Rolf Aurness

Rolf Aurness is an American surfer, born on 18 February 1952 in Santa Monica, California, who won the 1970 World Surfing Championships at Johanna in Victoria, Australia, beating the Australian champion Midget Farrelly in the final. He is the son of the Gunsmoke actor James Arness, who used surfing to help him recover after a childhood skull fracture, with dawn sessions, long swims and weekend trips to beaches such as Hollister Ranch and repeated stays at Makaha in Hawaii. In the decade after his world title he stepped away from surfing following the deaths of his wife, his mother and his sister. His adopted brother Craig founded the stock photography agency Westlight and also photographed for National Geographic.