James Darren — left, one of the stars of the film ... But to young movie fans of the late 1950s, he would be remembered best as Moondoggie, the dark-haired surfer boy in the smash 1959 release ...

NPR's Elizabeth Blair has an appreciation. ELIZABETH BLAIR, BYLINE: As the surfer Moondoggie, James Darren rescues a struggling Sandra Dee on his surfboard. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "GIDGET") JAMES ...

FILE - James Darren — left, one of the stars of the film For Those ... But to young movie fans of the late 1950s, he would be remembered best as Moondoggie, the dark-haired surfer boy in the smash ...

James Darren, a teen idol who helped ignite the ... But to young movie fans of the late 1950s, he would be remembered best as Moondoggie, the dark-haired surfer boy in the smash 1959 release ...

LOS ANGELES — James Darren, a teen idol who helped ignite ... But to young movie fans of the late 1950s, he would be remembered best as Moondoggie, the dark-haired surfer boy in the smash ...

James Darren, a teen idol who helped ignite the ... But to young movie fans of the late 1950s, he would be remembered best as Moondoggie, the dark-haired surfer boy in the smash 1959 release ...

LOS ANGELES (AP) — James Darren, a teen idol who helped ignite ... he would be remembered best as Moondoggie, the dark-haired surfer boy in the smash 1959 release “Gidget.” ...

Darren died on Monday in his sleep at a hospital in Los Angeles. He was 88 years old. NPR's Elizabeth Blair has this appreciation. ELIZABETH BLAIR, BYLINE: As the surfer Moondoggie, James Darren ...