Jerry Hsu
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Asian Elvis |
| Nationality | American |
| Born |
December 17, 1981 San Jose, California, U.S. |
| Residence | San Jose, California, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) |
| Sport | |
| Country | U.S. |
| Sport | Professional skateboarding |
Jerry Hsu (born December 17, 1981) is an American professional skateboarder and photographer. He was described by professional skateboarder and longtime friend Marc Johnson as a "cool breeze" in 2013.
As of 2007, Hsu's family home remains located in San Jose, California, United States (U.S.). Hsu's family is originally from Taiwan, and his parents speak both English and Mandarin Chinese. Hsu explained in 2010 that his Chinese-language fluency is akin to a "third grader."
Hsu commenced skateboarding in the early 1990s and he explained what he was attracted by in a 2013 interview: "I remember the reason I started skating was because I saw these kids with green hair and big pants and they looked so stupid, and I wanted to be that." His mother brought home a discarded concrete parking block during his early period of skateboarding and he later regarded the gesture as "very thoughtful."
Hsu's first skateboard deck sponsor was Maple, where he was a team member alongside Johnson, who facilitated his recruitment, Louie Barletta, Chad Bartie, and Chad Knight, among others. After he joined Maple, Hsu appeared in a promotional video for the northern California retail outlet NC Board Shop's clothing line, called "NC Clothing," alongside other sponsored riders, such as Gershon Mosely and Pancho Moler. Released in 1996, Montage runs for a duration of 30 minutes and also indicates that Hsu was sponsored by a brand named "Sutters" at the time.
The first Maple advertisement announcing Hsu's professional status with the brand was published in 1999, when he was 17 years old, and featured the tag line: "Not another brick in the wall." Hsu appeared in the 1999 Maple video Black Cat, which also featured Johnson and Barletta. Around the same period, Hsu was first sponsored by the Osiris Shoes company, which had rebranded itself after it was first launched as "Evol Casuals" during the preceding two years.
Although he was not yet a professional for Osiris, Hsu appeared in the 1999 Osiris video The Storm. His video part garnered attention for a never-before-seen trick that became known as a "Storm flip," in which the skateboarder performs a "nollie hardflip," combined with a 180-degree body rotation and "late flip" (a nollie trick is executed at the front end of the skateboard). In a May 2013 interview, Hsu explained that he is still asked to perform the trick on a frequent basis, but he tries not to perform Storm flips, as they are "too busy" and he feels embarrassed. Hsu also said that he enjoyed this time period with Osiris, as he was able to constantly travel, including international trips, and participate in the benefits that the company was reaping from market success.
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