Harold Hunter, 31, Skateboarder With Celebrity Appeal, Dies
NY Times
Harold Hunter, whose skateboarding prowess and outsize personality led him to modeling and movie roles, celebrity friendships and prominence in the downtown Manhattan scene, was found dead on Feb. 17 in the East Village housing project where he grew up. He was 31. His brother, Ronald, who summoned the police to the apartment, said the cause was a heart attack.
Mr. Hunter was already well known in skateboarding circles when he was a teenager and began gaining mainstream fame after landing film roles, including one in “Kids,” the 1995 movie portraying a decadent teenage subculture.
By his early teens, he was touring with Zoo York, the prominent New York skateboarding team, and appearing widely in skateboard magazines and videos, showing his mastery of moves, from basic skills like the ollie, a skateboard hop, to high-flying backside heel flips.
From benches to stoops to staircases and building facades to handrails, the cityscape of Lower Manhattan became Mr. Hunter’s skate park. He was a fixture in Washington Square, Union Square and Astor Place and at skating spots like the Brooklyn Banks, the concrete slopes under the Brooklyn Bridge in Manhattan.
Technorati Tags: Harold Hunter, skateboarding, modeling, movie, celebrity
February 26th, 2006 at 9:26 pm
legends never die!!!
February 27th, 2006 at 5:45 am
An excellent sentiment. And certainly a sad loss.
March 4th, 2006 at 10:35 pm
The skateboarding family had definitly lost another iconic individual. The next time I push down the road on my skateboard it will be for all the fallen soldiers!
March 5th, 2006 at 6:57 am
And we think the important thing for you to do is to keep pushing down the road, smiling and laughing all the while…