In the fifties, surfing was almost unknown by the general community. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, everybody wanted to go surfing or at least have an association with the lifestyle. Suddenly, a new style of surf clothing began to be seen, even in midwestern states far from the waves. What happened?No, it was not the Beach Boys who first popularized surfing. In 1957, a man wrote a short book about his daughter, who was one of the first surfer girls. Called “Gidget”, the book went on to become a hit movie in 1959. That was where it all really began.The producers of the film knew they were on to something big and enlisted big stars James Darren and Sandra Dee to star in the movie, with superstar Cliff Robertson in a strong supporting role. The movie featured some surfing footage, but mostly it featured girls in bikinis and well-built guys in surfing trunks.The popularity of that movie led to many more imitators. In pop music, surf music became huge, with groups like Jan and Dean and the Beach Boys making in to Number One on the charts
