Bali Hai on Long Island

A few months back, an older friend of my wife and me talked to us about her experience working at the Bali Hai in Northport, Long Island, back in the 1950s. I did a Tiki Central word search and found that some folks had been discussing the NY Bali Hai in 2002, but no one seemed to know much about the place, so please excuse me for briefly attempting to add to our general store of knowledge.

Our friend, Elsa Posey, had been professional dancer in Broadway shows and ballet companies. As is the case today, except for a handful of big stars, even successful dancers are forced to find other paying jobs to sustain themselves, and Elsa snagged a gig at the Bali Hai, a Tiki bar, where she wore a grass skirt, participated in hula shows and waitressed. She said none of the dancers knew anything about hula and made up what they did, but they all thoroughly enjoyed working there. One thing she remembers vividly is that the waitresses loved it when a table would order a volcano bowl drink, because each one cost $5.00 and the waitress got to keep $1.00 of that. The drink price alone should tell you something about how long ago this was.

She dredged this up from her memory after visiting our house and seeing our tiki lounge (http://www.flickr.com/photos/drzarkov/). After returning home, she sent me two matchbook covers, a paper coaster and plastic swizzle stick from the Bali Hail, which was located at 647 Main Street, Route 25A, in Northport, Long Island, New York.

Elsa Posey currently directs her own dance school and that's how my wife, who was a professional dancer and choreographer in New York when we met, knew her. I also had met Elsa when we both served on the board of the National Dance Education Organization, a national association of dance teachers, but at that time she wasn't aware of my interest in Tiki. If you would like to learn more about Elsa, here is a link to an article published in Newsday in 2003: http://www.poseyschool.com/newsdayarticle.html.

Very cool post - mahalo !

Jack Kerouac lived in Northport in the 1950's ...wonder if he ever made it to the Bali Hai ?

Dr Z...I grew up in Huntington.....NICE job on your place....

So, I guess there are a few tikiphiles living on Long Island after all.

On 2008-05-15 03:03, sushiman wrote:
Very cool post - mahalo !

Jack Kerouac lived in Northport in the 1950's ...wonder if he ever made it to the Bali Hai ?

Yes it's very true that Kerouac live in Northport. He lived at 43 (or is it 34?) Gilbert St. in the late 50s or early 60s with, I believe, his mother. He was know to frequent Gunther's Tap Room which is stlll there near the harbor. At the recent Kerouac exhibit at the New York Public Library there were many references to his residency in Northport. In fact his library card form the local library and other items were on display. Also on display was the actual teletype scroll that 'On the Road' was written on (that has nothing to with Northport but it is definitely worth mentioning).

Dr. Zarkov, we have a discussion about the Bali Hai happening in the Locating Tiki forum with pictures and memorabilia that you'll probably want to check out at http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=10114&forum=2&6

Thanks for the link. The photos look fabulous and I love the picture with the waitress in it, although it doesn't look like she was wearing a grass skirt, Elsa's memories of what she wore more than five decades ago my be a bit misty (or I may have misheard her when she told the story).

I just started reading "On the Road" yesterday after seeing a documentary on the "beat" generation. I've had it in my collection for about 8 years now but this has nothing to do with tiki.

Great story though about meeting someone who danced at the Bali Hai.

I like tiki.

On 2008-05-15 12:38, FLOUNDERart wrote:
I just started reading "On the Road" yesterday after seeing a documentary on the "beat" generation. I've had it in my collection for about 8 years now but this has nothing to do with tiki.

Great story though about meeting someone who danced at the Bali Hai.

I like tiki.

I'm just finishing up ON THE ROAD : THE ORIGINAL SCROLL , which was just published recently . Highly recommended .

I lived on eastern Long Island for 14 years before coming to Japan , but visited every summer from the time I was born until I moved there , as my Grandparents lived there and had a house that we spent summers at . Know it well ...

On 2008-05-15 09:59, donhonyc wrote:

On 2008-05-15 03:03, sushiman wrote:
Very cool post - mahalo !

Jack Kerouac lived in Northport in the 1950's ...wonder if he ever made it to the Bali Hai ?

Yes it's very true that Kerouac live in Northport. He lived at 43 (or is it 34?) Gilbert St. in the late 50s or early 60s with, I believe, his mother. He was know to frequent Gunther's Tap Room which is stlll there near the harbor. At the recent Kerouac exhibit at the New York Public Library there were many references to his residency in Northport. In fact his library card form the local library and other items were on display. Also on display was the actual teletype scroll that 'On the Road' was written on (that has nothing to with Northport but it is definitely worth mentioning).

Dr. Zarkov, we have a discussion about the Bali Hai happening in the Locating Tiki forum with pictures and memorabilia that you'll probably want to check out at http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=10114&forum=2&6

It was 34 Gilbert Street and he moved in there in March 1959 ( and he did live with his mother ) , but , for a variety of reasons , sold it in June ! His mother went down to Fla. where Jack's sister lived , to look for a place , but Jack proceeded to purchase another house in Northport , this time at 49 Earl Avenue .

I sent the above link for the discussion of the Bali Hai that include pictures to Elsa Posey, who emailed back to me: "I had forgotten how pretty it was. The latest scoop is that they are turning the corner into a drugstore with a drive through prescription window."

It was 34 Gilbert Street and he moved in there in March 1959 ( and he did live with his mother ) , but , for a variety of reasons , sold it in June ! His mother went down to Fla. where Jack's sister lived , to look for a place , but Jack proceeded to purchase another house in Northport , this time at 49 Earl Avenue .

A year or two ago when I heard that Kerouac lived in Northport I did a little research on-line and found a website (can't remember what it was) which had an address of his former residence on a street called Judyanne Ct.. I don't remember what the number was but I did look for it when I was out there. What I found was a ranch style house on a cul-de-sac nearer to the Crab Meadow beach area, not like the Gilbert St. house, which was in a neighborhood nearer to the train station. After I went to the show at the NY Public Libary and saw that the house was on Gilbert (they actually had a framed photo of it in the gallery) I just assumed that the Judyanne Ct. address was inaccurate.

49 Earl Avenue? Hmm. I gotta check that out too the next time I'm out there.

Ya know..that would be insane if old Jack actually went to the Bali Hai. I would say that if anything, he may have went there once on a whim, for a laugh, OR by mistake. We all know he did like to drink. However, I'm betting that he wasn't a regular. Hey Johnny Carson used to hang at the Mai Kai! Carson..Kerouac. Two of my biggest heros!!!!!

On 2008-05-16 11:29, donhonyc wrote:

It was 34 Gilbert Street and he moved in there in March 1959 ( and he did live with his mother ) , but , for a variety of reasons , sold it in June ! His mother went down to Fla. where Jack's sister lived , to look for a place , but Jack proceeded to purchase another house in Northport , this time at 49 Earl Avenue .

A year or two ago when I heard that Kerouac lived in Northport I did a little research on-line and found a website (can't remember what it was) which had an address of his former residence on a street called Judyanne Ct.. I don't remember what the number was but I did look for it when I was out there. What I found was a ranch style house on a cul-de-sac nearer to the Crab Meadow beach area, not like the Gilbert St. house, which was in a neighborhood nearer to the train station. After I went to the show at the NY Public Libary and saw that the house was on Gilbert (they actually had a framed photo of it in the gallery) I just assumed that the Judyanne Ct. address was inaccurate.

49 Earl Avenue? Hmm. I gotta check that out too the next time I'm out there.

Ya know..that would be insane if old Jack actually went to the Bali Hai. I would say that if anything, he may have went there once on a whim, for a laugh, OR by mistake. We all know he did like to drink. However, I'm betting that he wasn't a regular. Hey Johnny Carson used to hang at the Mai Kai! Carson..Kerouac. Two of my biggest heros!!!!!

Jack sold the Earl Avenue house is 1961 , and moved down to Orlando , Fla...However , once again he and Memere returned to Northport on the snowy Christmas Eve of 1962 . They'd bought a new ranch house at 7 Judyann Court .

It was 34 Gilbert Street and he moved in there in March 1959 ( and he did live with his mother ) , but , for a variety of reasons , sold it in June ! His mother went down to Fla. where Jack's sister lived , to look for a place , but Jack proceeded to purchase another house in Northport , this time at 49 Earl Avenue .

Was in Northport over the weekend and found 49 Earl Avenue. Like the other houses it's pretty modest in equally modest surroundings. The crazy thing about the Earl Avenue house is that it's a stone's throw from the former Bali Hai location. The street runs directly behind it. It would take no more than 5 minutes to walk over there. Crazy! Sushiman, just out of curiosity how did you find that Kerouac lived at this address?

[ Edited by: donhonyc 2008-05-18 20:41 ]

Nice article on Kerouac in Northport from 2006 in the New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/31/nyregion/31kerouac.html?fta=y&pagewanted=all

On 2008-05-18 19:29, donhonyc wrote:

It was 34 Gilbert Street and he moved in there in March 1959 ( and he did live with his mother ) , but , for a variety of reasons , sold it in June ! His mother went down to Fla. where Jack's sister lived , to look for a place , but Jack proceeded to purchase another house in Northport , this time at 49 Earl Avenue .

Was in Northport over the weekend and found 49 Earl Avenue. Like the other houses it's pretty modest in equally modest surroundings. The crazy thing about the Earl Avenue house is that it's a stone's throw from the former Bali Hai location. The street runs directly behind it. It would take no more than 5 minutes to walk over there. Crazy! Sushiman, just out of curiosity how did you find that Kerouac lived at this address?

[ Edited by: donhonyc 2008-05-18 20:41 ]

Jack my numero uno writer bar none . I've read all the books ; the books of letters ; several bios ; and have seen a few docu/movies about Jack , and in the process , have absorbed an abundance of factoids such as the 49 Earl Avenue address .
10 to 1 Jack hit the Bali Hai at least once .

Jack my numero uno writer bar none . I've read all the books ; the books of letters ; several bios ; and have seen a few docu/movies about Jack , and in the process , have absorbed an abundance of factoids such as the 49 Earl Avenue address .
10 to 1 Jack hit the Bali Hai at least once .

Wow, very cool. I also bow at the alter of Kerouac but I haven't read nearly as much as you have. Retracing his footsteps is pretty fun. There is a Kerouac/New York City walking tour book that came out a few years ago that I have used a bunch of times to see where his and the beats old haunts were around here. This Northport thing has opened up a whole other door of intrigue. I'm thinking that Jack went into the Bali Hai at least once. He lived insanely close to it at the Earl Avenue address.

Out of the Kerouac biographies that you have read which is the best one?

I have the BEAT GENERATION IN NY book as well .

Get MEMORY BABE by Gerald Nicosia .

http://wild-bohemian.com/mem-babe.htm

On 2008-05-19 15:32, sushiman wrote:
I have the BEAT GENERATION IN NY book as well .

Get MEMORY BABE by Gerald Nicosia .

http://wild-bohemian.com/mem-babe.htm

Cool, thanks. I'll check that out.

On 2008-05-19 20:33, donhonyc wrote:

On 2008-05-19 15:32, sushiman wrote:
I have the BEAT GENERATION IN NY book as well .

Get MEMORY BABE by Gerald Nicosia .

http://wild-bohemian.com/mem-babe.htm

Cool, thanks. I'll check that out.

You should also get the DVD " What Happened To Kerouac ? "

Sushi

On 2008-05-20 06:55, sushiman wrote:

On 2008-05-19 20:33, donhonyc wrote:

On 2008-05-19 15:32, sushiman wrote:
I have the BEAT GENERATION IN NY book as well .

Get MEMORY BABE by Gerald Nicosia .

http://wild-bohemian.com/mem-babe.htm

Cool, thanks. I'll check that out.

You should also get the DVD " What Happened To Kerouac ? "

Sushi

I saw that one years ago. Thanks, though. Have you ever seen 'Pull My Daisy'?

Okay, I'm real late in getting back to posting on this thread I started, so I apologize for only adding to it now that it appears to be thoroughly dead.

Off topic: Yes, I am a huge Kerouac fan, too. When I was in college at the University of Maryland (where friends dubbed me Dr. Zarkov after we saw the old Buster Crabbe Flash Gordon serials), my parents lived in northern New Jersey where I ran into a guy who knew Kerouac when he lived on Long Island. He said he met Kerouac in a local bar one night and, not knowing who he was, asked him. "I'm the greatest writer since sweet Will," Kerouac replied boozily. The only other thing I remember this guy telling me was that the notion that Kerouac wrote without revising was a myth. He recalled visiting Kerouac's house and seeing him carefully revising one of his manuscripts, I believe it was verse. This guy was a teenager when he met Kerouac and later fell in with Allen Ginsberg and the rest of the beats in Manhattan, eventually becoming mired in the drug scene, which he had gotten clear of by the time he met me.

I am writing this while two photos taken by Allen Ginsberg look down on me: Gregory Corso eating grapes in a Parisian garret, and Jack Kerouac on the East River docks in 1953, complete with handwritten captions by Ginsberg. I bought them in the 1980s and met Ginsberg at the gallery where I purchased them in Washington D.C. I had a local framer place them in old fashioned frames to look like family photos.

When I was in college in the early 1970s some friends of mine and I met Ginsberg at a reading he gave at the Smithsonian's Baird Auditorium. During intermission we repaired to one of the entrances to the auditorium, which was like a short tunnel, and hidden by the crowd we lit up a joint. To our surprise Ginsberg walked right by us on his way out to get some air. One of my friends who was holding the joint while we were passing it around, offered it to him for a hit. He thanked us, grabbed the joint and kept walking with it!)

When it comes to books I think the other posters have pretty well covered the waterfront. Two that you may not have heard about that I would recommend are Offbeat: Collaborating with Kerouac, by David Amram. A respected musician and composer, Amram worked on Pull My Daisy and knew Kerouac well before he became famous. Some of the Beats' naysayers asserted that Kerouac and the others misunderstood modern jazz and failed to recognize the true discipline it requires. This book shows that Kerouac at least knew and understood jazz thoroughly and even before he was well known, jazz musicians appreciated his comments (although one told Amram that Kerouac was too young to be drinking as much as he was -- when a jazz musician in New York in the 1950s says you're drinking too much, you're drinking too much.)

The other book I would recommend contains Kerouac only as a ghost: When I was Cool: My Life at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics, by Sam Kashner, who was the first -- and initially the only -- student at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa Institute. Although the divine Jack is not present, Kashner provides a vivid, sometimes scary, sometimes sad, sometimes funny look at Ginsberg, Corso, Burroughs and other assorted characters in their twilight. His description of Naropa rings true to what I saw when I attended the Colorado Dance Festival in Boulder nine years later and hung out and partied with the Naropa crowd (although at that time all the famous Beats were long gone from there).

On topic: Elsa Posey, whose recollections of the Bali Hai you may recall actually started off this thread, put me in touch with a friend of hers who used to hang out there. He had recorded King Camio's Hawaiian Band on reel-to-reel when it performed at the Bali Hai in 1962 or 1963. He kindly sent me a CD with 23 minutes -- it cuts off mid-song at one point when I guess the tape ran out -- and it is wonderful: Medleys of My Little Grass Shack and Hukilau and other tunes I can't quite recognize, and Hawaiian versions of requests like Red Sails in the Sunset, all recorded along with decades-past laughter, conversations and the sounds of tinkling glasses and Tiki mugs providing a steady undercurrent, resurrecting Tiki ghosts of long ago.

[ Edited by: Dr. Zarkov 2008-06-14 14:51 ]

On 2008-06-14 14:46, Dr. Zarkov wrote:
Okay, I'm real late in getting back to posting on this thread I started, so I apologize for only adding to it now that it appears to be thoroughly dead.

He said he met Kerouac in a local bar one night and, not knowing who he was, asked him. "I'm the greatest writer since sweet Will," Kerouac replied boozily. The only other thing I remember this guy telling me was that the notion that Kerouac wrote without revising was a myth. He recalled visiting Kerouac's house and seeing him carefully revising one of his manuscripts, I believe it was verse. [ Edited by: Dr. Zarkov 2008-06-14 14:51 ]

Jack was more or less FORCED to revise . As he said , he was on Blake's " crooked road of prophecy " . Others were on the " straight narrows roads of business " ...

I live right around the corner from the old Bali Hai, and the remainder of the building was JUST demolished yesterday. We looked through the fence and you can see the original brick oven which appears to have been in the basesment/lower level, and some teal blocks of cement and stone. That's IT! It will be another bank. No one has any money, yet they're building another bank!

I was looking in the rubbish for something to add to my tiki collection, but nothing there...