Jason Lee: Skate-Rat Made Good

By Christine Parris

There's not many skate-rats out there who wouldn't think they'd hit Heaven if they woke up to find they had a signature line of Air-Walks, a burgeoning pro skateboard career, a drop-dead gorgeous wife and their own skate gear company. Jason Lee had all that and more - and threw it all away (except the wife) to become an actor. Madness? Perhaps. But he's also managed to find a new level of fame and fortune in the process.

Unlike a lot of kids who have to fight their parents to spend time on their deck, it was the 29 year-old California native's mom who first opened his eyes to the sport. "She got me my first board when I was five, then another in junior high, so she couldn't really complain when I was always on it. I was a pretty goofy teenager, but I did okay in school. My mom was very supportive so I never really needed to rebel."

In fact, Lee skated so much (and so well) that he dropped out of high school at age 16 and devoted himself to the sport, turning pro three years later. "I almost see school as my wasted years," says Lee, "Traveling as a skater taught me a lot more about the world than high school ever did." Just as with his more recent acting career, persistance paid off when it came to making a name for himself on the ramp circuit. "I was an amateur for a while, but when I figured I could take on the pro's, I entered a pro contest. That's a big step - once you turn pro you can never go back to being an amateur. I did pretty bad at first, but eventually things started to change."

As Lee found success easier to come by, he decided to start his own skate and clothing company, Stereo Skateboards, with friend and fellow skater Chris Pastras. Though the company didn't last long, he considers the 'Stereo days' to be amongst his best skating memories. "Chris and I were just sick of the same old stuff, so we hooked up with Jeff Klindt at Deluxe in San Francisco and he thought our idea was good. It snowballed from there. It was great fun. We had a lot of cool ideas and were doing things other skate companies weren't doing. Competing really wasn't my favorite thing, I get a little nervous, so the company kept my interest in the sport."

But the 'Stereo days' didn't last, and nor did Lee's desire to stay on the circuit. Lee candidly told readers on one of his fansites, Lee World, earlier this year, "Unfortunately, there were a lot of very insecure skaters that seemed to like to hassle me for not always skating. Everything was skateboard-related, constantly, to the point of insanity. I wanted to be who I was and just skate, but that wasn't always easy."

He says of the scene at the time, "Too many skaters. Not enough respect for the idea of just skating for fun. Too much of everything got overwhelming and boring at the same time, so I got out when I really started feeling that. I didn't want to 'hang on' and be some washed up ex-pro who ends up starting a skate company or something, so I decided to get into acting."

And so it was that Lee walked into his first audition, for the Kevin Smith film Mallrats, delivered his lines and promptly stole the lead role first time out of the gate. But he still took crap from the skate world.

"They just couldn't understand what I was thinking. Skating is the only thing on a lot of skaters minds, so though it was a shock, I sort of understand it. I just wanted more. To this day, a lot of skaters ask me why I quit. It's a very small world, and I don't think acting... well, let's just say it's seen as selling out, which is dumb. And the scene hasn't changed for the better in the meantime. I liked the way skating was back then a lot more than what I see today." The skate world did leave Lee with one legacy though; his wife, Carmen.

"We met at a trade show when I was still skating. I had a signature show for Airwalk, and Carmen was working with a clothing company and she was checking out these awesome red Airwalks. So I went up to her and said, 'Hey, I can get you a pair of those.' Great line, huh?"

Lee's move to the world of acting hasn't been without it's bumps and bruises, but an intelligent approach that involves putting out quality work and keeping his ego to a regular size has found him in great demand by writer/directors such as Kevin Smith (with who he has worked four times now) and Cameron Crowe (twice). His filmography now includes Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Kissing A Fool, Almost Famous, Mumford, Enemy Of The State and the just released Jay and Silent Bob Strikes Back - where he plays not one, but two characters.

"The thing I like most about acting is the process of understanding your character, then coming to understand what you have to do to play that character. With Kevin Smith, the dialogue brings the character to life, but with the characters I played in Mumford and Almost Famous I had to change myself physically, be someone different. That's the fun stuff. But I'm so not a method actor. "

So does Jason Lee, actor, still find time to skate? "Yeah, I got to skate a bit in Mumford. Every once in a while I like to do it to see how rusty I am. I'm still okay. Well, actually, I pretty much suck."