This is the first place that ever published my photos,
I was fourteen when I made the first photo I got published
The story of the magazine is told in this cool 40 minute documentary.
A Miami Beach teen died Tuesday after being shocked with a taser in the chest after police spotted him painting graffiti on an empty building.
Israel Hernandez, 18, was a skateboarder and artist who "wanted to change the world somehow through art,” his sister, Offir Hernandez, told the Miami Herald.
Miami Beach Police said they spotted Hernandez tagging an abandoned fast-food restaurant just after 5 a.m Tuesday morning near 71st Street at Collins Avenue.
"During the foot pursuit, the subject encountered officers face to face... and ignored officers' commands to stop," MBPD Chief Raymond Martinez said in a statement. "In order to affect his arrest, an officer deployed his conducted electrical weapon (TASER)."
Hernandez's friends Felix Fernandez and Thiago Souza said they were serving as lookouts when he was spotted by police. They told WSVN officers shoved Hernandez against a wall, then high-fived as he lay motionless.
"That made me feel terrible inside. These cops are gruesome, and they don't really care," Fernandez said.
Chief Martinez said that when Hernandez showed signs of medical distress, Miami Beach Fire Rescue responded to the scene and transported him to Mount Sinai Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
"The City of Miami Beach would like to extend their condolences to the family of Israel Hernandez," his statement concluded.
The incident remains under investigation, with autopsy and toxicology reports pending as Hernandez's family and the skateboarding and art communities mourn. He had recently launched his own line of skateboards, and had also shown his work in local galleries, according to the Miami Herald.
"He was always in our stores on one of his crazy self-shaped boards showing love," local skate shop MIA posted to Instagram. We lost a creative soul. You will be missed homie."
Back in DogTown's heyday Biniak was known as one of the toughest, hardest skating dudes out there. Few could match his skills skating the infamous pipes out in Arizona or on the vertical flat wall of Mt. Baldy. In pool skating he was a clear innovator as witnessed by my lens, and Craig Stecyk's even earlier when he was interviewed in SkateBoarder magazine's first ever "Pool Riding Symposium." Bob early on received the coveted "Who's Hot" bio, and later, only for the most respected riders, a full length interview in SkateBoarder. He was also voted as one of the top ten Skateboarders of the year in SkateBoarder magazine's first annual poll held in 1977.
In my personal experience he was far and away the toughest guy on the original Zephyr skateboard team. Bob drove a "Beemer" way before most of his comrades even had cars, or were rock-starring out. He led a life that early-on, spanned everything from rumored, sinister behaviors to a career in professional golf, while the rest of us were still just acting like kids. Bob waited for no one and was the ruler of every situation I ever saw him in. He leaves behind many friends and family including his wife Charlene and daughter Brie (now 5 years old). He suffered a massive cardiac arrest on Sunday and passed away Thursday at 12:51pm EST in Florida. He will be missed.
Here are a few more classic photos from my archive taken by Craig Stecyk that were included in our DOGTOWN - The Legend of The Z-Boys book, and my color shot of BB at the Dog Bowl that was the last page in his 1977 SkateBoarder Magazine interview, and in my book Fuck You Heroes.
Just found this great photo shot by the late Warren Bolster. UPDATE: New blog started by the family & friends: Biniak Bulletins
Who was Paul Haven? He was the art director at SkateBoarder magazine during it's entire run in the 70's, right through the last issue of Action Nowmagazine in the early 80's. As a youngster, he was my first encounter with art direction. He had a great aesthetic, although a bit typical of the era, it was still at times progressive too. He did good, clean, sharp work, like all of the Surfer publications of the day. A big inspiration to my page aesthetic forever. He also worked on Super-X magazine with me and several of the other old crew in the late 90's. Last time i saw him was at my L.A. sixspace show in 2004.
"King James" Cassimus told me just last night that it was a very sudden death, happened Saturday evening, caused by pneumonia. James also sent me the above photo of Paul at the magazine offices from 1979.
I first met (as did several others), infamous and now world famous art director David Carson while he was filling in for a vacationing Paul way back then as a substitute AD at SkateBoarder. I always thought Paul was way better. He respected the work of those who he worked with, didn't over design or care to bring attention to his own skills, he presented his pages like a professional, to help tell the story, not to take it over or demean it (unfortunately i can't say that about Carson and so many other AD's these days).
He will be missed, my sincere condolence to the family and friends.
