Book
Capturing Kahanamoku : how a surfing legend and a scientific obsession redefined race and culture / Michael Rossi.
In 1920, Henry Fairfield Osborn, director of New York's American Museum of Natural History, traveled to Hawaii on an anthropological research trip. While there, he took a surfing lesson. His teacher was Duke Kahanamoku, a famous surf-rider and budding movie star. For Osborn, a fervent eugenicist, Kahanamoku was a maddening paradox: physically "perfect," yet belonging to an "imperfect" race. Osborn dispatched young scientist Louis Sullivan to Honolulu to measure, photograph, and cast in plaster Kahanamoku and other Hawaiian people. The study touched off a series of events that forever changed how we think about race, culture, science, and the essence of humanity.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780063279971 (hardcover)
- Physical Description: 343 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
- Edition: First edition.
- Publisher: New York : HarperOne, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2025]
- Copyright: ©2025
Content descriptions
| Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references. |
Search for related items by subject
| Genre: | Biographies. Personal narratives. |
Available copies
- 1 of 1 copy available at Tsuga Consortium.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cookstown Branch | 305.89942 Ros | 31681010442689 | NONFIC | Available | - |
Summary:
In 1920, Henry Fairfield Osborn, director of New York's American Museum of Natural History, traveled to Hawaii on an anthropological research trip. While there, he took a surfing lesson. His teacher was Duke Kahanamoku, a famous surf-rider and budding movie star. For Osborn, a fervent eugenicist, Kahanamoku was a maddening paradox: physically "perfect," yet belonging to an "imperfect" race. Osborn dispatched young scientist Louis Sullivan to Honolulu to measure, photograph, and cast in plaster Kahanamoku and other Hawaiian people. The study touched off a series of events that forever changed how we think about race, culture, science, and the essence of humanity.
