Mark Anthony "Gator" Rogowski was born on August 10,1966 and is an American former professional skateboarder who was convicted of murder.
28 Facts About Mark Rogowski
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Mark Rogowski was mainly prominent in the 1980s and early 1990s.
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Mark Rogowski's life was chronicled in a critically acclaimed 2003 documentary titled Stoked: The Rise and Fall of Gator by American filmmaker Helen Stickler.
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Mark Rogowski was born in Brooklyn, New York, but he moved to Escondido, California, at the age of three after his parents divorced.
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Mark Rogowski was a gifted athlete, playing little league baseball in his youth.
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Mark Rogowski started to skateboard at age seven and, while most of his friends were into surfing, he eventually started to hang out at skate parks several years later.
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In 1978 after 2 years of skating local parks, 12-year old Mark Rogowski was picked up by a local skate team.
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Mark Rogowski started his professional skateboarding career in 1980 at age 14.
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Mark Rogowski was the first skateboarder to receive his own 'pro-deck' by Vision Sports, and his pro-deck proved popular and was followed by the Mark Gonzales and Tom Groholski models.
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Mark Rogowski was featured on the cover of Thrasher magazine for the first time in June 1984 and he would go on to be featured on the cover of Transworld Skateboarding in October 1985.
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At the height of his fame, Mark Rogowski was being paid "between $4,000 and $8,000 a month" for clothing and skateboarding equipment endorsements.
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Mark Rogowski was one of a group of elite skaters who enjoyed significant fame in the 1980s, alongside Christian Hosoi, Tony Hawk, Lance Mountain, and Steve Caballero.
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Mark Rogowski was a charismatic, flamboyant personality who received fame and fortune during skateboarding's return to popularity following the success of vert skateboarding.
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In 1986, Mark Rogowski was detained by police in Virginia Beach, VA after assaulting an officer in the parking lot of Mount Trashmore Park during the East Coast Assault pro contest.
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At a 1987 skate show in Scottsdale, Arizona, US, Mark Rogowski was introduced to Brandi McClain and her good friend Jessica Bergsten, an aspiring model.
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In 1989 Mark Rogowski worked as a stunt double on the 1989 film Gleaming the Cube, which starred Christian Slater, and appeared, along with McClain, in the music video for Free Fallin' by Tom Petty.
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For re-invention, Rogowski changed his name to "Gator" Mark Anthony, explaining "Rogowski" was the name of the father he never knew.
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Mark Rogowski began a period of severe alcoholism following McClain's departure.
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On March 20,1991, Mark Rogowski talked with 22-year-old Bergsten for the first time in years.
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Mark Rogowski then came up behind her and hit her in the head with a Club, a metal auto anti-theft device.
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Mark Rogowski turned himself in on April 11,1991, and led police to where he had disposed of Bergsten's body.
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In January 1992, at the plea hearing, Mark Rogowski submitted a four-page written statement.
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Mark Rogowski must have suffocated or had a seizure or a stroke or something.
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Deputy District Attorney Richard Sachs argued that Mark Rogowski remains an "unreasonable risk to society" and should remain imprisoned.
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On February 6,2015, another parole hearing was scheduled, but Mark Rogowski waived his right to a hearing for one year.
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However, Governor Gavin Newsom again reversed the parole board's decision, ensuring Mark Rogowski would continue to serve his sentence.
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Since California law prohibits video interviews with prison inmates, Mark Rogowski was interviewed over the recorded prison phone for the documentary.
28.
Mark Rogowski gave details on his background, his downfall, and claimed to have remorse for murdering Jessica Bergsten.