Legendary California skateboarder suddenly dies aged 49

A legendary California skateboarder has died aged just 49, according to close friend and fellow pro skateboarder Louie Barletta.

The San Jose skating scene considered Marc Johnson one of its most influential figures, and those within the sport studied his technical precision and myriad of tricks for inspiration.

It is unclear how Johnson died. Barletta said when he last met him, the skateboarder “seemed genuinely excited about the future,” and handed him an envelope with a list full of his hopes and dreams.

He questioned why Johnson, whom he believed to be full of life at the time, would visit him less than a month before he died.

“I don’t know why he chose to come visit me. Was there some bigger purpose to it, or was he looking for closure?”

Johnson was born in North Carolina on January 6, 1977. He endured a difficult childhood before growing a passion for skateboarding and eventually winning Thrasher magazine’s Skateboarder of the Year in 2007.

Barletta told a grim story about how he watched Johnson’s rise and fall.

“I met Marc when he was 17,” he said. “I watched him achieve all his skateboard dreams, and I sat next to him at the ‘Away Days’ premiere—only to later watch his career fall apart.”

Johnson spoke about his recovery from alcoholism in a 2013 interview with Jenkem Magazine.

“I’ve been clean for a long time,” he said then. The skater told Barletta that he wanted to be remembered for skating and not his failures.

“He told me he wanted to be remembered for his skateboarding, not for his failures or shortcomings,” Barletta wrote.

“He was just a poor kid from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, who grew up in a trailer at the end of a dirt road. Yet he made it out, traveled the world, and touched so many lives.”

A tribute from another famous skateboarder, who Tony Hawk counted among his influences, wished Johnson and his family well.

“Rest in peace Marc, thank you for your commitment and contribution to skateboarding,” Steve Caballero said, “wish this could be avoided and we don’t have to read this but know that you are and were loved. Praying for his close friends and family.”

Johnson has also been praised for his work with Tilt Mode Army, a crew of skateboarders and filmmakers focused on skating with humor and personality.

“He was one of the most talented and creative people to ever step on or off a skateboard,” Barletta said.

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