Where are you from? What’s the skate scene like there?
Houston, in the ’80s the scene was big, ’90s a little more underground, but now pretty big again thanks to popularity from X games, etc. Tony Hawk Video Games and the like. The pay skate parks seem to be disappearing in lieu of free parks though. Houston TX has a $3 million free park downtown, believe it or not, I have never had a chance to even go yet, but I hear it is pretty popular. A lot of skaters hit the free park, EZ-7 which is a local ditch that is world famous, and certain street spots downtown… I am more mini-ramp and flat, but used to skate the streets.
What’s your favorite park ever?
I used to love The Skatepark of Houston when it was around in the ’80s. That was THE place to go. I skated there with many skaters like Chris Gentry, Mike Crum, Bryan Pennington, Ken Fillion, etc. That was my fave park ever, I have TONS of miles of footage from there. I even made a video with Gentry on the 12 foot vert ramp there.
Is Todd Falcon your real name?
Falcon was a stage name I created in 1985 to represent my skate alter ego. I am having Falcon legally added to my name now because a lot of people know me that way. Since my main priority is being a horror film director many know me as Todd Jason Cook, so recently, I decided to combine all four names into my own since I have a following in both skateboarding and in my horror film career. I liked the way Falcon sounded. It was the first thought I had back in 1985. So now I am Todd Jason Falcon Cook, the guy with four names
Are you a good cook?
My Dark Angel girlfriend is here with me and she says ‘Yes you are an amazing cook’ lol. I used to tell people that even though Cook was my God-given last name, I could NOT cook… BUT over the last 7 years, I bought a grill, learned how to season and cook and I made seasoned grilled Lamb last night for my girlfriend and she loved it… so I am happy to say that I can finally cook!
Did you get paid for being in Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4?
I gave them the FalconSlide for use in the game. It was a licensing deal for publicity actually, one I am VERY proud of since this was before you could make your own tricks, etc. They used it in THPS 4 and Underground and it was featured on the actual box art which was badass!
Where you in Friday Night Lights?
Wow, not many people know that… you have done your homework. I actually did play an Ambulance driver on the field for the duration of the Astrodome shoot. It was fun, I made friends with a few actors there who later got big parts in my own film Call to Fly. It was an interesting 5 day shoot. What many do not know, is that I was recently Michael Biehn’s personal double for a fight scene in the soon to be released horror film Jacob. Michael was in many big Hollywood films like Terminator, Aliens, Tombstone, Grindhouse etc. I got to play Michael in order to fight a bunch of people in a bar, then they brought him in and replaced me in the close-ups. I also play a character named Tommy in the film. I am super excited about this film, which was directed in TX by my good friend Larry Carrell.
Who are your favorite skaters?
Tony Hawk and Rodney Mullen.
Do you think you’re more creative than Mullen?
The only way to answer that is to leave that to public perception. The thing with me is, I have a drive to create the most massive quantity of original tricks and variations possible. To date, I have invented over 1000 easily, which most people say is bullshit or ludicrous, but I have ALL the footage to back-up the claim from the prospective years. My great friend Dan MacFarlane (pro for Mentality Skateboards) is one of my biggest supporters who has seen and tracked my progress for more than a decade and he knows of all the tricks and variations, etc. I love Mullen. My thought for my skating was that I wanted to combine Hawk+Mullen+totally original creativity and come up with my own bag of tricks. Dan says I am an alien, from another planet, etc.
Do you hold the record for inventing the most tricks?
I am not sure what the largest quantity is currently… I just remember that Tony Hawk held the world record for most tricks invented, which was like 40 back in the early 90’s. Somewhere in that area I believe.
Have you ever done a handrail?
I rarely ever skated them but yes I have done boardslides, grinds etc. In the way back dayz my focus stuck on vert back then, and then moved to mini-ramp and flat/street predominantly.
You play music right? Have you recorded an album?
I play drums, bass, guitar, keyboard, sing, etc. I had a band called Stage Dive from 1996-2006. We recorded 19 full length albums. On the first 13 albums, I did all the music, wrote the lyrics, etc and had Angela sing the vocals. We were more of a studio band and I LOVE recording. I am even recording a brand new solo project album now which I did all the music AND the vocals this time, so it will be interesting.
Have you ever skated Philly?
No I have never even been to Philly yet. I have mostly stayed in TX as far as skating.
Do you warm up for a blind folded trick with one eye closed?
I actually always go out with no thoughts in my head except “I have to take it to the next level which is something I always think. I do tons of tricks without looking. I have been doing that since 1988 or so, and continue to do that now. I think it is great training. My thought has always been, if I can do all these tricks looking, why not do as many as possible without looking so that is a thing with me. I love the training that it gives me.
What kind of jeans do you wear?
I just took my pants off to check… wearing Mossimo jeans right now, and I usually wear Mossimo caps too.
What are three of your favorite tricks you’ve invented and describe them?
FalconPlant is my favorite trick I ever invented cause it’s totally original from beginning to end. I go up on a ramp fakie, fakie ollie and land on my left foot onto the deck, the board comes up like a seesaw on my right foot, then falls back forward and I jump into the ramp. I have gotten the most variations ever out of this move, including FalconPlant 540 kickflip variations, and recently on flat, I did a FalconPlant 1080 flip. My next fave would be the FalconStomp which is currently catching on and I have seen skaters all over the world doing this one. A FalconStomp is a move where you jump really high over the board, which is placed on the ground/ramp in a darkstall. You land with one foot right in the middle of the board and cause it to flip back over in one motion and land onto it. I have landed tons of variations of this one as well and it’s great to know that I invented a trick that has really caught on. It’s def not easy, so that makes it more rewarding seeing other skaters doing it. My third fave would probably be the FalconSlide (the one footed DarkSlide) especially since it was featured as a playable move in THPS.
What’s the best skate trip you ever went on?
That would be the Falcon Team tour of 2007 when we toured skate parks as a team, met with fans, shot footage for No Logic, etc.
Sponsors? Shouts outs?
Shout outs to all the fans, supporters, haters, all my friends, cast/crew members of Zombiefied, everyone in the skate world and film and music world, and especially to my Dark Angel who loves me beyond anyone.
Sponsors?
Thank you Tail Devil, SoftTrucks, and Birdhouse Skateboards for printing my Todd Falcon boards.
