The legendary skateboarder Jay Adams, 53, died late Thursday of an apparent heart attack in Mexico. He was there with his wife on vacation. TMZ reports: “This was the first time in 20 years Adams was allowed to leave the U.S. He had been in and out of jail since the 80s on various felony drug charges.”
Adams was portrayed by Emile Hirsch in the film Lords of Dogtown. Dogtown refers to the tough neighborhood in Venice, CA where Adams was from. In the 1970s, Adams and friends became local legends known for death-defying surfing moves and their art of skateboarding. Adams paved the way to what is now referred to as “extreme sports,” and “created a lifestyle that spread infectiously to become a worldwide counterculture phenomenon.”
