Editing Mark Rogowski (section)

==Rise to prominence==
Rogowski started his professional skateboarding career in 1980 at age 14. In 1982, he won his first major contest, the Canadian Amateur Skateboarding Championships in [[Vancouver]], British Columbia.<ref name="paper" /> In 1984, he won a national championship.<ref name="Gator" /> Rogowski soon received endorsement deals from Gullwing Trucks and G&S early in his career. He was the first skateboarder to receive his own 'pro-deck' by Vision Sports, and his pro-deck proved popular and was soon followed by the [[Mark Gonzales]] and Tom Groholski models. Rogowski was soon featured on the cover of ''[[Thrasher (magazine)|Thrasher]]'' magazine for the first time in June 1984 <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thrashermagazine.com/articles/magazine/june-1984/?tmpl=component|title=Thrasher Magazine - June 1984|accessdate=March 29, 2023}}</ref> and he would go on to be featured on the cover of ''[[Transworld Skateboarding]]'' in October 1985. He was featured on the covers of both magazines again in July & October 1987 as well.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/transworld-skateboadring-magazine-1827717777 | title=Transworld Skateboadring Magazine October 1987 Gator cover Gonz Vallely Miller &#124; #1827717777 }}</ref>

At the height of his fame, Rogowski was being paid "between $4,000 and $8,000 a month" for clothing and skateboarding equipment endorsements.<ref name="Gator">{{Cite web |title=Skateboarding star convicted of 1991 murder denied parole |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-skateboarding-star-convicted-1991-murder-denied-pa-2011feb08-story.html |last=Dana Littlefield |date=February 8, 2011 |website=[[The San Diego Union-Tribune]] |access-date=July 28, 2019}}</ref> By 1987, Rogowski was earning two dollars per skate deck from [[Vision Street Wear|Vision]], which was selling 7,000 decks on a monthly basis, resulting in royalties totaling US$14,000 for Rogowski (US$ {{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|14000|1987|r=-3}}}} in {{CURRENTYEAR}}). Additionally, Vision was also selling T-shirts, berets, hip packs, and stickers using the "Gator" name.<ref name="paper" />

Rogowski was one of a group of elite skaters who enjoyed significant fame in the 1980s, alongside [[Christian Hosoi]], [[Tony Hawk]], [[Lance Mountain]], and [[Steve Caballero]]. He was a charismatic, flamboyant personality who received fame and fortune during skateboarding's return to popularity following the success of [[vert skateboarding]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Cory |date=2020-09-23 |title=Mark "Gator" Rogowski: Free Fallin' |url=https://www.villagevoice.com/mark-gator-rogowski-free-fallin/ |access-date=2024-04-14 |website=The Village Voice}}</ref>

In 1986, Rogowski was detained by police in [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach, VA]] after assaulting an officer in the parking lot of [[Mount Trashmore Park]] during the East Coast Assault pro contest.<ref>{{Cite news |date=September 4, 2003 |title=Skateboarders fall uncertainly shown |work=The Washington Times |url=https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2003/sep/4/20030904-082330-4518r/ |access-date=March 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230306025118/https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2003/sep/4/20030904-082330-4518r/ |archive-date=March 6, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Pearson |first=Jessee |date=November 30, 2002 |title=Never Mind the Dogtown |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/never-v9n8/ |access-date=March 5, 2023 |website=Vice}}</ref> At a 1987 skate show in [[Scottsdale, Arizona]], U.S., Rogowski was introduced to Brandi McClain and her good friend Jessica Bergsten, an aspiring model. Soon afterward, he began a tumultuous long-term relationship with McClain—they appeared together in numerous advertisements and promotional videos for Vision, which had become one of the top-selling skateboarding brands of the 1980s.<ref name=":0" />

In late 1988 Rogowski was featured on the "[[Swatch]] Impact Tour" of 35 tour dates across the United States, which also showcased fellow pro-skaters [[Jeff Phillips (skateboarder)|Jeff Phillips]], Kevin Staab, Chris Miller & Joe Johnson.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-09-14-ca-1818-story.html | title=Rock Promoter Silva is Really on a Roll | website=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=September 14, 1988 }}</ref> In 1989 Rogowski also worked as a stunt double on the 1989 film ''[[Gleaming the Cube]]'', which starred [[Christian Slater]], and appeared, along with McClain, in the music video for ''[[Free Fallin']]'' by [[Tom Petty]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Tom Petty: Free Fallin' |type=Music |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7549338/ |access-date=2024-04-14}}</ref>