For as long as I can remember, Tony Hawk has periodically hopped on Instagram in hopes of identifying what he calls "the icon of style" in a photo shot by photographer Bill Eppridge in 1965 for LIFE magazine. Maybe you've seen it?
Well, on April 19th, artist (and downright impressive investigative journalist, whether he considers himself one or not), Dan James Rodo joined forces with the Birdman to see if the social media world could help them uncover the story of the mystery man in this iconic photo. They just dropped the fourth installment... and they're getting extremely close! This is getting good. Check it out:
If you're just hearing about this, you should definitely stop what you're doing and follow Tony and Dan on Instagram (@tonyhawk / @danocracy) because they've really been digging deep to uncover this mystery, but like thousands and thousands of others, I've become personally invested. Again—Tony has been posting about this mystery skater forever and I'm pretty thrilled that they're not giving up.
They've been in touch with everyone from ex-LIFE magazine editors to Surfer magazine editors; the New York Parks Department to folks who were in Central Park during the shoot that day... as well as the gallery that represents photographer Bill Eppridge's work, his wife and so much more. This is the real deal!
There has been no shortage of comments on the posts either, offering potential leads, support and generally keeping the conversation going. It's so rad. Dan mentions that he plans on having another update posted within a week (honestly, these videos can't be that easy to make... so we salute you, Dan!) and we're all patiently waiting to see if he struck gold or uncovered anymore gems.
We'll be posting any updates here as they're available. In the meantime... keep it up, dudes! We're all rooting for you. Let's find this mystery man!
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