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IN THE WIND P24 ON ANY SUNDAY CREATOR, BRUCE BROWN, DIES AT 80 B ruce Brown, the iconic docu- mentary filmmaker who is best known to motorcyclists for produc- ing the classic motorcycling movie On Any Sunday, died Sunday, December 10. The news was announced on his website www.brucebrownfilms.com. He was 80. On Any Sunday is generally acknowledged as the best movie ever made about motorcycles and motorcycle racing. It helped spur the explosive growth of motorcy- cling during the 1970s. Brown's movie conveyed the fun and enjoy- ment that motorcycling added to people's lives. It documented the 1970 season of AMA Grand Na- tional racing by following defending champion Mert Lawwill, and also highlighted the multi-talented Mal- colm Smith. Many people from all walks of life took up motorcycling after seeing On Any Sunday. The movie was critical success as well, being nominated for an Academy Award for Documentary Feature film in 1972. Brown was born in San Fran- cisco on December 1, 1937. He grew up in Southern California, attending school in Long Beach before moving to Dana Point. Brown first earned acclaim for his groundbreaking surfing movie, The Endless Summer, which was released in 1966. Brown never had formal train- ing in filmmaking, and he says that probably worked to his advantage. "We probably did a lot of things that were pretty unconventional. I doubt I would have taken the same approach had I gone to film school," Brown said. Even though Brown already had a successful movie to his credit, he found that financing a film on mo- torcycling wasn't going to be easy. "I talked to a few folks and knew that Steve McQueen was a rider," Brown said. "Even though I'd never met him, I set up a meeting to talk about doing On Any Sunday. We talked about the concept of the film, which he really liked. Then he asked what I wanted him to do in the film. I told him I wanted him to finance it. He laughed and told me he acted in films, he didn't finance them. I then jokingly told him, 'Alright, then, you can't be in the movie.' "The next day after the meeting, I got a call and it was McQueen. He told me to go ahead and get the ball rolling with movie—he'd back it." On Any Sunday seemed to strike a chord with youngsters. Kids would hide in movie theater bathrooms between showings so they could watch the film two or three times in one day. Thousands of kids across the country started saving money from their paper routes and summer jobs to buy a mini bike after being inspired by the movie. "I think many people changed their minds about motorcyclists after watching the movie," Brown said. "One particularly funny story was told by Mert Lawwill. Being a motorcycle racer, he was sort of considered the black sheep of the family. The old matriarch of the family, Lawwill's grandmother-in- law, went to see the movie and in the middle of one of the scenes featuring Lawwill she stood up and shouted, 'That's my grandson!' Suddenly he was the big hero of the family." Many racers credited the movie with really helping their careers. Malcolm Smith, who was also a major focus of the film, credits On Any Sunday with giving him the worldwide recognition that enabled him to become a leading entrepre- neur in the off-road motorcycling business. Brown was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999. Memorial service details are pending. Larry Lawrence On Any Sunday filmmaker Bruce Brown passed away at the age of 80.