advert taken from Surfabout Vol 2 No 12 1963, courtesy Australian National Maritime Museum
This great 1963 Surfabout ad for the Norm Casey V-Jet, tailored especially for discriminating Qantas staff, in transit at Waikiki, suggests that the surfer market was still an unformed and unknown entity, or at least far from the unruly, hooligan image emerging in the tabloid press. Interestingly, 70s Film-maker Steve Core just called to say Norm Casey supplied these boards exclusively for Qantas crew on stop-overs in Hawaii, who stayed at the Ilikai Hotel at Ala Moana, where a stash of boards and the odd Hobie Cat were readily on hand. More on Steve Core’s early years spent ushering for his dad’s surf movie screenings at Bondi and his own film-making to come…in the meantime check out his web site.