Dogtown hangs its head Friday with the news that skateboarding legend Jay Adams has died at age 53. He went from the California beach to epic skateboarding lore as a star of the Zephyr Skate Team immortalized in the "Lords of Dogtown," a highly popular semi-fictional 2005 film.

Adams suffered chest pains believed to be associated with a heart attack while on extended holiday in Puerto Escondido, Mexico. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead early Friday.

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Emile Hirsch, who portrayed Adams in "Dogtown," tweeted that Adams was a legend who will be missed, adding the world had lost a true wild man in the case of Jayboy. Tony Hawk tweeted goodbye to Adams, thanking him for "inspiring us to get vertical." Adams pushed the limits of what was possible, Hawk added.

A Dogtown original

Adams was the original "Z-Boy." He was a skateboarding innovator and street-level pioneer who was first exposed to the world with "Dogtown and Z-Boys," a 2001 documentary classic written and directed by Stacy Peralta who also wrote "Lords of Dogtown."

"Dogtown" first reached prominence as a breakout director award winner at Sundance Film Festival. Low budget, it nevertheless grossed more than $1 million when it debuted. It's been an audience favorite ever since.

The Dogtown crew formed around a Santa Monica, Ca. neighborhood of the same name in the 1970s. Adams was one of the ringleaders and skateboarding innovators who helped popularize the pastime.

Known as the "original seed," Adams was a skateboarder's skateboarder. He and his buddies put skateboarding on the map. They were styling surfers who translated wave magic to the streets and banked playgrounds of Southern California.

Adams led a turbulent life. He spent a lot of time in jail on drug-related and other charges. He fought hard to maintain sobriety and was living a rough-and-tumble existence for many years. However, friends said he had straightened up in recent years and turn around his life.

Early fame was to blame for some of his difficulties, Adams said. He said he feared growing old until he passed the 30-year mark, after which he learned age could be good because it made people smarter and wiser.

For more information about Adams' life and times, visit "Jay Adams dies: Examining the legacy of 'Dogtown and Z-Boys."

TagsJay Adams, skateboarding legend, Lords of Dogtown, zephyr skate team, heart attacks, surfing, z-boys, documentaries, sundance film festival