Grandmaster of 108

Grandmaster of 108 Synopsis

Andy Kessler was a heroic figure and advocate for skateboarding since the early 70' when this sport was completely alien to New York City. Andy with his friends pioneered the art of city skating and created a loose-knit community calling themselves "The Soul Artists of Zoo York".

By the 80's Kessler became more involved in the skate culture and had the opportunity to become one of the greatest skateboarders but he put himself in an environment where he got caught up in drugs and eventually became homeless. His parents and friends tried numerous times to get him to kick the habit, but without avail. Andy, who used to be the epicenter of activity, struggled with severe drug and alcohol addiction for years but he was also a champion of rehabilitation.

After years of destructiveness and mischief he cleaned himself up and started to serve as a mentor dedicating his life to prevent young kids from using substances through introducing them to skateboarding. He wanted more than legitimacy for skateboarders; he wanted respect therefore in a landmark initiative, he persuaded the New York City Parks Department to build Manhattan's first public skatepark in Riverside Park at 108th Street; after the park opened in 1995, Kessler was dubbed the Grandmaster of 108.

By the age of 46 Andy still remained a vital part of the skateboarding scene and continued rolling through the streets of NYC. He also attained a certain peace in his life where he could sincerely talk about his past.

Andy Kessler had been battling with hardships in most of his life, he survived things that would normally kill people therefore it is difficult to believe that he passed away at the age of 49 from cardiac arrest due to an allergic reaction to a wasp sting he sustained on Montauk, Long Island on August 10, 2009 while building a skatepark there.