Rise and Fall of Tiki feature in Wired magazine

Joseph Flaherty of Wired magazine wrote this review of Sven Kristen's new book, Tiki Pop. The article is called "The Bizarre Rise and Fall of the Tiki Bar in American Culture."

http://wrd.cm/1wv3TdQ

A fun little feature, but I tweeted to the author to take issue with his line "The tiki spirit lives on in backyards and backwaters..." Makes our tiki movement sound like a Louisiana barbeque!

Nice little article, but as we've come to expect, he forgivably gets several little details (important only to us fanatics!) wrong. But I chuckled, imagining some Tiki Centralites' blood pressure spiking, as they read this line, about Don the Beachcomber:

"Born Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt, this proto-Jimmy Buffet left his Texas home in 1926, aged nineteen years, to begin a career as a bootlegger before a detour led him to explore Asia."

How insulting!!!

Thanks for the heads up!

Ha, I just copied the "proto-Jimmy Buffet" quote to paste in here - that IS kinda an "Ouch!" moment :)

And the "backyards and backwaters.." thing is typical for us writers trying to have matching wordplay in there, taking so-called "poetic license".

The main thing is that it gives Tiki an exposure on WIRED, and that it is an intelligent take on it. There are ALWAYS things wrong to us who know it all, one has to accept the faults for the greater good.

I had an issue with the Collector's Weekly headline of:
"Tiki Hangover: Unearthing the False Idols of America's South Seas Fantasy"
…which is all smart concept but comes across as somewhat negative, but hey, the article was good, AND it got linked on Boing Boing, so who's crying.

I just edited the translation of the article that Academie Francaise member Marc Lambron wrote for "Le Point"magazine about Tiki and me, for the TASCHEN catalog, and it is full of subjective interpretations and puts words into my mouth I never said - but it is really funny, even dark, and an outrageous take on the subject. Being German, I am all about being correct about the details, but it was really refreshing hearing a creative, intelligent voice write about it - even if it was some hyperbole :)

[ Edited by: bigbrotiki 2014-07-16 09:29 ]

My word......

Not a bad little article, though that one line is a killer.

Kinda funny- I wrote a very similar one to it a few months ago. Same "flow" to it and everything.

Forget the Buffet line, the text and a caption in the slideshow crediting Don the Beachcomber as the inventor of the Mai Tai is sure to cause TCer outrage from coast to coast!

Fun article though, thanks for posting.

[ Edited by: Sunny&Rummy 2014-07-16 14:57 ]

Thanks for posting. Nice to see Bigbro and Tiki in general getting exposure in a smart magazine like Wired. The author should read Tiki modern to get a better understanding of the the style developing along side Mid Century mod and how the two (primitivism and modernism) actually have things in common. And yeah the Jimmy Buffet line is pretty awful...

I had to jump in and give my 2 cents... I have no problem with folks digging or not digging Tiki, but they should at least get their facts straight....

Meh. Another poorly researched, mostly-inaccurate article for PolyPop noobs that does more to reveal the smug biases of the author than actually delve into the history of Tiki. At least the word "Tacky" doesn't appear anywhere in juxtaposition with "Tiki", so it's got that going for it.

I keep hoping that someday, someone will write an article that takes an entirely different slant on the topic. Maybe some enterprising reporter will dig up the skinny on how Tiki was made cool again by the Flipside Magazine crew hanging out at the Tiki-Ti back in the early '80s, Boyd Rice playing Exotica over the P.A. before his Industrial Noise concerts, and Goths eating ribs and drinking Scorpions at Kelbos.

Nah, it'll never happen...

On 2014-07-16 18:29, MrBaliHai wrote:

I keep hoping that someday, someone will write an article that takes an entirely different slant on the topic. Maybe some enterprising reporter will dig up the skinny on how Tiki was made cool again by the Flipside Magazine crew hanging out at the Tiki-Ti back in the early '80s, Boyd Rice playing Exotica over the P.A. before his Industrial Noise concerts, and Goths eating ribs and drinking Scorpions at Kelbos.

Nah, it'll never happen...

I'd read that frickin article!!

On 2014-07-16 18:29, MrBaliHai wrote:
Meh. Another poorly researched, mostly-inaccurate article for PolyPop noobs that does more to reveal the smug biases of the author than actually delve into the history of Tiki. At least the word "Tacky" doesn't appear anywhere in juxtaposition with "Tiki", so it's got that going for it.

I keep hoping that someday, someone will write an article that takes an entirely different slant on the topic. Maybe some enterprising reporter will dig up the skinny on how Tiki was made cool again by the Flipside Magazine crew hanging out at the Tiki-Ti back in the early '80s, Boyd Rice playing Exotica over the P.A. before his Industrial Noise concerts, and Goths eating ribs and drinking Scorpions at Kelbos.

Nah, it'll never happen...

Were you one of those guys? I remember talking to some old punks & rock-n-rollers
at the Ti back in the 80s I would bring band friends in all the time, like Demolition Gore Galore, Motorcycle Boy
"Fag" (Montana Dave's band named Fag FYI...) Zodiac Mindwarp & Ian Astbury to name a few
split my time between the Ti, Powerhouse, Boardner's & Zatar's mostly.

[ Edited by: Atomic Tiki Punk 2014-07-16 22:18 ]

On 2014-07-16 09:28, bigbrotiki wrote:

I had an issue with the Collector's Weekly headline of:
"Tiki Hangover: Unearthing the False Idols of America's South Seas Fantasy"
…which is all smart concept but comes across as somewhat negative, but hey, the article was good, AND it got linked on Boing Boing, so who's crying.

Here is that Collector's weekly article for those who missed it.
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/tiki-hangover/

On 2014-07-16 20:25, Atomic Tiki Punk wrote:

Were you one of those guys?

I moved out of L.A. in '79, but I went to highschool with the original Flipside crew prior to that, and occasional took pictures for the magazine. A few years ago, I was surprised to run across a bunch of photos, at Michele Flipside's old website, of X-8, Al, and Pooch at the Ti. When I asked X-8 about it, he told me they frequently hung out there with bands. Also, I ran into Boyd Rice at Tiki Boyd's in Denver, shortly before he pulled the plug on them, and we had a long discussion about how he kickstarted the Exotica revival at NON shows.

Thanks MrBaliHai, I am pretty sure I had drinks with those guys on a few occasions
it was just before the hair bands took over Hollywood, then things got stupid.

On 2014-07-17 04:07, Atomic Tiki Punk wrote:
Thanks MrBaliHai, I am pretty sure I had drinks with those guys on a few occasions
it was just before the hair bands took over Hollywood, then things got stupid.

If you had any interactions with the LA Punk in-crowd, you definitely would've run into the Flipside crew at some point.

I met up with Alice Bag and Michele Flipside at the Ti back in 2005. X-8 and Pooch were invited also, but they were no-shows (there's still some bad blood there). Al has gone undercover since the magazine folded, so we weren't able to contact him. We had a pretty good time taking a trip down Old Punk Memory Lane. The Bum and Humu were there that night as well.

As for the Goth-Kelbo connection, X-8 helped launch that scene at Harry's Bar, so I suspect that his interest in Tiki (at least the cocktail part of it) appealed to them, in some twisted way, as the antithesis of their dark fetishes.

Can you fill me in on why everyone is groaning over the Jimmy Buffet line? I don't think I know the stereotype...

Thanks for posting the Collector's Weekly article. Another interesting read!

On 2014-07-17 09:24, Quinntiki wrote:
Can you fill me in on why everyone is groaning over the Jimmy Buffet line? I don't think I know the stereotype...

A lot of TC folks feel that Buffet has misappropriated, bastardized, and cheapened the Tiki culture that Don the Beachcomber essentially created.

I agree with that. The Jimmy Buffett vibe plays hard and fast with anything tropical. And it does so without regard for the deeper aspects of tiki and tropical and Polynesian Pop. The Jimmy Buffett vibe has superficiality as its cornerstone - music, partying hard, drinking, etc.

Tiki, on the other hand, is centered around fake palm trees, fake cocktails which Polynesians didn't have in the old days, and it has bastardized Chinese food and adopted it as its own. Then there's exotica music, partying hard in tiki bars, drinking, etc.

Hey, wait, what was I trying to say? Oh crap, never mind... :P

I don't blame Jimmy Buffet so much as Jimmy Buffet fans that can't understand that there is a distinct difference between Tiki and simply throwing anything and everything even remotely tropical together and calling it soup.

They also don't understand that it's somewhat insulting to Tiki purists to see such a rich culture cheapened by an endless onslaught of ugly, cheap, brightly colored, party store garbage that too often tends to go right along with parrothead decor. If that's what you're into than cool, but understand that it is very distinctly different from that which we call Tiki.

Very good points. Few of the general population know what "real tiki" is, and they remain vulnerable to the Buffetization of tiki and anything tropical. So there is our mission - to help continue to spread the understanding and knowledge and joy of what we know as "tiki."

I live in a state where people put thatched roofs over their bars and call 'em "tiki" bars.

This is a particularly difficult task in Florida where any structure with a thatch roof is generally accepted as a "Tiki Bar" despite the complete lack of any Tikis whatsoever.

True. I love walking into places which advertise "tiki bar" and asking the bartenders where their tiki is. When they tell me they don't have one, or if I look around and don't see any, I get to have a bit of fun with them.

I was surprised once at the Big Bamboo Lounge in Kissimmee when I asked that question. The bartender pointed quickly to a small tiki standing next to the cash register. I laughed out loud because I was so surprised.

On 2014-07-17 12:45, AceExplorer wrote:
I was surprised once at the Big Bamboo Lounge in Kissimmee when I asked that question. The bartender pointed quickly to a small tiki standing next to the cash register. I laughed out loud because I was so surprised.

That's awesome! Something tells me they got asked before, and said "screw it we're buying one..."

I get the Jimmy Buffett thing now. I just went to his website and found this collection of slightly offensive and anti-tiki tropical swag: http://www.margaritavillecaribbean.com/store/. Blech.

It is a highly complicated, Yet completely opposite of a nuanced phenomenon
Unambiguous even, you might say (you would definitely say that!)
so I will try to explain:

Jimmy Buffett pretend Tiki:
Yacht rock loving, Cheap beer swilling, Ugly Hawaiian Shirt wearing (not "cool" ugly, just plain ugly!)
Patchouli smelling stoner hippy, Slushy dispensed Margarita guzzling, Party City Tiki mother fuckers!

This is BAD! M'kay

And then you have Real Tiki:

Vintage inspired, Mid Century influenced love of Polynesian Pop, Great Cocktails, Great Music
Tikis, real if they fall on you, you could die, Tikis! The good Hawaiian shirts (I mean The good ones!)
So basically your Mom & Dad's version of Tiki, Granny & Pop Pop's version if you be a youngin....

This is GOOD! M'kay

So there you have it.......

[ Edited by: Atomic Tiki Punk 2014-07-17 14:02 ]

I wouldn't even call Jimmy Buffet "Pretend Tiki", it's just generic tropical escapism of the post-Tiki period:

On 2003-12-18 20:06, bigbrotiki wrote:
Knowingly or not, J.B. contributed to the decline of Tiki culture, allow me to quote the Book of Tiki, page 52:

"In the 70’s, the thus segregated Polynesian style was watered down further through a certain “Jimmy Buffet-ization”, the introduction of a generic tropical island theme with no definite identity. Be it the Carribean, Mexico, or Polynesia, everywhere was “Margharita-ville”. The popular T.V. show “Fantasy Island” typified this new p.c. detachment from cultural complicity, creating a world of white wicker colonial style decor mixed with exotic plants.
The fern bar replaced the Tiki bar."

It's just two different styles, and we like to keep'em apart. Tiki to us has style, while Buffet represents un-style.

Later, AFTER the Tiki Revival got going, he jumped on the band wagon with concepts like this:

…which inspired such classics of Tiki art as this:

Now, if you don't see anything wrong with these Tikis - Jimmy Buffet is your man!

[ Edited by: bigbrotiki 2014-07-17 17:33 ]

Hurts my EYES!

I'm not a Parrot head, but it's funny how you see on TC some guy go "check out my new tiki"
and ya see some Indonesian mask looking at you.
I find that just as ugly, but people here for the most part give that a pass.
Now don't get me wrong I'm not into the buffet style myself.

Then you go to some tiki events and bam the same goofy, loud, drunk Parrot heads everybody hates
are at this tiki event but they got better shirts on and are tiki heads. (Maybe it's an Ohio thing)

Even had a guy from TC who PMed me to say he got a Steve Crane tiki mug for FIVE BUCKS! "That's Right FIVE bucks!" he wrote.
Well I had to see what he got and looked it up on eBay, It was a PARTY CITY mug that the listing said was
a Steve Crane tiki mug, the thing is this guy did not look at it and go "wow that's ugly"
So because TC said this was the mug to have, he had to have it.

I too like the old school more low key version of tiki myself.
But that is getting hard to find.
Getting old I guess.

I have noticed, and am a little guilty of that myself (there are a couple Indonesian items in my lounge). I suppose it's treated differently because there still seems to be at least a little cultural authenticity there, even if it isn't technically Tiki. The Buffet-esque type stuff isn't really authentic to anything. It's just poorly conceived designs intended to hawk margaritas and ugly, over priced tchotchkes.

Interesting about the alleged Steve Crane mug. If often seems there can be many approaches to Tiki appreciation. Some seem almost institutional. Like those that say I should like Tiki mugs enough to pay hundreds of dollars for one. Honestly, mugs are cool, some are awesome. I just can't justify spending anywhere close to that much on one. I like Tiki pendants and Hawaiian shirts, but don't feel the need to don it like a uniform. I also appreciate the role many designs have played in the history of Poly pop. Yet I still can't bring myself to like Mr Bali Hai or Tiki Bob.

Don't get me wrong, I think folks should do their thing, whatever it is, just so long as it doesn't infringe on others. It just seems sometimes that "thing" is more of a collective aesthetic and less of an individual expression of love or appreciation for Tiki culture.

On 2014-07-17 13:23, Quinntiki wrote:
I get the Jimmy Buffett thing now. I just went to his website and found this collection of slightly offensive and anti-tiki tropical swag: http://www.margaritavillecaribbean.com/store/. Blech.

Thanks, I went and looked at that Jimmy Buffett store. I'll bet Jimmy Buffett himself has ZERO of that crapola in his house, his bar, his kitchen, etc.

I've got two Indonesian masks myself, gifts I think.
But my point was more about the instant hate of Parrot heads/buffet when we got pockets of
parrot head behavior in our group as well.
But then Parrot heads did not seem to know each other or have celebrities like the tiki world does.
Went to a show 15 or so years ago, so you are less likely to be pissed at the drunken stuff people
that you know or respect do as in the tiki world.

Heck we could not find a tiki in Hawaii when we went, they were all Boskos work that we saw there.

Good point, there are certainly Tiki fans that behave in the same manner, but it doesn't seem to be promoted by the community as much as with parrotheads. Within the Tiki community, it seems more the exception rather than rule. My complaint lies mostly with the design aesthetic as opposed to the fans behavior. Anytime alcohol comes into the mix, there will always be those who can't seem to behave reasonably. I think that tends to be the case regardless of what community is in question.

I can't begin to speak of how sad the over commercialization of Hawaii makes me. My biggest customers are native Hawaiians in the islands. It just seems profoundly sad that to get affordable Polynesian cultural crafts, islanders have to turn to a haole in California. I feel glad and thankful for the opportunity to help fill that role, but it makes me sad that the circumstances in the islands make it necessary.

Over the past month or so I have received two email ads from two different bar supply companies touting their "tiki bar" stuff. One ad featured a plain thatched bar on a beach somewhere and they pasted a "tiki bar" sign onto the front. The other ad featured a bunch of "hand painted" bar signs, one of which was a "tiki bar" sign with a big colorful macaw ala Jimmy Buffett. In each instance I wrote back to the company and explained how they were doing an injustice to real tiki by perpetuating the myth that "tiki" was synonymous with thatched roofs, parrots, and Jimmy Buffett. Today I got another email with signage for sale and - to my surprise - the tiki bar sign with the bird was missing. I'm not sure that I had any influence, but I want to encourage others to help make advertisers aware of these types of gaffes when they make them.

A simple email may or may not have an impact - but it's definitely worth trying to put tiki into proper perspective, especially for the graphic artists and designers who create the ads for advertisers.