Post #279001 by GatorRob on Mon, Jan 15, 2007 12:07 PM

Adventureland at Disney World. And Gilligan's Island. Those are the two earliest tropical/exotic influences I can think from from my childhood. Then there's all the 50s/60s shows that I watched religiously as a kid (re-runs thank you very much!) that gave me that mid-century view of America. I Love Lucy, Get Smart, Dick Van Dyke Show, Twilight Zone, and on and on. So I was in love with the primitive and the sophisticated. But I didn't know the two knew each other until I read the BOT and saw those people who could have been my parents from years ago getting out of their jet-set cars, wearing suits and nice dresses and walking into a tropical tiki paradise lounge where they could let their hair down and shed their inhibitions. Discovering that was magic for me. It brought it all full circle for me and connected me both to my childhood and to my parents' generation. And now it's taken on a life of its own in my generation. It's a beautiful thing, eh?