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Tiki on TV.... |
JOHN-O
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: May 16, 2008
Posts: 2460
From: Dogtown, USA
|  Posted: 2009-11-17 12:12 pm Permalink
Hey I just noticed this in the youtube video I referenced above.
That leopard skinned stripper that Starsky (or is that Hutch?) is eye-balling. She's dancing inside what appears to be a Tiki bar !!
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Bora Boris
Mr. Unreasonable
Joined: Mar 25, 2005
Posts: 2401
From: Boogie Wonderland
| Posted: 2009-11-17 12:38 pm Permalink
That's Hutch! 
Quote:
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On 2009-11-17 08:49, JOHN-O wrote:
And if you want to talk about white TV cops, Starsky and Hutch might have been cooler than Rockford but Baretta definitely was. Their opening themes were way cooler than Rockford's hokey "progressive rock" music.
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Might have been cooler? What kind of on the fence statement is that? I guess it's the kind you use when you don't know who Starsky and Hutch are (See above). Get it together JOHN-O!
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JOHN-O
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: May 16, 2008
Posts: 2460
From: Dogtown, USA
| Posted: 2009-11-17 1:33 pm Permalink
Well I was never entirely sure about Starsky and Hutch. 
These guys are definitely cooler. Wait... Which one is Ernie and which one is Bert ??
And no, I'm not hijacking another thread again. Check this out.
[ This Message was edited by: JOHN-O 2009-11-17 13:39 ]
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8FT Tiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 30, 2003
Posts: 1172
From: Kansas City, MO
| Posted: 2009-11-17 1:48 pm Permalink
John-O, I don't clearly see any tiki but have not watched this video, just saw your still shot above. But I see a few African looking masks and what looks like an elephants' tusk. Don't think those are very common in tiki bars. But then I could be completely wrong.
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Big Kahuna
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Apr 11, 2007
Posts: 1908
From: SoMass
| Posted: 2009-11-17 7:28 pm Permalink
Rockford was "Lounge Cool" &, as a car guy, I'll take Rockford's Firebird over that hideous, bulbous Torino of Starsky & Hutch anyday. Cool Tiki/Stripper scene, though!
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JOHN-O
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: May 16, 2008
Posts: 2460
From: Dogtown, USA
| Posted: 2009-11-19 07:59 am Permalink
Quote:
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On 2009-11-17 13:48, 8FT Tiki wrote:
John-O, I don't clearly see any tiki but have not watched this video, just saw your still shot above. But I see a few African looking masks and what looks like an elephants' tusk. Don't think those are very common in tiki bars. But then I could be completely wrong.
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Here's the entire episode on-line - http://www.hulu.com/watch/8002/starsky-and-hutch-bounty-hunter
Yeah, it looks to be more of a Jungle theme than a Tiki theme. I think I did see some Tikis though, especially the Tiki totem pillars at the A-framed entrance. I wonder if they repurposed an existing 1970's-era Tiki joint for the scene. I didn't recognize the exterior shot.
Update - could it have been this place?
It does appear to be downtown LA. I remember going to the punk/goth club "Scream" in the Embassy's basement during the mid-1980's.
[ This Message was edited by: JOHN-O 2009-11-19 08:19 ]
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bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 10562
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2009-11-19 1:55 pm Permalink
This one is a toughy! My first reaction for these scenes is always that in 85% of the cases they are sets. Even if not built on a sound stage, they are often some generic location dressed up as a tropical place. That is after all how Oceanic Arts survived the Tiki-desert of the 80s, by renting to the studios. And they supplied both, real bars and fake sets, so an O.A. piece does not simply make it either/or. Even for me, being a Tiki authority AND a cinematographer, it is often difficult to tell if it's a real place or a set, BECAUSE:
A.) One basic fact about Poly pop decor is that it IS very much like film set art direction. It is in part why I believe Poly pop was born in Hollywood, with Don The Beachcomber, who advised on South Sea films and had friends in the industry.
B.) Even if it was a real place, it would never be shot "as is". The art department would go in and add and embellish the theme, and it would
also be completely re-lit for shooting it. This adds to the impression of a real location being a set.
C.) SOME angles might be shot in the real place, some on a set. For example, in this Starsky and Hutch episode, their reverse angles from the stage, when they stand by the entrance, the entrance looks very fake. (the bar scenes begin at minute 10:00)
I am really intrigued by this conundrum, so let's analyze some of the angles:
First, the exterior:
Though solid, the face of the A-frame looks a little bland. On it we see a Maori wall hanging made by Oceanic Arts. The Tiki posts are painted 70s-style. The neon name "Jungle Club" sounds very generic, like "we don't wanna get in trouble using a real place's name" -like a film prop. Though the fact is: it was shot on a real LA street, not a studio lot, (like that "Jeannie" exterior we saw here recently):
BUT: Much more elaborate Tiki exteriors have been built as sets before, case in point is this impressive entry from a British film, for a a place that, according to seasoned British Tiki archeologists, never existed in London:
So my verdict on the" Jungle Room" exterior would also be: A set, propped onto a real club entrance
But back to Starsky and Hutch. Next: The carvings:
Have not seen this one at O.A., but studio prop houses had lots of their own "primitive art". Though this one somehow looks in situ.
Verdict: Could be on location
Next: the stage, towards the entrance:
The Jungle Room sign again. Looks like they used the same one inside first, and later outside. The old foot lights look very hoakey.
Verdict: A set
Next: The area behind the stage:
It not only has a lot of depth, with several booths lined up, but it has a BAMBOO CEILING!
Verdict: On location
Next: long shot towards the stage:
Makes the place look big, with a lot of depth. But that's done with an old trick: Put two blokes and a table right in front of camera, dress some palm fronts around the frame, and Voila!, you have lotsa depth.
All in all this place just reeks of a set to me. Starsky and Hutch was a very successful show at that point, so they would have had the budget to build such a place. Or it was a combination of various levels of location/ set dressing/ studio. We will probably never know.
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JOHN-O
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: May 16, 2008
Posts: 2460
From: Dogtown, USA
| Posted: 2009-11-19 2:59 pm Permalink
Another fascinating analysis Bigbro. Thanks !! I really want to believe however that was the actual Jungle Room at the Embassy Hotel.
This would be a great theme for a new bar. I like the idea of a leopard-skinned Bettie Page cocktail waitress serving up an Everclear-laden Jungle Juice cocktail.
Having indoor Tiki torches does seem like a fire hazard though, especially with all the flammable bamboo decor.
[ This Message was edited by: JOHN-O 2009-11-19 15:10 ]
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woofmutt
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 26, 2002
Posts: 2584
From: Seattilite Telstar
| Posted: 2009-11-22 10:04 am Permalink
Very exciting news for those who like to watch TV completely plastered or enjoy the fine art of the fart joke...
Larry the Cable Guy's Hula-Palooza Christmas Luau
"Nothing says Merry Christmas like bamboo huts and coconut shell bras." Larry the Cable Guy
It's essentially a variety show shot live. They did a pretty swell job on the set. Considerably less effort was spent on the script.
It debuted on Country Music Televison (CMT) the other night so they'll probably run it a few million times between now and February.
CMT listing.
DVD at Amazon
(The show might be useful for those with redneck relatives who don't get the whole Tiki thing.)
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martian-tiki
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: Sep 19, 2009
Posts: 309 | Posted: 2010-01-11 4:06 pm Permalink
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-yKocNxodE#t=1m00s
From the British Series "the Champions"
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MrBaliHai
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jun 01, 2002
Posts: 775 | Posted: 2010-01-11 6:20 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2010-01-11 16:06, martian-tiki wrote:
From the British Series "the Champions"
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That hideously painted tiki they're standing in front of is apparently a well-used prop in British film and television. Most recently, I've seen it pop up in the Christopher Lee film, "Theatre of Death" and the Hammer film, "She" with Ursula Andress.
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Agent 86
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Jul 22, 2009
Posts: 65 | Posted: 2010-01-11 8:32 pm Permalink
I just saw a new Target commercial that has Tiki mugs in the background.
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Vintage Roadside
Tiki Centralite
Joined: May 21, 2009
Posts: 68
From: Portland, OR
| Posted: 2010-01-11 9:55 pm Permalink
Just finishing up watching Hawaii 5-0 season 1 & 2 on dvd and several episodes have some great tiki in them. They're proving well-worth a watch just for all the cool things in the background. Disclaimer - I was also excited to spot a spinning Union 76 ball sign above a service station in one episode...
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khan_tiki_mon
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 15, 2006
Posts: 259
From: Syracuse, NY
| Posted: 2010-01-30 11:26 am Permalink
I was watching a Twilight Zone episode on cable the other night. "I Dream of Genie" episode 114 from season 4 in 1963. The guys in the accounting department are all going out to celebrate the secretary's birthday and the boss announces they are going to "Club Tiki". Alas, the protagonist goes home alone and we never get to see this "Club Tiki".
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TxTikiGirl
Tiki Centralite
Joined: May 03, 2006
Posts: 40
From: Dallas, Tx
| Posted: 2010-03-19 09:59 am Permalink
I just saw an episode of Hoarders on A&E where the guy had lots of collections including a collection of matchbooks. When they showed an aerial shot of his matchbooks the main matchbook on top was from the Kahiki! I know, not the sexiest spotting of tiki on TV
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