Adrian Lopez, 97; Published Magazines Such as Surfing, True

Adrian Lopez, 97, who published niche magazines on various subjects, including crime and surfing, for six decades, died Jan. 27 in Bay Head, N.J., of complications from dialysis treatments.

A native of Southampton, England, Lopez immigrated with his family to Montclair, N.J., as a toddler.

He attended college and took a job with Otis Elevator Co., but when the Depression hit, he turned to writing. An article for pulp magazines such as Black Mask, Argosy and Dime Detective, he discovered, could be dashed off in two hours and earn him $50.

He worked as a freelance reporter for the New York American and other newspapers.

Among his assignments was covering the trial of Bruno Hauptmann, convicted of kidnapping and murdering the baby of Charles and Anne Lindbergh.

Lopez’s first magazine was Satire, and then Peek, both of which he wrote and published with two college friends. On his own, he started Laff magazine and a publishing house, the Volitant Publishing Corp., named for a racehorse. His subsequent magazines included Sir, a forerunner of several men’s magazines, True, Real Crime, Surfing, Stock Car Racing and Lady’s Circle.