“Growing up in Huntington Beach, you were either a traditional sports athlete, a skateboarder, or a surfer. I got my first skateboard when I was five and skated off and on over the years, did a little BMX racing as a kid, and then in my freshman or sophomore year I started getting a little bit more into skateboarding.” YearsFirstsLittlesKidsBitsSportsGrowing UpFiveGrowingLittle BitAthleteTraditionalBeachRacingFreshmanSurferSkateboardingSophomoreSkateboarderSophomore YearBmxHuntington Beach Author:Jason Lee
“I remember, growing up, if something big - God forbid - happened, the first jokes you heard on the subject came out of Jersey.” IfsFirstsBigsRememberGrowing UpGrowingHappenedHeardSubjectsJokesJersey Author:Oscar Nunez
“'Slumdog' was my first movie, and I had never been to India before - I was just a teenager in the U.K. with my headphones and my Nike shoes. What did I know about growing up in a slum?” KnowsFirstsGrowing UpGrowingIndiaShoesTeenagerSlumsNikeHeadphonesNike Shoe Author:Dev Patel
“I had all the usual ambition growing up. I wanted to be a writer, a musician, a hockey player. I wanted to do something that wasn't nine to five. Acting was the first thing I tried that clicked.” FirstsWantedActingGrowing UpFiveGrowingPlayerAmbitionMusicianNineHockeyUsualHockey Player Author:Michael J. Fox
“I was always interested in myths growing up. So, first I got into some Roman myths, then I was interested in Norse, then Celtic, then I started spreading to all the other mythologies.” FirstsGrowing UpGrowingMythMythologyCelticNorse Author:Grant Morrison
“Living in Sydney, I've taken the chance to start surfing again. One of my best memories of growing up is catching my first proper wave and surfing across it and my brother cheering at me from the shore.” FirstsMemoriesChanceGrowing UpTakenGrowingBrotherWaveMy BrotherShoreCheerSurfingCatchingSydneyBest Memories Author:Markus Zusak
“We were the children of white flight, the first generation to grow up in postwar American suburbs. By the time the ’60s rolled around, many of us, the gay ones especially, were eager to make a U-turn and fly back the other way. Whether or not the city was obsolete, we couldn’t imagine our personal futures in any other form. The street and the skyline signified to us what the lawn and the highway signified to our parents: a place to breathe free.” WayFirstsChildrenFormTurnsGrowsParentWhiteCitiesGrowing UpImagineGenerationsStreetsGayBreatheFlightHighwaysObsoleteSuburbsLawnsSkylines Author:Herbert Muschamp
“We, as artists, we have the right to express ourselves. That is our first amendment, freedom of speech. But I also believe that we have an obligation to the youth to be somewhat responsible in what we say on records. But I think that comes with age. I think that comes with artists growing up and becoming assured of who they are as people.” PeopleThinkingFirstsBelieveAgeArtistGrowing UpRecordsGrowingYouthBecomingSpeechResponsibleObligationAmendmentsFreedom Of SpeechAssuredFirst Amendment Author:Ja Rule
“Growing up, I can remember singing along with my ma all of the time. I wouldn't say she necessarily 'taught' me how to sing, but she was definitely the first person to inspire me to sing and the first to intrigue me vocally. I've always had a natural ear for music, though.” FirstsPersonsI CanRememberNaturalGrowing UpGrowingInspireTaughtSingingEarsIntrigueFirst Person Author:Elliott Yamin
“First, I wanted to be Chris Farley. When I was growing up, Chris Farley was still on the stages and fun to us. In my house, John Belushi was king. I didn't grow up when he was - I was born in '78 - the reruns of Belushi in 'Animal House,' and knowing he was at Second City, he was viewed as a king in my house.” FirstsStillsWantedHouseFunGrowsBornAnimalCitiesGrowing UpKnowingGrowingStageKingsRerunsSecond City Author:Jake M. Johnson
“My first book, Fast Forward, was about growing up in the shadow of Hollywood and how kids are affected by the culture of materialism and the cult of celebrity, and I've often felt the reason my work has an audience in the UK is because it's everything the British love to hate about the Americans.” FirstsBookReasonKidsHateCultureFeltAudienceGrowing UpGrowingShadowHollywoodBritishMaterialismAffectedCultLove Hate Author:Lauren Greenfield
“Growing up I was very into art. In high school I was into the surrealists and impressionists, and I loved Klimt. In '91 or '92 I saw one of those Felix Gonzalez-Torres Untitled billboards. I was just really arrested by it. It was kind of my first foray into contemporary art. It was a turning point for me as to what art could be and what it meant and the impact it could have.” FirstsKindArtSchoolGrowing UpSawsGrowingHigh SchoolImpactContemporaryArrestedTurning PointsContemporary ArtBillboardsSurrealistImpressionistsTorres Author:Chloe Sevigny