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Dillon “Dilly” Ball Perrine was born in Cordoba, Argentina, January 21, 1916. His father, Dr. Charles Dillon Perrine, was a world famous American astronomer (see Wikipedia) and director of the Argentine National Observatory. Dilly's father started his career at UC's Lick Observatory on Mt. Wilson. Dr. Perrine remained in Argentina until his death in 1951. Dillon's mother, Bell Smith Perrine, was a graduate of UC in 1906, the year of the Great San Francisco Earthquake. Dilly resided in Cordoba until he was 7. When Mrs. Perrine returned to California in Sept. 1923, with the children to complete their education, the two youngest (Isabel and Betty) were only able to speak English brokenly. Dilly attended school in Hermosa Beach, then Redondo Union High School from which he graduated in 1933. Dilly was one of the first surfers at Hermosa, Redondo, and Manhattan Beaches. He and his pioneer surfer friends sewed their own swim shorts from canvas and surfed on 10 foot homemade boards of solid painted redwood. In 1927 Dilly and several friends were among the first to surf at Malibu. “In 1927,” confirmed Charles “Chuck A Luck” Ehlers, “Dilly Perrine and Spud Moorman heard about surfing at Malibu. We three rode in a rumble seat car with 3 boards sticking out. We met Tom Blake and Cliff Tucker from Redondo while in Malibu riding perfect, long right slides on glassy water with very sharp peaks. We left early, for it was a narrow road and a long way to home.” In lieu of a college education which his parents had provide his four siblings, Dilly inherited the family home on 20th Street in Hermosa Beach. He completely remodeled and added on to it over the years. I recall staying there with my two brothers during a good part of many summers. His first marriage to Dorothy ended in divorce. Before 1941, Dilly was assistant manager of a Safeway food store. In 1941, Dilly's mother, Mrs. Perrine, traveled to Berkeley for the wedding of her youngest daughter, Betty. She remained in Berkeley until her death there in 1957. By 1941 he was employed by Howard Hughes Aircraft Corporation (HAC) where he met his second wife, Margaret "Peg" Gallagher, a former Flight Operations employee. Dilly and Peg adopted two sons, Casey and Mark. In 1961, Dilly was featured in a Hughes Aircraft Corp. newsletter honoring his twenty years with the company. At that time, Dilly was a purchasing agent, Corporate Agreements, General Procurement. Between 1943-45 he interrupted his HAC employment to serve in the Navy (Sea Bee's). Dilly continued his love of the ocean launching his beloved fishing boat from King Harbor. In December 1985, at age 69, Dilly sold his Hermosa house and moved into an apartment in Los Angeles (Idylwild?). He notified people of his retirement in his Christmas letter that year. Following Peg's death (date unknown), Dilly married Donna Pagett. Dilly died February 1991 at age 75.

As of: Apr 28, 2009