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Doc Paskowitz

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Athlete

The Resume

    (March 3, 1921-November 10, 2014)
    Born in Galveston, Texas
    Birth name was Dorian Paskowitz
    Physician turned surfer
    Patriarch of 'the first family of surfing'
    Founded Paskowitz Surf Camp (1972)
    Inducted into the International Surfing Hall of Fame (1991)
    Subject of the documentary film 'Surfwise' (2007)

Why he might be annoying:

    He admitted, 'Sick people made me nervous. I couldn't stand the sight of blood.'
    His first two marriages ended in divorce.
    He, his third wife, and their nine kids traveled around the country in a 24-foot camper, an experience their daughter Nava described as being like 'weird monkeys in a small monkey cage.'
    Nava also noted that most nights she and her siblings could hear their parents noisily having sex.
    Somtimes, things got even more cramped: he, his wife and five of their kids spent the better part of a year living in a '72 Chevy Impala.
    Every so often, he would throw away what few possessions his children managed to acquire.
    He said, 'I just wanted my kids around me, surfing with me, education be damned.'
    Several of his children noted that their lack of education and insular upbringing made it difficult to transition to a life outside of surfing.
    One son said, 'Bum, surfer, or rock star. That's what he trained us for.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He and his third wife Juliette were married for 55 years.
    He became disillusioned with being a physician partly because he felt guilty about taking money from sick people.
    He introduced surfing to Israel (1956).
    Several of his children became professional surfers and were good enough that at many competitions there were Paskowitzes finishing first, second and third.
    He continued surfing into his 90s.
    His wife Juliette noted, 'Not withstanding the fact that he's a little shriveled, most men on the beach do not have the figure that my husband has. The tummy on him is fantastic.'
    He and Kelly Slater founded Surfing for Peace to deliver boards to the surfing community in Gaza (2007).
    He said, 'Sex is the only thing in life that’s as much fun as surfing. So, like surfing, it deserves the very best you can give it.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 5 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 7 Votes: 28.57% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 20 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 145 Votes: 50.34% Annoying