Corky Carroll is a three-time international and five-time U.S. surfing champion.

Last week I ran a piece about a girl named Linda Miller who runs the “Surfin’ Sundays” concert series at the Huntington Beach Pier.

She recounted her friendship with the legendary “King of the Surf Guitar” himself, Dick Dale. Dick had befriended her and her son.

I received so much email about this piece and praise for Dick and support for his future nomination for the Surfing Walk of Fame in Huntington Beach that it took most of my Sunday to answer them all.

In the process I wanted to do a bit more on Dick and express my own support for that nomination and also for the Surfing Hall of Fame.

Then I came across the following email from Mark Holkey of Cypress and thought that this was more of an appropriate follow up than me recounting stories of Dick Dale that I have already told here. Here is what Mark wrote to me.

“While I was paging through my OC Register this morning at It’s a Grind coffee house, I came across your article, which had excerpts from an email describing what a great friend Dick Dale has been to a particular Huntington Beach family (which includes the current director of music events at the Huntington Beach pier and her physically challenged son).

I was not surprised by her account of Dick Dale’s generosity and his interest in her son from the time that they met till her son’s eventual passing because I encountered Dick up in Big Bear somewhere around 1997 and the kind/generous man that she describes is the same man that I met.

To be perfectly honest, I would not have known he was still with us in 1997 if he hadn’t just had one of his guitar riffs used for part of the background music in Pulp Fiction. I remember that there were articles about him at that time in some of the major music mags, and then I bumped into him that “fateful day” in a rustic motel lobby in the mountains.

It was a chance meeting, and very relevant for me because at that time I was playing guitar in a local Orange County/Laguna Beach band called Stress Factor. My family and I had spent the day playing in the snow and we decided to spend the night up on the hill.

I stopped at one of the Bed and Breakfast Inns and found the lady behind the counter engaged in a lively discussion with one of the patrons. It turned out to be Dick Dale. I was aware of who he was and we started talking music.

He was so energetic (probably in his early-60’s at this point) and so enthusiastic in talking about the whole music scene and what he did in the early days to try to capture his raw guitar riffs on his records. His enthusiasm was contagious and left a lasting impression on me.

Forty-five minutes went by and it was like we were of the same cloth, with him 30+ years my senior. I never hit my stride musically and never made it to the level where I could support my family on what I was making playing at Hurricanes, Club Mesa, Tiki Bar, and every other Orange County, Laguna Beach and L.A. rock club you can think of.

So I worked by day and played my guitar where they would let me by night. Anyone who can make a go of it in the music biz has my admiration. In Dick’s case that guy can play his guitar like no one else in the genre, although many have tried an imitation of his sound.

From my chance meeting with him, I found him to be an exceptionally nice guy and now that you have brought back my memory of that day, I just want to say that I hope he is well and I wish him all the best because of what he means to all of the people who know and love him.”

To add to this let me point out that it was more than a few of Dick Dale riffs in the background track to Pulp Fiction. It was his all-time hit song “Miserlou” that was the theme song to the movie. That tune is my own personal pick of the best instrumental surf song ever.

Also, Dick is alive and well and sent me an email to say thanks to Linda Miller for her kind words and to remind me to do all I can to make others smile.

This entry was posted on Friday, June 29th, 2007 at 5:10 pm and is filed under Beach culture, Surfing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.