Patti McGee (born August 23, 1945) is a former professional skateboarder. She was the 1964 Women's first National Skateboard Champion, Santa Monica.
Her first skateboard was built by her brother in wood shop from her own shoe skate as a surprise. Her second skateboard was a Bun Buster.[1] In 1965 in the magazine Skateboarder, McGee recalled the first time she saw a skateboard and executed her first maneuver:[2]
I saw my first skateboard about two years ago during Easter vacation when I was at the Hollywood Teen Fair. I had been asked by a sporting goods store to give away a skateboard every evening. One evening the kid who did the skateboard demonstrations didn't show up and they asked me to take his place. So in front of 1,500 kids I did my first skateboard demonstration—it was just a kick turn, but skateboarding was new then and nobody else new many tricks then anyway.
While on the Cooley Team, and standing on a Bun Buster, McGee set the world record for the fastest girl on a skateboard at 47 mph during Dick Clark's World Teen Fair 1964 held at the Orange County (CA) Fair Grounds.[3]
McGee was also the first female professional skateboarder.[4] She was paid by Hobie/Vita Pak to travel and demonstrate the Hobie skateboard on a national level.[5] This lasted almost a year until the craze subsided. Patti McGee married Glenn Villa and then gave birth to 2 children, Forest and Hailey Villa. During the tour, McGee appeared on the occupation-guessing TV game show What's My Line? on May 16, 1965, without a skateboard (but did not stump the panel), and with a skateboard on The Johnny Carson Show the following evening.[6] McGee was featured on the cover of Life magazine May 14, 1965, and the cover of the fourth issue of Skateboarder in October 1965.[7][8]
In 2010, McGee became the first woman inducted into the Skateboarding Hall of Fame, at IASC's (International Association of Skateboard Companies) Second Annual Skateboarding Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.[9][10]