According to reports, Stereo Skateboards boss and professional skateboarder Jason Lee opened Eagle Rock Camera & Goods in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of Los Angeles with photographer Raymond Molinar.
The shop was small and unassuming, a beige pueblo-style building with “PHOTO” painted above the door, but it quickly became a local hangout.
Visitors could browse cameras, pick up film, flip through photo books, or just talk art and photography with Lee himself. Sometimes there were donuts for anyone who happened to stop by.
Lee is known for his acting career and professional skateboarding.
His on-screen characters were often sarcastic and scrappy, but those traits don’t tell the full story. Friends describe Lee as organized, focused, and driven. He approaches his projects seriously, whether it’s photography, running a business, or skating, a pursuit that first brought him public attention in the 1980s.
The shop’s opening coincided with Lee’s quieter period in acting. After a decade of steady work, including the success of My Name Is Earl, he moved to Denton, Texas, to focus on his family and photography.
Lee often took long drives for the sake of capturing landscapes and moments that interested him. Photography became a way to explore the world and shift perspective, much like skating did in his youth.
While the shop became a creative hub for the neighborhood, an unexpected topic came up during an interview with a magazine.
When asked about his past involvement with Scientology, Lee immediately pushed back.
He said that he did not want to discuss the subject and questioned whether it was appropriate to raise in the context of a story about a camera shop.
The conversation lasted nearly an hour, focusing on the ethics of asking about personal religious history and the responsibility of journalists in navigating sensitive topics.
After the interview, Lee’s legal team got involved, sending letters to the magazine asserting that his personal religious beliefs were unrelated to the shop and that publishing anything linking the two could cause harm.
The magazine decided not to run the story to avoid potential legal issues.
Lee later provided a brief statement confirming that Scientology was no longer part of his life, but he declined to expand on the subject.
Leaving the religion was a personal choice that did not require explanation or public justification.
His focus remains on creative work, family, and photography, skateboarding and the shop in Eagle Rock reflected that.
Even though the profile was killed, it inadvertently revealed how carefully Lee manages what he shares publicly and how far he will go to protect his private life.
By the beginning of 2024, Lee announced that Eagle Rock Camera would be closing due to issues with the location.
The shop may have been temporary, but it offered a glimpse of Lee’s life outside Hollywood and a reminder that he continues to move forward, choosing the projects and chapters that matter to him most.