Need help identifying my tiki statue-A Hip Original

Hi all. I came across this tiki statue while visiting my grandmother-in-law recently. She decided to give it to me, but was not sure where she got it. Her memory is getting pretty fuzzy. So I thought if anyone can help, it is the tiki community!

It is pictured here, along with the only marking on it. Any ideas?

Hi jenkevcharleston,

My guess is that she probably picked it up in Hawaii on vacation, as that's where they were manufactured for the tourist trade. Here is an old thread by the son of the man who founded HIP in 1964:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=14867&forum=1&start=0

A lot of them ended up in the states that way and then could be found fairly easily on the secondary market (thrift stores, garage sales, junk shops, and now on eBay) That's how our resident expert, Buzzy, finds most of his I think. Here's a link to another thread where he posts his extensive collection of Coco Joes and HIP figurines:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=17776&forum=5&start=225

Thanks for the intro Sabu....

As he said, being the resident "expert" on these pieces here, I try to provide helpful information like this:

Here's the tag for that tiki:

You got the Happy God.

I just added a Jumbo Version of that piece to the collection a couple weeks back:

Here are the three sizes that I have:

There's also a lighter:

Letter opener

Pen holder

And there's probably a whole lot more...
Buzzy Out!

Thank you for all of the wonderful information. I will post a note in the marketplace when he goes up on eBay tonight.