Well ever since I could walk I've been around dear ol dad and his hot rods. Our family had some kool ass shit...a 36 Dodge pickup with a dual quad Caddy under the hood, a bitchin 57 Dodge with a column shift and some nice exhaust, several roundy round cars as he ALWAYS raced at Flat Rock Mi among other places, and I remember being scared to ride in his 49 Ford pickup rested on an Olds frame. As years went on we did more and more, I ended up in used Musclecars, and eventually drag racing. Going back to as I've always done I'm doing a traditional style chevy pickup. For me instead of a customer for a change. My point is, since the early 60's where my memories are clear (I'm a 57 model), I NEVER saw anything "tiki" related around any of his stuff or his buddies. I asked him recently and while at a bit of a deficit due to age, he can't recall that shit ever having anything to do with hotrods. So I'm asking here, what the fuck is relevant with tiki related shit and traditional rods? When I see that stuff I think of luaus and "parrot heads", certainly not hotrods. Maybe some of my fellow bretheren here can make this connection for me?
The only thing I can think of is that tiki stuff was kinda popular in the early 60's as themes for restaurants and kitschy recroom decorations. I think alot of it had to do with Hawaii becoming a state in '59 (if my history memory is still good) and all the hoopla that surrounded that event. Also in the early 60's we had the Surf Music scene taking over on the radio, in slang, at the movies: remember Beach Blanket Bingo and all that Hollywood hot rod crap? The tiki theme was more of a popular culture/surf thing than hot rod from what I know of rodding history. The closest I ever saw regarding tiki stuff and cars was a shrunken head from the rear view mirror or a Hula Girl on the dash. Again, more of pop culture spilling over into rods than anything else. I'd equate tiki then with bling-bling now. Popular culture - if you can call it culture at all.
Tikis are cool. Hotrods are cool. Doesn't seem like any big deal to me. There were several famous, beach-oriented show rods built in the 60's...including, but definitely not limited to, the Surfite by Roth. I think it's just a new spin on an old theme. I think "parrot heads" are actually Florida related, not Polynesian (sp?).
I'm not saying tikis aren't cool, just an overlap of popular culture onto the hot rod scene, which by then (early 60's) had achieved its own level of popular culture as well. Certainly there is a new spin on the tiki theme going on now, not like when Greg Brady wiped out on his surfboard with that "bad luck" tiki necklace on. Parrot-heads, that's a whole different culture and one I don't understand and you know what? I'm OK with that... Speaking of Polynesian, thats one of my all time favorite customs.
I am as far from a historian or tiki expert as you can get. But I believe the "connection" you guys are seeking is roughly 15-20 years earlier than your initial guesses. I'm going to speak in general terms here, as I'm sure there are experts who will chime in and/or correct me. The hotrod/custom car scene flourished in southern California, as young GI's returned home from serving their country during WWII. Many had developed welding and mechanical skills in the service, and were able to get good paying jobs. US car manufacturing had ceased from 1943-1945, and Americans were hungry for some of the finer things in life. Although the '46 - '48 models from Detroit were mostly warmed-over '42 models, folks were ready to get a new set of wheels. This left many of the older (pre-war) cars available for cheap, which became prime rodding/customizing fodder for the servicemen-turned-gearheads. Okay, so now for the "tiki connection". The US fought basically two fronts in WWII... the European (Germany, Italy) and the Pacific (Japan). The bulk of the US Pacific naval fleet was stationed at Pearl Harbor. There were also several airfields with hundreds of Navy, Army (Air Corp.), and Marine planes. Machine shops and personnel were needed to maintain and repair everything from subs to aircraft carriers. California was the home-base for many of these troops. Hawaii is rich in Polynesian culture. The Polynesians believed that "Tiki" was the first man created. Tiki sculptures (which can be found in Polynesia, New Zealand, Easter Island, and elsewhere) are carved in the shape of a God, and thought to contain a spirit. It's not to hard to imagine servicemen (and women) returning to California with Tiki statues and carvings from their tours of duty in the Pacific. Additionally, there was already somewhat of a "tiki culture" in the West, as early as the 1930's-40's. Victor Bergeron opened "Trader Vic's" in Oakland, CA in 1937, with Polynesian and Chinese dishes, as well as a huge selection of exotic drinks. Now, as to specific examples of tiki symbolism in early rods and customs, I'm afraid I don't have anything to offer up. It's not a far stretch to imagine one of those tiki carvings seeing duty as a shift knob. But other than that, is there really any concrete evidence that links the early days of rodding and tiki? Maybe it's just an association created over time, because many of the same guys turning wrenches and beating panels in so-cal, were also kicking back with a tiki mug full of rum and fruit juice? -murph
definitely another tangent from pop culture (and it is culture, an american emulation of an entire region, sometimes authentic, more often not, and pretty big around the states at the time) that existed alongside cars. true, i don't think they converged much, except for maybe on the showcar circuit. did see a typical early 60s futuristic "custom" in an original concept drawing for the kahiki, columbus ohio's tiki joint once. look at it this way, the 50s and 60s was sort of a golden time for a period. we were well off compared to how we had been, and had been exposed to a helluva lot of exotic cultures during and after WWII. people were looking for a good time, and crazy ass rum drinks and pagan-esque parties might have been a way to kinda dodge the status quo at the time. hot rods and customs are also a subculture, and the amount of fun and energy in them was no small draw at the time. though more often emulating the space age in car customizing i think, both cars and the tiki deal moved in a similar direction even if they didn't meet much. i think the tiki and polynesian restaurant thing centered around a slightly older hipster than hot rodders, more the sinatra set than the chuck berry set. interestingly enough, the same thing has been said about tiki bars and exotica music as has been said about "traditional hot rods and customs" and their cutoff date. both kinda started weening off around 63 or 64 after kennedy was assassinated and a whole lot of other bad stuff came down the pike. late 60s was a different climate for hot rods, just as it was for what was left of the pseudo-polynesian thing. what we see today is probably little more than a sizeable chunk of people dissatisfied with what our modern popular culture is offering grasping for a chunk of wreckage to hold onto in a sea of shit. somewhere along the way cars and tiki stuff got lumped together. the rockabilly, rat rod, scenester, tiki, vintage this and that, and etc groups are a pretty clear indication of all of that. a pretty big group of us "traditional to the bone" hot rodders moved that way for the same reasons because muscle cars, tuners, 5.0s, camaros and 4x4 trucks don't do much for us. alot of us looked back and found something that did. if somebody wants to tiki up a car, ok by me, though i am sure it can be tremendously overdone. there are alot of things labelled as traditional by today's standards that didn't really fly back then and that list is a fucking mile long. hell with it, just have fun. whatever.
Also the art of pinstriping as popularized by VonDutch's bizarre renderings has to be taken into consideration as an influence of the "tiki" phenomenon.
Yeah, I'll agree with that to a point. Von Dutch was just weird sometimes too. Brilliant, but weird - kinda like me.
My Grandmother was born in a little village in Hawaii. My Grandfather was a Seabee diver at Pearl Harbor. My Dad's 39 Ford was most certainly a Hot Rod. Christmas music in my house was a slack key guitar and the sound of open headers. I can't speak for the universe and the haircuts and the "movements" whether they be Hot Rod or Tiki but for me there was never any difference between hot rods and tikis, it was all just what home looked like. True
I think it all has to do with that Hawaii episode of the Brady Bunch where Greg goes surfing with the bad tiki necklace, when he's really thinking: "Hard Core Hotrodding!".
When I was in Junior High, which was 7th-9th grade, 1960-1963, we didn't call it "middle school" or any of that other PC crap then, I had Mr. Turley for Crafts class. Mr Turley was this eggheaded suntan-brown "BIG" man. Wrestler big. He taught Crafts in the winter and was the Lifeguard at the "Mom's Beach" end of the Bay in the summer. Anyway, our assignments for one semester were a set of glass enameled (powdercoated?) cuff links, a raised sign on sheet copper, a carved letter opener, a Bob Hirohata style laminated gearshift knob and a carved Teakwood Tiki necklace. Mr Turley was a surfer. All surfers wore either a Tiki necklace or Puka Shells. At that time if you wore anything else and you were a "guy" it better be a cross or St. Christopher or you were, well, weird. And actually, even though we made Tikis in crafts, unless we were surfers, we didn't actually wear them. I remember what was said above about the usually Pacific Navy vets came home and put up the net and starfish "bar" decorations on their patio wall, or in the case of our next door neighbor, he turned his whole livingroom into a Manila style bar. They weren't connected to hotrodding any more than a particular kind of music was, but they co-existed at the same time so there was interest crossover. Some people have more than one chicken on the grill at the same time ya know? some have a chicken, a steak and a fillet of fish going at the same time. And a Navy vet, hotrodder, surfer just might have tikis in his car. and Cole, Stravinski, or Cash on the Grundig Majestic Hifi in "the Bar".
I don't like/understand tikis but add to that list skulls and death stuff and anything satanic. What does that stuff have to do with hotrodding?
Expert or not, you're pretty much on the money with your answer. Add the public fascination with the Kon-Tiki expeditions and books such as Michener's South Pacific and you can see why tikis where a big thing back then, and as Murph says, a lot of the guys building hotrods in the late '40's/early '50's had served in the south Pacific. (Hey Murph, cool Hitch-hikers quote too )
Now you went an fired up Tingler! I'm not sure it really matters if it was done "back in the day"...it's being done NOW. Like anything else, it has the potential to be done well, or be done to death.
OK...makes a lil sense. I guess we never saw it bein we're from the Motor City area. Yeah where some real hot rods came from (that's not a bash or shit stirring remark!). I've certainly seen my share of skulls and bones and personally I like that stuff. The intimidation deal is quite true (albeit not real) and makes for a nice metaphore on a hot rod. The devil thing? Well we all have a lil evil in us when it comes to scarin the shit outta granny or some lil kids with our loud pipes. Satanic? Never. But that red devil face with the X wrenches behind it that "Coop" did, way kool. That stuff I get. I guess now I get it a lil on the tiki thing. And "parrot heads" are a Jimmy Buffet thing. Go figure. Hey thanx for all of your inputs. We can keep this goin if ya want. No green race cars, peanuts, #13...hot rod superstitions, what's your favorite?
If you look at you small magazines from the fifties, you might see some adds for tiki stuff,stickers ,small knobs and stuff like that. But the connection? well,Kon-Tiki was mentioned., Thor Heyerdal built his own stuff,gave it a cool name, and took it for a spin to impress the chicks. Thor Heyerdal was a hotrodder...
Hmmm. Big academic databases have nada, not even the Journal of Popular Culture come sthrough under Tikis...but the connection is definitely intertwined with surfing...here's some heavy-duty reading to pursue down at the library: America: History And Life Copyright (c) 2005 ABC-Clio, Inc. Search specifications: Subject : |Surfers.| or |Surfing.| ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Booth, Douglas. Title: FROM BIKINIS TO BOARDSHORTS: WAHINES AND THE PARADOXES OF SURFING CULTURE. Citation: Journal of Sport History 2001 28(1): 3-22. ISSN: 0094-1700 Abstract: Women's participation in surfing, and professional surfing in particular, has grown greatly since the 1950's. More money, better publicity, and better organization have improved surfing opportunities for females. The surfing subculture, however, remains highly masculine, and, despite new role models, less sexist media images, and new approaches to surfing style, women had not yet created a new gender order in the sport by the turn of the 21st century. Women are still objectified and often seen by their male counterparts as less able to compete than men. Attitudes toward sexuality, femininity, and gender orientation will have to change in a broader social setting before true equality exists in surfing. Documentation: 115 notes. Abstracter: M. Schumacher Language: English Period: 1950's-2000. Subject: Women. Surfing. Sexism. Gender. Entry: 40:2284 ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Verge, Arthur C. Title: GEORGE FREETH: KING OF THE SURFERS AND CALIFORNIA'S FORGOTTEN HERO. Citation: California History 2001 80(2-3): 82-105. ISSN: 0162-2897 Abstract: Profiles the life of George Freeth, an advocate of lifeguard services for California beaches and a pioneer in the sport of surfing. Born in Hawaii, Freeth came to Southern California in 1907 and was instantly popular for his surfing demonstrations. But he also trained young men and women in lifesaving skills that were innovative and proactive. On 16 December 1908 he single-handedly rescued seven fishermen. At the time, lifeguards - a term he coined - were unpaid volunteers, and Freeth earned his living as a swimming instructor. He invented the tripod rescue reel to assist in saving swimmers in distress. He died in 1919 at age 35, a victim of the worldwide Spanish influenza epidemic. Documentation: 15 photos, 70 notes. Abstracter: A. Hoffman Language: English Period: 1883-1919. Subject: Surfing. Lifeguards. Freeth, George. California. Entry: 39:14821 ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Whitcomb, Ian. Title: THE BEACH BOY. Citation: American Heritage 2000 51(4): 34-45. ISSN: 0002-8738 Abstract: Discovered by Jack London at Waikiki in 1907, George Freeth was brought to Redondo Beach in 1908 by Henry E. Huntington to attract tourists with his surfing and diving skills. Freeth introduced modern surfing to California, along with water polo, water basketball, and the crawl stroke. He also pioneered lifesaving techniques as the first professional lifeguard. The article concludes with a discussion of the evolution of the California beach culture, from Freeth's arrival through the 1960's. Abstracter: J. F. Paul/S Language: English Period: 1907-60's. Subject: Surfing. London, Jack. Lifeguards. Huntington, Henry E. Freeth, George. California (Redondo Beach). Beaches. Entry: 38:3280 ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Booth, Douglas. Title: SURFING FILMS AND VIDEOS: ADOLESCENT FUN, ALTERNATIVE LIFESTYLE, ADVENTURE INDUSTRY. Citation: Journal of Sport History 1996 23(3): 313-327. ISSN: 0094-1700 Abstract: Charts the history of three genres of surf films: Hollywood "beach stories," aficionado "pure" surfing films, and surfing industry videos. Documentation: Mostly secondary sources; 74 notes. Abstracter: J. P. Stierman Language: English Period: 1950's-95. Subject: Surfing. Films. Entry: 35:2815 ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Scheibel, Dean. Title: "MAKING WAVES" WITH BURKE: SURF NAZI CULTURE AND THE RHETORIC OF LOCALISM. Citation: Western Journal of Communication 1995 59(4): 253-269. ISSN: 1057-0314 Abstract: Surfers have long engaged in practices of intimidation and exclusion in order to maintain their territorial control of waves. One consistent response of surfers to such practices is the writing of letters that are published in surfing magazines. The author bases his findings on six letters published in Surfer magazine from 1975 to 1994. Collectively, surfers' practices provide an opportunity for a Burkeian analysis of myth, culture, and ideology. The article first describes the historical and cultural contexts of these exclusionary practices through the use of a representative anecdote. The article then analyzes surfers' rhetorical responses, describing how rhetors use economic and religious metaphors to position ideologies that both reproduce and mediate cultural myths of perfection through the redemptive strategies of scapegoating and mortification. Abstracter: J Language: English Period: 1960-94. Subject: Surfers. Rhetoric. Localism. Entry: 34:15637 ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Booth, Douglas. Title: AMBIGUITIES IN PLEASURE AND DISCIPLINE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPETITIVE SURFING. Citation: Journal of Sport History 1995 22(3): 189-206. ISSN: 0094-1700 Abstract: Discusses the transition of surfing from a leisure pastime to a disciplined sport. Surfing maintained a hedonistic image on the beaches of Hawaii, California, and Australia in the 1960's following its rediscovery at the turn of the century. Authorities responded to concerns about surfing as a hedonistic leisure activity and fears about a lack of discipline among young people by closing beaches and taxing surfboards in the early 1960's. Surfers responded by taking actions to legitimize surfing as a sport. The first international surfing championship was organized at Makaha, Hawaii, by the Waikiki Surf Club in 1954. Surfing rules were increasingly promulgated, and professional contests were promoted by the International Professional Surfers' Association. Coca-Cola Corporation announced a three-year sponsorship of grand prix surfing in 1993, surfing's first international sponsor after twenty years of seeking professional recognition. Documentation: 96 notes. Abstracter: M. J. Crawford Language: English Period: 1950-95. Subject: Surfing. Sports. Professionalization. Leisure. Competition. Entry: 34:6704 ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Krakauer, Jon. Title: GIDGET HAS GROWN UP, BUT SURFING IS STILL A "TOTALLY HAPPENING" SPORT. Citation: Smithsonian 1989 20(3): 106-119. ISSN: 0037-7333 Abstract: Introduced to Hawaii by 8th-century Polynesian pioneers and to California in 1907 by the turgid descriptive prose of Jack London, "surf[ing] madness" swept the country in the wake of the "corny portrayal" of the bohemian life of the Malibu, California, surfers in the 1959 movie Gidget, and today it is the sport of millions around the world. Abstracter: D. L. Smith Language: English Period: 1959-89. Subject: Surfing. Entry: 27:6019 ************************************************************ Type: Article Author: Haynes, F. S. Title: WAVE OF THE FUTURE. Citation: Westways 1976 68(10): 27-31. ISSN: 0043-4434 Abstract: George Douglas Freeth, a Hawaii-born swimmer, popularized surfing in California and later helped to perfect methods of water safety and lifesaving along California beaches, 1909-19. Language: English Period: 1909-19. Subject: Water safety. Surfing. Lifesaving. Freeth, George Douglas. California.
Hey Dano! I used my hard earned lawn mowing money to order a "TIKI" necklace along with a "Surfer" cross and some bullet hole decals from an add in the back of a Pete Millars Drag Cartoons in the 60s. Would that be back in the day?
If you ordered that stuff recently...I think you're gonna be disappointed with the delivery (or lack thereof).
Well how bout that thing with the #13? Spooky huh? As most of you grey-beards on here know already, there seldom was (if ever) a 13th floor in buildings or hotels. They went from 12 to 14. Packard Motor Co. skipped that number for their 1936 model year. 35 was a 12th series, and 36 was a 14th. You NEVER EVER saw that number on a race car. Where the hell did the green paint thing come from though? Some far away brain detail tells me it started in bike racing. Any inputs there? By the way, this is kool stuff bros.
umm would like to says its cause i like lucky 13 clothes way to much but i just like the number 13 but i do have a fully done "TIKI" hottub/bar room built in a attached garage to my late 50s rance style house and am building a Rod with number 666 on it as thats another fave number of mine & being called Santic dont ruffle my feathers ............
I've got a Tiki that my Ex's sister brought back from Papeete, Tahiti in '78 when she decided to quit shackin up with the prince of Tonga and move back to the USA. We just call it "Dickhead" because of it's dildoness... As far as the rumor about Tikis being "Satanic" goes. I think Satan refers to an anti-Christ and people who don't recognize the "Christ" concept probably aren't going to recognize the anti of it either, so, No, Tikis aren't the least bit "Satanic".
At a risk of seriously derailing this thread...Christianity is a comparatively 'young' religion at a little over 2000 years old, whereas there were tribes worshipping tikis all over the Polynesian isles for many thousands of years before the Christian era, as there were many tribes of native Americans worshipping their idols pre-Columbus. So to say that tikis are 'satanic' isn't really correct. If anything, Christianity is anti-tiki as tikis were here first! Edit: Hey, check out my number of posts including this one....oooh, creepy
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