The Elements of Tiki

Help me finish the Elements of Tiki...

1.Bamboo
2.Tiki Gods
3.Palm Trees
4.Glass Floats

5-???

The Book of Tiki!

PTD

Music
Friends
cocktails

And don't forget the secret ingredient.........

Love.

All you need is love. Love is a many and splendid thing.

Try to get that earworm out of your head now..... [/evil laughter]

On 2009-10-12 17:31, bigbrotiki wrote:

He said TIKI not FREAKY

Oh wait ---that's been said............
:wink:

I think that the picture of the hippies/flower children is not appropriate for this thread. I would argue that it was the rise of the counter-culture that led to Tiki's original demise. Tiki was a socially acceptable way for a sexually repressed mid-century middle-America to get "wild and crazy". Why would the younger generation adopt Tiki when there was "free love" and dope to be had?

And if you think about it, Tiki-philes today were never hippies. If anything they were Punkers back in the day.

I love Tiki but I hate those hippies. :)

Come on, everybody knows the more tikis (phallic symbol) you have, the more that women will take off their clothes for you. You need more tikis.

John-o,
I've got to take aliitle bit of exception to your post. I was born in 1950 & did my teenage years in the '60s. Most of the so-called 'hippies' that grew up in Tucson,AZ. were not really hippies. Sure, we had long hair & smoked weed, but we dressed more like cowboys (more Buffalo Springfield) than like hippies. I knew maybe one or two real hippies (the kind that people seem to hate these days). Me and my group, like alot of teens in Tucson frequented (sp) Kon Tiki almost every weekend. My first drink, inside a bar, was there. We went to LA, lots of times and saw 'real' hippies, so maybe my viewpoint is skewed. I think more than hippies, was that disco crap that undid tiki more than hippies. In short, John, I trying to understand why people hate hippies so much nowadays. It seems like they were a big threat to 'conservative' thought, so conservatives spend a lot of time making sure everyone hates hippies these days. They played a part in forming the music we all seem to like now. I may be off base, but the kind of hippies in that pic were few and far between, from my viewpoint. Most of us were Beach Boys, Beatles, Doors, Buffalo Springfield, etc, etc. kind of kids. Just having a good time.

Total unadulterated escapism from the daily grind to the always warm, safe, happy, tranquil and sometimes imaginary world far far away........... my basement home bar. Or for those lucky enough, the local Tiki establishment. :D

Just check the Book of Tiki

On 2009-10-12 16:44, TikiGabe661 wrote:
Help me finish the Elements of Tiki...

1.Bamboo
2.Tiki Gods
3.Palm Trees
4.Glass Floats

5.Puffer Fish
6.Fish nets
7.Tiki Mugs
8.Rum-based drinks
9.Exotica music
10.Tapa print
11.Tiki art such as black velvet painting of topless Wahine

You can have all of those elements and more (such as nice hanging Tiki lights, War clubs, tropical foliage, etc).
Or you can have just a few of those elements (tikis are essential, though).
But, if you went with a Witco Tiki bar, you don't even need Bamboo.

On 2009-10-13 09:52, GROG wrote:
you don't even need Bamboo.

OK, John-O, allow me to spell it out for you, since it was apparently not clear that my post was direct, if joking, response to the post right above mine, only inches away. I SHOULD have posted it like this, I apologize:

On 2009-10-12 17:08, Chip and Andy wrote:

And don't forget the secret ingredient.........
Love.
All you need is love. Love is a many and splendid thing.

Better? :)

And I still like to entertain my theory that the gap between the Lounge generation and the Hippie generation was not so big after all: The Hippies just put into action what their predecessors only dreamed of under the guise of a Tiki Lounge: The South Seas dream of Free love, living in nature, and not working for the man.

In my opinion, that Hippy hate is a bit antiquated in a world that is bereft of ANY idealism, at least they had something to believe in and went for it.....well, they could, ironically because they had the luxury to be able to, courtesy of the hard work of their parents. :) That kind of economic safety cushion is no longer there in today's world, so there is nothing to "reject".

On 2009-10-13 13:36, bigbrotiki wrote:

.....The Hippies just put into action what their predecessors only dreamed of under the guise of a Tiki Lounge: The South Seas dream of Free love, living in nature, and not working for the man.

Or the Hippies just figured out it was easier to get stoned on LSD and Pot rather than to drink 6 Mai Tais. (No hangovers plus you get to have acid flashbacks !!).

Hmmm.... If Hippies were an evolution of Lounge Culture then how did we loop back to Disco ?? (Oh man, I know I'm going to get scolded again by Hanford for hijacking another thread). :(

OK, let me add my contribution to the Elements of Tiki:

12. "Aloha" Shirts with a modernist or abstract design (Man, these things are hard to find. Bigbro, I think you should branch out with a clothing line).

Tell me about it! And things were really looking good in the late 90s/early 2000s, when Aloha shirt and Surf gear designers brought back loud and abstract patterns....only to be tucking in their tails a few years later and going the conservative "muted/monochrome" palette of Tommy Bahama and other such "older guy" lines.

But back to one more "Element of Tiki", in reference to the boring "good" taste of the above mentioned store:

The willingness to embrace and defend "bad" taste.

A party aint a party without Tiki Torches!

13. Tiki Torches

Well in Calif. anyway most of the 60s hippies, became the closed minded Republicans of today, total hypocrisy in my book, but my issue was that the hippies blamed so many Vietnam vets for the war, when most vets had no choice, but to go.

But to be fair many just wanted to mellow out, get high etc. Slackers! oh wait! Mai Tai's ?, mellow out ? let me think this threw....

MONEY!

You need lotsa money or skill
to acquire or build the necessary items for a tiki event/bar...

unless you're a good-fer-nuthin thief....

A low brow state of mind! Hanging dead puffer fish from your ceiling can only translate to that.

And...

A-Frames and
Lava Rock and
Waterfalls and
Giant Clam Shells and
Bridges and moats
and Outriggers Canoes too.

Here are some hippies that transitioned into a little Tiki-Mod Style in the early 70's.

DC

Ahhh the 'hippie' movement and 'hippie' generation. They get way too much publicity for doing nothing of significance (imho). They ultimately sold out in the 1980's, lessening whatever credibility they may have had.

But I think this article sums up best why I am not fond of the 'hippie' movement, and Woodstock in particular.

http://www.vfw.org/index.cfm?fa=news.magDtl&dtl=1&mid=5144

Props to Veterans everywhere, for affording us the freedom and opportunity to sit around collecting tiki mugs, listening to lounge music & having fruity rum drinks with friends.

My Mom always used to tell me that I was a Spock baby...then she would kick my ass.

Personally, I'm much more disturbed by those making comments based on cliches and personal prejudices fed by generalizations and ignorance. Why the humor impaired seem unable to let some passing remark about "hippies" go without dumbass comments is beyond me. Just as useless than if someone said: "You know, conservatives can't really enjoy tiki culture because they have a stick shoved so far up their ass they can't enjoy much of anything". Has nothing to do with the topic. You want to make comments on crap like that, go to Free Republic or Little Green Footballs or something like that. Leave the politics out of it.

Mea Culpa, totally, I shouldn't have flashed that "All we need is Love" photo, and it derailed the thread. I was indeed hoping it would be viewed as a passing joke. But sometimes threads give food to thought, and they inspire a discussion that is more interesting than what was intended. To want to stifle that, especially with rude language, will snuff all life out of a board. I WANT to hear peoples' opinions and thoughts, and I want to be stimulated to think. Everybody here is entitled to their opinion, even the above one :) (Some wise man once said: Strive to be tolerant towards all -except the intolerant!)

I am sure many who know my work will understand why a newbie question such as the opening one of this thread would not make me want to go into the basics of it all again. This has nothing to do with "not wanting to stoop to the level", just a weariness of beginning-from-scratch. But I will always take the opportunity to lift the discussion onto a level of social, historical, or even philosophical context if the opportunity presents itself here. That's when the game of Tiki becomes fun again for me. We just have to remain gentlemen and -not necessarily share- but respect each others views. Not expressing thought and just shaking your head is the death of any internet forum.

Now, if we can try, let's get back to the "Elements of Tiki", they are numerous. I am actually planning a post on the "Elements of Pre-Tiki", (which all flowed into "Tiki"), but which, by delineating the differences, will help to define full fledged Tiki. :)

On 2009-10-13 16:15, Dustycajun wrote:

That bottom image looks kind of like a set for a Tikified Star Trek.

Wahine Urhura, Get me Tiki Bar 1 on the com!

Kane Checkov.... Warp Factor 7.

Yes, I am a geek..... this kind of post is what happens when the BAC gets too low.

On 2009-10-14 08:33, bigbrotiki wrote:
Mea Culpa, totally, I shouldn't have flashed that "All we need is Love" photo,

I thought it was funny as hell! And visually a wonderful companion piece to the earworm I planted in the thread derail.

But then again, I am the one who started the thread derail so my opinion is probably biased in favor of the humor and very much away from the seriousness of the question at hand.

On 2009-10-14 08:44, Chip and Andy wrote:

That bottom image looks kind of like a set for a Tikified Star Trek.

:lol: !!! That is so spot on! :)

So why is this guy wearing a Mercedes Benz emblem on his shirt?

On 2009-10-14 12:22, Sax Person wrote:
So why is this guy wearing a Mercedes Benz emblem on his shirt?

haha! Oh yeah, there's a line missing. My bad. Uh, he's the hippie that grew up to represent the corporate establishment he once despised?? :lol:

[ Edited by: TheBigT 2009-10-14 12:38 ]

I need a clarification here...

Is it the commune livin, daisy in the rifle barrel, Merry Prankster/Further Bus ridin Hippie that is bad or is it,
The born in the 80's, rainbow gathering dancin, drum circle, Phish follwing driving daddys BMW, clueless hippie?

The former I am ok with other than they killed good music, it's the latter that I just can't stand.

[ Edited by: Beach Bum Scott 2009-10-14 12:57 ]

On 2009-10-14 11:06, TheBigT wrote:

He is wearing the universal symbol for Pie on his shirt!

Love it!

On 2009-10-14 08:33, bigbrotiki wrote:
Now, if we can try, let's get back to the "Elements of Tiki", they are numerous. I am actually planning a post on the "Elements of Pre-Tiki", (which all flowed into "Tiki"), but which, by delineating the differences, will help to define full fledged Tiki. :)

Bigbro, I want to create a Topic on existing LA places that celebrate Pre-Tiki style. Obviously beachcomber/Polynesian would fall into this category. Is it safe to say that nautical would fall into Pre-Tiki style? How about pre-WWII Chinese restaurants that played up the exotic Orient angle? Also when did people start wearing Aloha wear to these places? Was that in the Pre-Tiki period or afterwards?

On 2009-10-14 11:06, TheBigT wrote:

This looks like a tikified vigilante cousin of Kool Aid, who comes through the thatched wall swinging a machete every time you yell out "Hey bartender, ill take a Mai Tai"

"Mai Tai?"

On 2009-10-14 13:10, JOHN-O wrote:
Bigbro, I want to create a Topic on existing LA places that celebrate Pre-Tiki style. Obviously beachcomber/Polynesian would fall into this category. Is it safe to say that nautical would fall into Pre-Tiki style? How about pre-WWII Chinese restaurants that played up the exotic Orient angle? Also when did people start wearing Aloha wear to these places? Was that in the Pre-Tiki period or afterwards?

Not really, nautical places and Chinese places were just that: Nautical and Chinese style. If you are asking if nautical and Exotic East ELEMENTS were used in Pre-Tiki style, yes. But Pre-Tiki places have to have the classic Polynesian/Hawaiiana look, basically everything that Tiki places had later - except they didn't have Tikis (in numbers worth mentioning) yet.

Just check my POLYNESIAN Pop Evolution Chart in the BOT again: First there was BEACHCOMBER style, then the TRADER (i.e. nautical) style, and out of these evolved TIKI style.

Good example:
Stephen Crane's Luau in the early 50s, right after he took it over from The Tropics (clearly Pre-Tiki):

The Luau in the late 50s, after an extensive make-over:

This was when Steve Crane introduced the Tikis in his menu opening text. (And no, wise guys, it is NOT about the green Naugahyde booths.)

The only clear Pre-Tiki places in L.A. I can think of are Daimon's, and Bahooka --Bahooka being Pre-Tiki (or "Beachcomber") in style, not in date built.

And folks did not really wear Aloha shirts to these places, since going there usually meant "an evening on the town". The staff wore that gear, and regular folks wore it at backyard Luaus more and Hawaii-themed parties, beginning in the mid-50s.

I see THIS as a good example of what folks would wear to go out to Polynesian restaurants:

[ Edited by: bigbrotiki 2009-10-14 15:19 ]

Dressing up and no screaming kid's running around!!!
If only I could be living in the days of that picture still.

That has to be an Element of Tiki or is it just something from the past...

...and cigarette smoke so thick you can't see across the room. I DID live in that age.

Leave it to the suburban savage to hold his calm composure even in a den of pagan delights.

Even with the kids on occasion.

Holy Cow!
That last pic looks like the time my folks brought us with them to Kon Tiki (Tucson) in about '63. And it looks like Drew Cary showed up too.
Sax, ahhh the smoke. Nothing like it.
Started frequenting Kon Tiki a year or so later with my friends...Smoking this and that.
And to me, always present in the element of Tiki, is that unnamable, hard to describe element that transports you to a time more comfortable. Makes your soul warm. And for some reason, when I get there, staring at the Tiki I just carved (or attempted to), my mind brings up Rocky and Bullwinkle, go figure. Never said i was completely lucid. This 'thing' has been described much more eruditely in Tiki Central in other places.

I see some wicker peacock chairs. Those must have/be an "element of tiki" as well.

On 2009-10-14 15:09, bigbrotiki wrote:

And folks did not really wear Aloha shirts to these places, since going there usually meant "an evening on the town". The staff wore that gear, and regular folks wore it at backyard Luaus more and Hawaii-themed parties, beginning in the mid-50s.

How about in 2010 rather than having a "Tiki Oasis", have a "Pre-Tiki Oasis"? No Tikis would be allowed and everyone would have to wear formal mid-century dinner wear. The only people allowed to wear Aloha wear would be the support staff. This would be a great way to impart the distinctions between Pre-Tiki and classic Tiki. Pre-Tiki "police" would eject any people or objects which did not conform to this style.

Now that would be an event I would attend. :)

On 2009-10-15 10:56, Beach Bum Scott wrote:
Dressing up and no screaming kid's running around!!!
If only I could be living in the days of that picture still.

That has to be an Element of Tiki or is it just something from the past...

Hear Hear! I have to agree with Beach Bum Scott, I think an important Element of Tiki are "adults". No kids runnin' around to destroy the mood of yourself or others. Its all about the "grown-ups" just hangin' out and loungin with a tasty drink in your hand :)

I love Uncle Trav's last photo too -

Why? Look at that priceless photo: Long-haired garage band members hanging out with a "MISS (?)"...who must be friends with the chick in the peacock chair ("Miss Sociable?!)...chaperoned by Mr. Principal (Drew Carey) and Mrs. Teacher...served by an Asian man dressed in pre-hippy-era floral finery :)

What a train-wreck of a photograph!

Elements of Tiki:
Coconut
Pineapple
Island Girls

On 2009-10-13 08:32, JOHN-O wrote:
And if you think about it, Tiki-philes today were never hippies.

How did you come up with that?

On 2009-10-18 19:25, bananabobs wrote:

On 2009-10-13 08:32, JOHN-O wrote:
And if you think about it, Tiki-philes today were never hippies.

How did you come up with that?

I think that most Tikiphiles today were too young to have been hippies. I would guess the average Tikiphile age to be mid 40's to early 50's. Anyone who could have been a hippie has got to be 10 years older than that.

Also most nostalgic posts here skew towards early Punk Rock rather than Woodstock or the Summer of Love.

Just my observation. If I'm mistaken, Tiki Hippies please step up and be counted. :)

[ Edited by: JOHN-O 2009-10-18 22:07 ]

John-O,
Like I said earlier, I'm gonna be 60 next year, never was a hippie, but had the hair and stuff, smoked the same weed, but hung out at Kon Tiki & Lucky Wishbone (a local fried chicken place near the Kon Tiki, both still going strong). Had nothing against hippies, still don't. I guess it's hard to define exactly who are Tiki, and where they came from. I think that's what's cool about us. Some from here, some from there. P.S. I saw a couple I knew back in the '60s, who were absolutely hippies back then, at the Casino here, gambling away. Like, Wow, Far out, er....awesome.
Ciao

On 2009-10-19 07:50, drgoat456 wrote:
.... I guess it's hard to define exactly who are Tiki, and where they came from.

Very!

The Call of the Tiki and all things Exotic strikes many in different ways and at different times. While the average Tiki-phile is in the neighborhood of 40, that is only the center of the bell curve. We have some here who are just now old enough to drink, and a few more who were of drinking age the "first time round."

The quest to quantify our group of misfits is certainly an entertaining one, it, however, proves nothing overall other than your ability to statistically analyze a large group of people and find a trend in that group. Any quantification of who's here and why will only cause grief when applied to those outside of this group. Your middle-aged slightly (or more) overweight male wearing an aloha shirt and drinking rum-based drinks in the general population is just as likely to be a Parrot-Head or Nascar Fan as he is to be a Tiki-phile.