Tiki in silver age advertising !

Exactly how prevalent and far-reaching was the influence of Polynesian Pop on the American psyche during the heyday of Tiki? So prevalent that it made it's way into almost every echelon of consumer marketing! Here is a sequence of ads I picked from four seperate issues of "The American Home" magazine, running from 1960 until 1965. Tile flooring, saccharin, garden seeds, even spark plug(??) ads saw the clear influence of Polynesian Pop. The same was reflected in small business, hence the want ads shown here. Wacky, huh? :)

I want one of those rattan Luau Lounge chairs in the Palley's ad! Sweeeeet!

Mahalo
Original Art by Flounder

http://www.flounderart.com

[ Edited by: FLOUNDERart on 2003-12-02 11:48 ]

Those are really wonderful ads...

Advertising is usually a really good way of determining how prevalent a trend is in pop culture, and I'd say, if tikis are in spark plug ads, they're a pretty big part of pop culture!

(Oh, for a few million dollars to start the definitive museum...sigh)

Oddly enough, if any of those ads appeared today, we'd all be whining about how commercialized our precious 'tiki' is...

Well, some folks might, but I personally would think it was great!

Pop culture is pop culture, and I happen to like tikis more then Brittany Spears, so I'd rather see a tiki Pepsi spot.

Classic ads BK,
Thanks for sharin!

How great were the days when the average middle-class home had a tiki-themed basement bar with a pool table and checkered floor...

http://www.samgambino.com

[ Edited by: Sam Gambino on 2003-12-02 14:21 ]

Hmmm...that tiki checkered floor could be the pattern for my patio to become tiki bar.

Thanks BK!

You know, IKEA has some el cheapo rattan lounger furniture, if you are looking for some!
And, it won't have that 2nd hand granny grime or old timers funk in it!

I wish I still my old Better Homes and Gardens, Popular Mechanics etc.
I have an electronic bongo made by my older brother from a Popular Electronics article back in 1964.
Didn't work, but looks fantastic.

I have more I'll try to get up soon!

Great ads, BK!

The ad for the vinyl flooring has my idea of the perfect basement/"man room". I wonder if Santa could bring me one like it!

The Gods must have been amused.

Thanks for sharing such excellent tiki history.

We will have to wait and see if history repeats itself. Last spring Pottery Barn for Kids featured a Tiki bar (with chalkboard), so maybe this year Pottery Barn or Tommy Bahamas will have one on the cover of their spring catalogue.

Then we can determine whether the masses are being blessed by tiki or simply blaspheming.

I am of the opinion, the more tiki, the better.

If it's as good as the old days, why not?

Here's an ad/article for you's to try to find.

My Grandfather, ELI Hedley, was on the front of the Wall Street Journal, somewhere between the 40's-50's. Something about him making a living out of "being a beachcomber."

Find it and you win! (win what? you win the hunt!!)

On 2003-12-02 14:20, Sam Gambino wrote:
How great were the days when the average middle-class home had a tiki-themed basement bar with a pool table and checkered floor...

I think we are living that era again. 5 out of 10 people that come into our store are making "Tiki Rooms." My take on this is nowdays the LAWS (drinking and driving) are much stiffer.

I grew up just outside of Detroit in a neighborhood built in the early '50s, and I think that basement bars were standard in those cookie-cutter houses. After all, what better thing to do after a hard day at the auto plant than to sit down with a highball in your own basement? (unless it was bowling night, of course!)

Oak Park?

Close, but Lincoln Park.

http://www.samgambino.com