Bud Browne was born in Newtonville, Massachusetts on July 14, 1912 and died in San Luis Obispo, California on July 25, 2008. He moved to Los Angeles in 1931 and attended the University of Southern California, competing in collegiate swimming and became the captain of the team. In 1938, after graduating from the University, Browne obtained a job as a life guard. His time in this new occupation however, was short lived because he was soon enlisted into the Navy during World War II. While at war, he taught many Marines how to swim. After the war, he again received a job as a lifeguard and was given the nickname "Barracuda" because of his reputation as being one of the best body surfers of his time. While serving as a lifeguard in the late 1940s, Browne began filming body surfers. Realizing his potential, Browne went back to the University of South Carolina in the early 1950s to attend film school. While on a surfing expedition with Duke Kahanamoku in Waikiki, Hawaii in 1953, he made his inaugural film, Hawaiian Surfing Movies. The debut of his first film took place at John Adams Junior High School in Santa Monica, California to an audience of about 500 people. Because it was a silent film, Bud narrated the entirety of the film using the school's PA system.
