Skateboard Guitar with Norma-brand Neck Formerly Owned and Assembled by Mike Shaughnessy

Musician Mike Shaughnessy created and played this custom electric guitar in the mid-1980s with the Olympia, Washington bands the Wimps, Don’t Panic, and Ho-Dads. He built it in August 1983 from one of his worn-out skateboards and a cheap, Norma guitar neck that he found at a thrift store. With a sound that combined Clash riffs with Jonathan Richman lyrical delivery, the Wimps, along with the Young Pioneers, Beat Happening, and others, emphasized fun and teenage abandon over confrontation and aggression – hallmarks of the growing Olympia scene that would be amplified throughout the 1980s and 1990s. 

During their short tenure as a band, the Wimps contributed their music to the Rock Against Reagan concert on October 9, 1983, which took place on the Capitol steps in Olympia, Washington. They also played with Whiz Kid, Young Pioneers, and Beat Happening at the opening night of the Tropicana on February 25, 1984. The all-ages Tropicana was located in downtown Olympia and while it closed not even a year later on January 31, 1985, it served a vital role in the Olympia scene, providing a stable venue for underground music to grow and thrive.