Simmons, Bob (1919 – 1954)
Seminal post-World War II surfboard designer and shaper from Pasadena, California; a primary architect of the modern surfboard who almost singlehandedly brought into play the now-fundamental principles of nose-lift, foil, and finely sculpted rails.
Simmons was born (1919) in Los Angeles, the son of a postman, and raised in the Los Angeles communities of Silverlake and Pasadena. He developed a cancerous tumor in his left ankle at age 16, and nearly had the limb amputated before the growth wen...