beat. It's still really windy and cold. I get back out, and think to myself, no way am I going to let this place beat me. So I take off, get a death grip on my rail with both hands as I recall, bottom turn and just screamed across that whole wave. One of those that I'm going so fast I can barely control the speed. I make the wave and go in. Exhausted. I may have taken one other wave, but that was it.

Next day I return and it's barely half the size. No strong offshore wind, but it's smooth and glassy. A few guys out, crowd nothing too unmanageable. It gets smaller as the morning progresses, like most windswells do. They die fast. Later possibly noon or so some guy starts filming. I get one of the bigger waves, totally misjudge it, way out in front looking like a geek and right then I notice I'm being filmed. Oh great. So I duck under the lip to fake like I'm getting tubed (not even close).

A few months later this film comes out called "we got waves" and I saw myself geeking out on that little wave. Nice effect with the backlit camera angle though. . I think, "man Mr Jepson, why didn't you come just one day earlier. It was insane!".

Well that's my post for this year. I have really enjoyed reading about you other kneeboarders while I've just been lurking. I'm trying to get down there to surf with y'all, but I'm lucky to get down 3 or 4 times a year. I almost came for your Big Sur agthering, but work got in the way. Oh well.

Haven't been "kbing since the plywood days", but almost. First Paipo Spoon in '68 or '69 - and I've been hooked ever since. Til next time...UtahPaul signing out.

[surfhorn]

Paul - Thanx for the story. Reminds me of the few years I spent surfing Topanga. I was fortunate to catch it during the El Nino years of the early 1980's and some classic days.

And we've all been there, getting creamed trying to get out.........then creamed again trying to just get a wave.

[MWROBERTSON]

Wow, this is sad. I have four of Hal's movies. All Epic! Cosmic Chilren, We've got surf, A SEA for yourself and Super Session. He did a great job and had that classic voice for narration. How stoked was I at the HB Surf Theatre as a young kid hearing the hoots of screaming surfers as Hakman, BK charged Sunset and Bertleman did on the rail round house cutbacks. That is of course if you could see the screen through the clouds of "Hippie Lettuce" smoke. RIP Hal.