Surf Report - What's New at International Surfing Museum in Huntington Beach

What's New at the Huntington Beach International Surfing Museum

from the proud HBISM public relations director, Chris MacDonald

Huntington Beach, California - We debuted part 2 of the Surf and Sounds exhibit featuring Jan and Dean at the Huntington Beach International Surfing Museum. Huntington Beach's famous resident, singer, song writer and talented artist Dean Torrence was there and sang Barbara Ann, a tune made famous by the Beach Boys, Dean's friends who were previously featured at our museum.

The Surftones also started our Surfin Sunday concert series which goes most Sundays from April to early October. The concerts are held from 1PM to 4PM in the museumm's parking lot  (411 Olive) and at Pier Plaza on three Sundays from 11AM to 5PM. Look at the surfing museum's website for the exact information at: surfingmuseum.org.
A special thanks to Natalie Kotsch, the founder for making the surfing museum and thanks also to chairperson Jodi McKay,  events director Linda Miller,  membership director Randy Lyford and exhibits director Bonnie Flamm, for putting this exhibit together.

 

The Huntington Beach International Surfing Museum is filled with Surf Memorabilia

Vacationers escaping the Arizona heat or Nevada desert are some of the top visitors to Huntington Beach, California. If the heat has you down, or if the winter blues are getting to you, you definitely want to visit the International Surfing Museum.

The museum has been a mainstay for the surfing community and for surfers who have grown up, getting to know the likes of Ann Beasley, who retired from her volunteer position at the museum recently after nearly 20 years of service. Young and old continue to come by to see her, and also Natalie Kotsch, the founder of this non-profit museum housed in a city building that once was a doctor's office. Kotsch, a Canadian-born surf enthusiast who has never surfed, is a Realtor who founded the museum several decades ago.

Jan and Dean exhibit

Running through mid-October, the Jan & Dean exhibit includes memorabilia such as the hit duo's records, a billboard  sign, and a map with over 250 hotel keys attached to the cities in which Torrence and Jan Berry stayed. The museum board members have worked long hours, removing the Beach Boys exhibit and setting up the new exhibit featuring not only Dean Torrence who has worked as a successful graphic artist, but also Celine Chat, a French surfer who also creates original artwork.

One fun element that's been added to the museum space is a corner theater with stadium seats. Visitors to our affordable museum can sit and watch old Jan and Dean films and videos of concert performances. 

Strategically planned to coincide with the launch of the museum's newest exhibit is the Surfin' Sundays concert series, one of Huntington Beach's and Southern California's best kept secrets. Bands from around the globe travel to Huntington Beach for the honor of playing surf tunes at this popular event.

In addition to the new exhibit launch, some regularly featured items will remain on the exhibit floor. One favorite is the bust of Duke Kahanamoku, the Hawaiian ambassador of surfing to the mainland US. Some call the inset corner the Duke Shrine, as it features his likeness in a bust that once appeared at the Huntington Beach Pier, his surfboard, a poster of him with his surfboard, old photos, and the first 2002 postage stamp in his honor that came about, thanks to the work of the museum's own Ann Beasley.

As you enter the museum, you'll notice our gift shop. We sell tons of merchandise such as souvenir key chains, t-shirts, posters, art works, stickers gift cards and even little miniature woody cars. We are open every day and welcome visitors from around the world who can bring a small container of sand from the beach in their home town that we add to our sand collection. It is one of the fun things we do at the Huntington Beach Surfing Museum. We are  located at 411 Olive Ave. near Starbucks, Cold Stone, and all your favorite food places.