Brian George Walton Jr. was born on October 8, 1964, in the sleepy farming town of Duarte, California, just north of where the 210 and 605 freeways intersect in smoggy Los Angeles County. His dad, Brian Senior, was the classic California auto-mechanic type—greased-back hair, a disarming smile, and a philandering attitude. His mom, Virginia Ann Walton (Hess), was from Buffalo, NY’s ethnically diverse East Side. Being a wildflower, she was trying to break away from her stifling German Catholic upbringing and embark on a journey of self-discovery and freedom in the Southern California sunshine.
Few can recall exactly how Brian’s parents met, but it was the 60s, and SoCal was the cultural hub of the country, marked by rapid population growth, the rise of the Sunset Strip rock scene, ‘Beach Boys’ surf culture, and expanding aerospace industries. It was a transformative, car-centric era defined by suburban growth and iconic, relaxed lifestyle trends such as backyard pool parties and drive-in culture, as immortalized in the film American Graffiti. And drugs. Lotsa drugs. So, probably at some random house party.