and Three Recent Books-Tiki Pop —Our fascination with Tropical life styles. Far off isles, warrior statues, music, fashion, TV …..
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Above- you got to have dancers and here are some from more recant times at the Mai Kai. Now a part of the National Historic Register.Photo byRob’s Rum Guide
Welcome to the enchanted world of Tiki — and no other song I can think of can convey the magic you might find there on your journey. Take it away Miss Lee….Peggy Lee – Bali ha´i
Above- the amazing architecture for the building design. This screams exotica. Mai Kai Bar & Restaurant.Photo byFlickr
If you are thinking where the Tiki heads went well they’re back… over the last 10–20 years tiki has made a resurgence as a retro culture… but for the Mai Kai in Fort Lauderdale time has stood still, operating since the mid ’50s. And now a recently released and published book on the history and mystery of this famous tiki restaurant and bar has opened up it’s vault giving us stories on the hang out for many a celebrity of the eras and the dancers who came along the way. This was the stomping grounds for Johnny Carson and Ed McMahan of the Tonight Show. In fact, this is where they brainstormed the concept for this long running series and the format change from what once was Jack Parr’s late Nite endeavor prior. Now out from Schiffer Publishing. By Tim “Swanky” Glazner.