Mystery Photo 1959 Tiki Bar

Here's another one. I'm way off I think the Tropics at that location was long gone before 1958.

Unless that picture was taken during Old Timey Car Night. :roll:

Now let's get back to this guy. :down:

Is that a spear of some sort stuck in the sidewalk? Maybe San Diego??

[ Edited by: MrkCat 2008-08-04 22:44 ]

Okay, I know somebody here has the ability to zoom in on this...
I am curious about what's in the window over his left shoulder. We have a Chinese restaurant here in Knoxville with similar windows. The windows are actually more like display cases and the neighboring business sells jewelry so, sometimes there are jewelry items displayed in those windows as you enter the restaurant.
There is something in that window behind him (although, it could just be a reflection) and I want to say that it resembles a shell necklace - looks like two white strands.
There's another window inside the doorway, doubt you could see anything in that though. There's also a circular sign or emblem above the door, can't tell if there's anything on it or not.
Maybe I'm grasping at straws here (no pun intended) but, I don't want to see this thread die either. Come on TCers, we can solve this!

I like this thread too! - Only help I can give is the circular sign is phone sign (I think) to show the place has a public phone inside. The "spear" my guess is a bus stop sign the was backed into by one of those huge cars everyone drove in that era. - Other than that I'm just lurking on where this could be?

A zoom-in just gets the image all pixel-chunky (although it is clear those are jewelry-display windows - a jewelry shop turned Polynesian lounge?). If someone could prod the Lotta Livin' guy to put up a hi-res c.u. it might help out a bit.

i gave it a try.....

it seems to be some type of movie or play billboard to the far right attached to the wall, and the old sign actually looks like a car had knocked it out of its foundation, and someone temporarily fixed it by wedging it with something in the cement. Good luck sleuths!
Also, anyone know what the original location Damons steakhouse looked like? just a stab in the dark......

***Update.....Damons is not this photo. I called the place and their original location was on the Corner of Central and Broadway. Actual original address was 118 Central....Ehhh, I tried! :lol:

[ Edited by: Tom Slick 2008-08-05 10:58 ]

The original post said the sign said "ROOM". I don't know that is true unless they have another version of this picture that is bigger.

I concur that it is a telephone emblem on the circular sign up there. It appears there are several window displays besides the one we can see into.

To the left it may be a kimono, or perhaps a copy of a 1968 Elvis jumpsuit...

And is that a bent over pole or a guy wire for a light pole?

While the sleuthing power contained within the pages of TC is truly impressive,
perhaps this case requires some assistance from PBS'
History Detectives

On 2008-08-05 12:36, The Gnomon wrote:

looks like a jewelry display for sure. Almost like a puka shell necklace.

Those tiles look like the ones at the Mai Kai.

What's that metal pole? Street sign? Bus Stop sign? It's a corner alright.
I tried zooming in -- no luck...

On 2008-08-09 15:16, CheekyGirl wrote:
Those tiles look like the ones at the Mai Kai.

Those ceramic tiles were widely used all over the country for both tiki and Chinese restaurants. I picked up some in LA from an antique dealer who had hundreds of them that came from a Chinese restaurant. Oceanic Arts still sells them, but the mold has degraded so much that there's no real detail left in them. So anyway, they're not much of a clue in this case I'm afraid.

I showed it to someone that thought the granite curbs were very rare in Los Angeles. They think it's a big old city on the east coast. I also showed it to a bunch of friends over 60 who grew up in LA and nobody recognized it.

..those curbs are too small for the midwest (chicago)......could be the east coast......

,,,i'm thinking new orleans at this point ...i believe this could possibly be in or near the french quarter??

Well, I'd probably guess around Miami, since other Florida photos were with this picture, or at least contained the same man. Maybe some upstreet "little havana" pre-cubanism neighborhood? I say little havana, because their streets look similar with that style of storefronts.....Another shot in the dark...

[ Edited by: Tom Slick 2008-08-11 02:08 ]

..how about YBOR city in tampa??.....that's got that old havana look as well....

On 2008-07-30 11:26, sputnikmoss wrote:
Ok..I think we should focus on California. I found more slides of him on Ebay.

this one is stamped July 1959

Another possibility I pulled from the net...It has the right timeframe, meaning in that photo, the location could have only been open for a year or two max.

The Swiss Chalet - US Highway 50 - 2544 Lake Tahoe Blvd - South Lake Tahoe - CA 96150
The Swiss Chalet is an institution. It has been open for no less than 51 years. It actually looks like archetypal Alpine Chalet, which adds to the charm of the experience.

Perhaps these slides are all CA....The airport "could" possibly be L.A.X. back in 1959.
The beach photo has me stumped though :-? . Could it also be Santa Monica or Venice area, in 1959? Although I also believe it to be Miami, I'm just playing devils advocate here....
I'm attempting to try and rule out FLA, so we might be able to focus on this guys trip.
If we can develop a pattern to the pics, then maybe finding this little Piece of Early Hawaiiana in the city might be that much easier to figure out, especially with all of the seasoned pros on TC. I'm really wanting to see this mystery solved! :lol:
I have Scooby Snacks for any meddling kids who solve this! :P

EDIT
Just read into the O'Connor and Goldberg store and it was a chain shoe store based out of the Chicago area.
O'Connor and Goldberg was a shoe store in Chicago. "O'Connor and Goldberg" is also used to describe any mixed Irish Jewish neighborhood. from Wikpedia...
I also found this photo with the shoe store located in a mall.

If this is the case, then that photo could of been anywhere from east to west in 1959...Also, a mall in Indiana opened up called Woodmar that contained the shoe store in 1954.(info found at http://www.geocities.com/jaloweplays/woodmar.html )
The photos could pass this as the actual location.

In any case, this guy "Johnny Cashed It" and went EVERYWHERE man...Investigation has proven to me that, limiting his travels only in and around California/West Coast, are no longer an option at this time.
Unless someone knows if California had a branch of "O'Connor and Goldberg" shoe stores, I'm back to having zero information and all this type was a waste! haha

[ Edited by: Tom Slick 2008-08-11 10:38 ]

On 2008-07-31 19:55, MsSwanky wrote:

"I wish I did know more about this man. These were purchased at an estate sale in Fort Worth,Texas at the first of this year. There were probably 150 slides of this man in Europe,Disneyland,1964-65 NY Worlds Fair,Wisconsin and at numerous other unknown locations. All of the slide cases were marked 'Otti'"

Just a thought... assuming this guy traveled a lot, it could be anywhere. I don't know exactly why, but my gut says a town like Pittsburgh or Baltimore. The street in question just has that vibe to me.
-Duke

i don't recognize the shoe store from any part of chicago...but....after going back and looking at it in light of the new info......it looks alot like old orchard shopping center looked back in the day....the big question...was old orchard (which as always been an outdoor mall located in a chicago suburb)built back in or near the late fifties??.....

According to this http://www.chicagotraveler.com/attractions/old-orchard-shopping-center.html
The Old Orchard Mall opened in 1956. It looks nice and new in the photo which fits!

Here is his photo in 1959

Here is the Old Orchards Mall in the late 1960s. It's not in the same spot but the black brick columns are the same and so is the roof line. The Birch trees have grown in 10 years but look at the fountain heads! Same!
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[ Edited by: sputnikmoss 2008-08-11 16:34 ]

[ Edited by: sputnikmoss 2008-08-11 16:35 ]

..do i know my malls or what!!! ..that's good news....onward and forward to the rest of the mystery....

check this out..

http://mallsofamerica.blogspot.com/2006/06/old-orchard-shopping-center.html

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2008-08-11 16:46 ]

On 2008-08-05 10:45, Tom Slick wrote:
i gave it a try.....

it seems to be some type of movie or play billboard to the far right attached to the wall, and the old sign actually looks like a car had knocked it out of its foundation, and someone temporarily fixed it by wedging it with something in the cement. Good luck sleuths!
Also, anyone know what the original location Damons steakhouse looked like? just a stab in the dark......

***Update.....Damons is not this photo. I called the place and their original location was on the Corner of Central and Broadway. Actual original address was 118 Central....Ehhh, I tried! :lol:

[ Edited by: Tom Slick 2008-08-05 10:58 ]

Okay I know that I have seen this exact photo before, if I remember right it has something to do with exotic animals and the photo was taken by his wife, they owned it. Now I am going to have to remember where I saw it. I believe it was located in Hollywood.

On 2008-08-11 04:05, Tipsy McStagger wrote:

..how about YBOR city in tampa??.....that's got that old havana look as well....

It does have that Ybor charm, but the stores have changed over and again so many times, it's hard to tell. I'd have to ask Ferdie Pacheco, if I ever see him.

Wow! That's quite a discovery. Thanks for the image, sputnik! It's almost eerie. My guess is that this place is, in fact, located somewhere in one of California's major cities of the 1950s (based on your information), or perhaps somewhere in the midwest like St. Louis.

Anyone think this mystery location could possibly be a Hawaiian jewelry store of some kind, rather than a nightclub/bar/restaurant? The two small inset displays and what they are displaying -- one which is definitely displaying necklaces -- are a rather odd architectural choice for a nightclub/bar/restaurant. It is difficult to see what the other display alcove is displaying (and there could be another alcove display directly across from it in the entryway), but it looks somewhat shiny and brassy. Perhaps a ship's bell? Ding-ding?

there has to be something signifigant about this place in order to pose in front of it for a picture...i did a google search for hawaiian jewelry store 1959 and found that "maui divers" jewelry store opened in 1959 in hawaii.....maybe the other poster is correct and that we are looking for a jewelry store (which appears to be next to a clothing boutique) and not a tiki bar for this photo....maybe we need to look in hawaii.

there were a number of other jewelry stores that opened that same year that had a hawaiian theme....some were even in the midwest!..so we're not out of this yet....

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2008-08-14 17:31 ]

Could possibly be Hawaii, too, but it looks more like a China Town area on the mainland. Perhaps historic China Town in Honolulu? In any case, I think the reason for posing in front of this facade is obvious: the striking Polynesian mural!

was his blue suit on ebay?! i need one of those babies!

Could the photo have been taken in Tijuana? Our man is wearing the same blue suit in the posed "Tijuana 1959" photo with friend and donkey (page 3 of this thread). I've not been to Tijuana, but I've seen similar types of streetscapes/storefronts in other parts of Mexico.

[ Edited by: Pacifilantic 2008-08-14 20:19 ]

Was the Bell Telephone system in Tijuana? I don't know, since I'm from the east.

On 2008-08-14 20:17, Pacifilantic wrote:
Could the photo have been taken in Tijuana? Our man is wearing the same blue suit in the posed "Tijuana 1959" photo with friend and donkey (page 3 of this thread). I've not been to Tijuana, but I've seen similar types of streetscapes/storefronts in other parts of Mexico.

In that particular photo they are posing in a hokey little prop set located on a side walk (perhaps outside a Tourist office that is promoting a tour 'From San Diego to Tijuana' or 'From L.A. to Tijuana'), specifically for tourists (or shameless locals) to get their picture taken in. The fact that he is wearing the same clothes round the same time as the initial mystery photo was taken, coupled with this tourist marketing gimmick and the fact that tours to Tijuana from California were then (and still are) popular, points further evidence in the direction that the mystery photo of the man posing outside the business with the Polynesian mural, was taken in L.A. or other major California city.

[ Edited by: DJ Terence Gunn 2008-08-15 08:09 ]

The clothes are circumstantial. It might be evidence, but it might be a meaningless coincidence.

Okay I know that I have seen this exact photo before, if I remember right it has something to do with exotic animals and the photo was taken by his wife, they owned it. Now I am going to have to remember where I saw it. I believe it was located in Hollywood.

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The clothes may be a coincidence, but not a meaningless one. I think we've exhausted the possibilities of the original mystery photo and are left with guessing and grasping at straws, and should, instead, focus on photos like the one above. Perhaps the two photos weren't taken on the same day in the same city. But perhaps they were. And IF they were, then that is another piece of the puzzle thrown into the pile that we're trying to put together. There are evident reasons to believe that the two photos were taken in the same city on the same day. And should it be proved that they weren't, then we've eliminated that possibility.

The striped awning they're in front of has a bill or poster with the words 'Floor Show' above it. The shop preceeding it may have something to do with the Tijuana picture prop wagon. There are a string of decorative lanterns or handbags or somesuch items (possibly of a Mexican design, but maybe Asian, as well) hung in the street window. Then again, the wagon may be individually owned and used solely for taking tourist pictures. That sounds very Hollywood to me. Of course, the wagon may also have some connection with awning place.

And notice the paint on the buildings and facades. For example, the lower panelling on the 'Floor Show' wall (as well as areas of the shop facade next to it) is of a similar navy blue that the shop next to the Polynesian mural place has. Both photos have been taken in an area or areas of a city where there are somewhat colourful facades and buildings. And there's a little more tile work, too, in the above photo. Nowadays, such colours, tile work, etc. would more often than not be found in some International District and historical part of a city or town.

[ Edited by: DJ Terence Gunn 2008-08-15 13:59 ]

544 Grant ave San Francisco Chinatown. Jewelry stores are in that location still today.

I could be wrong but take a look at some of the old doors. they look the same as the green door in the photo(window the same size and locations in center of the door.) Also in the photo you can see some green Chinese ceramic tiles under the clothing store's window. makes me think it's china town.

Google it. check out the yellow door at 550 grant.

[ Edited by: AlienTiki 2008-08-15 14:02 ]

That reminds me, I'm going out today to buy a pair of sandals to go with my dress socks and vintage suit.

that was my earlier suspicion....that it was in a china town somewhere...now if we can get someone from san fran to get a photo of the current location....

You can see the place here http://maps.google.com/ you have to enter the address. only thing is now that I look at it, the addresses are in tens and it says 440 so It's probably not it unless they changed the addresses in the last 50 years. but I bet it's in the neighborhood.

I think it's on Grant ave. despite the address issue.

my blog

[ Edited by: AlienTiki 2008-08-15 14:21 ]

..sure looks like it....when you compare the photos side by side alot of the details line up...looks like someone cmae through china town with the ugly stick....look at all those cheap cheesy vinyl awnings....usually those are put right over the existing signs..cheaper than removing the old sign. here in chicago, alot of classic vintage signs are lurking behind these awnings waiting to be re discovered....san fran china town looks terrible with them....alot has changed since i was there last in 94'

anyway, i'll bet they changed the addresses due to rezoning or something...

And if you tilt that google photo of 544 grant, you can see the same type of brickwork edge at the very top of the building that you can see of the other photos green brick building.

I'm wondering now if the mural was painted directly on the glass of the existing shop windows. The "cutouts' for the jewelry displays might be painted frames.

Perhaps the artist painted other murals... does anyone recognize the style? Maybe his work also appeared in other tiki establishments nearby.

And maybe the man in the blue suit is posing in front of the mural because he is the artist! That would be cool...

(Edited to add: After looking again, I see that he is standing in front of and blocking some of the painting... unlikely then, that he was the artist!)

[ Edited by: Pacifilantic 2008-08-15 17:01 ]

The mural is in the style of Eugene Savage - his stuff was pretty widely copied back then. If it's a Hawaiian themed jewelry store, I'm guessing it's a Ming's...

At one time, Ming's had shops in San Francisco, Denver, Dallas, Houston, Ft. Lauderdale, New York and Miami, and two in Atlanta. There also were four in Waikiki, and shops at Ala Moana Center, downtown and in Hilo.

But Ming's began closing the mainland shops in the 1960s through the 1980s.

i doubt the glass was painted...most likely, the facade was all wood with windows and glass cut out of it....as time went on, that wooden facade was torn out and the new facade recessed with all glass windows as it appears today....i'll bet if you go down there and try to peek behind the awning, you will most likely see the remains of that asian style faux roof line.....they most likely slapped the awning up right over it to hide the "old" look....

i've got my mom & dad working on this mystery: dad says its a bar on Grant Ave in SF, and will get more info, they grew up in chinatown..

On 2008-08-15 18:09, dogbytes wrote:
i've got my mom & dad working on this mystery: dad says its a bar on Grant Ave in SF, and will get more info, they grew up in chinatown..

I think your dad is right, Elecia. Could that bar possibly be the following (though it seems rather an odd description, considering the Polynesian mural. 'Course, it would make it even more fascinating if it were, indeed, the following):

'Traveling down Grant Avenue, you will find "The Place" at 546 Grant for Stop 9. This was an underground Bohemian hangout from the ‘40s to the ‘60s. It was a center for showing underground painters (e.g. Wally Hedrick projected early liquid-light shows on the walls, and paintings by Robert LaVigne and Jy Defco hung here). "The Place" was managed by Knute Stiles and Leo Krikorian, both Black Mountain College alumni. What started as Dada Night evolved in the late ‘50s into Blabbermouth Night, an open social forum.'

i'll be in SF on Aug 25, and i'll recon for us (unfortunately, another funeral.. geez)

Actually, if the mystery place is the old bohemian hangout, 'The Place', then the Polynesian Mural painted on the walls/glass facade makes perfect sense, as it displayed artists. Perhaps at the time of the photograph Eugene Savage or some similar artist was displaying his or her talents? In any case, I wonder if the above sign actually says 'The Place', rather than the suspected '...Room'. Perhaps Sputnik can look at the slide again at home?

On 2008-08-15 14:00, AlienTiki wrote:
544 Grant ave San Francisco Chinatown. Jewelry stores are in that location still today.

I could be wrong but take a look at some of the old doors. they look the same as the green door in the photo(window the same size and locations in center of the door.) Also in the photo you can see some green Chinese ceramic tiles under the clothing store's window. makes me think it's china town.

Google it. check out the yellow door at 550 grant.

[ Edited by: AlienTiki 2008-08-15 14:02 ]

It took me about five minutes to find the place on google. The google earth thingy kicks ass. Mystery solved :lol: :lol:

Amazing! And if you're still not convinced it's the same place, click and drag the Google Street View map to point up to the top of the building. The top has the same blocky trim on the facade as seen in the 1959 picture.

Good joerb guys!