10 Facts About Miki Dora

Miklos Sandor Dora III, known professionally as Miki Dora, was a noted surfer of the 1950s and 1960s in Malibu, California.

Miki Dora was born in Budapest, Hungary and moved to California as a child.

Miki Dora's parents divorced when he was 6 years old.

Miki Dora stayed with his mother, Ramona Stancliff Miki Dora Chapin, but was mostly raised by his grandmother, with whom he lived well into his 20s.

Miki Dora was introduced to surfing by his father, Miklos, in the late 1930s.

Miki Dora called himself Mickey Chapin sometimes, a name that gave him a rare status in surfing - it made him second generation.

In 1958, Miki Dora acted as stunt double for actor James Darren in the surf themed movie Gidget.

Miki Dora decided to leave the US in 1974 and lived around the world spending a majority of his time in France and, in the '80s, South Africa.

Miki Dora was known to paint a swastika on his surfboards and author David Rensin who wrote Miki Dora's biography, surfboard designer Dale Velzy, and surf champion Nat Young all describe his views as racist and anti-semitic.

Miki Dora died at his father's home in Montecito, California, on January 3,2002, at age 67 from pancreatic cancer.