To the Editor:

As a kid on LBI in the early ’60s, hanging around Ron Jon’s was a requirement for our admittedly narrow definition of “being cool.” We’d browse the boards, pointing to the ones we were definitely going to buy once we grew another foot or two taller. Occasionally, we’d convince our parents to let us get a T-shirt, which we would wear every single day until there were more holes than actual fabric.

And after much academic (for 7-year-olds) debate, we were pretty sure we knew exactly what Mr.

September 17, 2025