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Help ID this Tiki Mug |
SciFiGuy
Tiki Centralite
Joined: May 05, 2008
Posts: 12 |  Posted: 2008-11-08 6:44 pm Permalink
Hi all -
I'm fairly confident this was mass produced somewhere (no signature or maker's mark anywhere), but I got it via a friend who donated to my small yet growing collection (just got into collecting tiki ...). It looks like a promotional item, as the back is not carved at all and has a stamp from the company my friend worked for at the time. Anyhow, just curious if anyone has any info on it. Thanks!
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Liana
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Oct 13, 2008
Posts: 94
From: Brisbane, Australia
| Posted: 2008-11-08 7:52 pm Permalink
Hey! That looks similar to some mugs I found in an antique centre recently (In the photo on the right).. The ones I found were marked DAGA and made for Kon Tiki:
Liana.
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Beachbumz
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: Jan 09, 2008
Posts: 1059
From: Kihei, Maui
| Posted: 2008-11-08 10:25 pm Permalink
Hey SciFiGuy... I believe that is actually the
Queen Kapiolani Gaping mouth tiki from the hotel in Waikiki, looks like the Daga mug but a little different..
Here's the OoGaMooGa Link:
http://www.ooga-mooga.com/cgi-bin/all/mug.cgi?mode=view&mug_id=351
Aloha
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SciFiGuy
Tiki Centralite
Joined: May 05, 2008
Posts: 12 | Posted: 2008-11-09 09:18 am Permalink
Thanks, Beachbumz - that looks like it exactly! Mine has a bit more glaze on it, but it's clearly the same mug. Only difference is that it's not marked with the hotel logo on the back, but rather a white company logo. Thanks for the help and the link!
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Koolau
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 23, 2006
Posts: 323
From: Oahu, Hawaii
| Posted: 2008-11-09 10:09 pm Permalink
Those mugs were made by Louis B Ceramics in Honolulu - they are still listed on the Louis B website (which strangely remains active even though the company is closed, I think) as the "Kon Tiki" mug:
http://home.hawaii.rr.com/louieb/ceramics/co133.htm
Ooga-Mooga lists Daga as the manufacturer, but I don't think I've ever seen one marked Daga. It's a knockoff of their much nicer Steven Crane Kon Tiki mug; maybe Crane retained the copywrite or something. However, Louis B took over most of Daga's product line after Daga stopped making tiki mugs, so it's possible.
It's interesting to watch the mould degrade over time as they remained in production - from Oooga-Mooga:
Nice crisp details:
Getting kind of fuzzy:
These mugs were based on a carved tiki at the Kon Tiki restaurants - there's a line drawing of the tiki in one of Jeff Berry's books; I'll see if I can find it.
[ This Message was edited by: Koolau 2008-11-09 22:11 ]
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bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 11351
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2008-11-10 2:38 pm Permalink
Another "Beeeep!" (as in "NOT!") in my book, this ugly duckling of Tiki mug history comes in second to the worst mug design out there, the Kowloon "Potato Bug" mug (the potato bug mug being the ugliest insect in creation). It is undoubtedly called the Kon-Tiki mug because it was an attempt to depict the equally missbegotten Sheraton Waikiki Kon-Tiki menu Tiki:
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TIKI DAVID
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Apr 07, 2004
Posts: 1961
From: North Coast/ DEAD
| Posted: 2008-11-10 3:26 pm Permalink
thank god, i was hoping it wasn't a KON TIKI mug.
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Beachbumz
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: Jan 09, 2008
Posts: 1059
From: Kihei, Maui
| Posted: 2008-11-10 4:18 pm Permalink
I was wondering about that design and how it came about, thanks Sven.. I think I like the one on the menu much better.
_________________
"TikiPop" On Instagram
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boutiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jun 03, 2002
Posts: 485
From: The fly-over states
| Posted: 2008-11-10 9:20 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2008-11-10 14:38, bigbrotiki wrote:
Another "Beeeep!" (as in "NOT!") in my book, this ugly duckling of Tiki mug history comes in second to the worst mug design out there, the Kowloon "Potato Bug" mug (the potato bug mug being the ugliest insect in creation).
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Blasphemy!
The Kowloon mug is one of the coolest mugs designs ever! And totally unique. Not derivative of an authentic Tiki or any other Tiki mug design. Kudos for originality, and I just love that Tiki. It's clearly an example of subjective preferences, or "different strokes for different folks".
I REALLY like the more rare tall Kowloon mug. Looks like the S&P shakers. I've yet to find one of these. Anyone have one they want to trade?
Um... wait. You are right. These mugs are awful. Nobody would want them. Send yours to me and I'll make sure they are properly disposed of. Yeah... Especially if you have the tall one. You really don't want to even be seen with the tall Kowloon mug. Bad scene.
I like the Kon Tiki design as well– but when it has good detail, not all crappy, crude, and blown-out.
-Duke
[ This Message was edited by: boutiki 2008-11-10 21:40 ]
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Koolau
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 23, 2006
Posts: 323
From: Oahu, Hawaii
| Posted: 2008-11-10 10:03 pm Permalink
Even though I grudgingly acknowledge BigBro's point, it is funny to hear criticism of odd tiki aesthetics from THE proponent of Witco. 
Remember, this mug design began with the Stephen Crane Kon Tiki mug from Daga:
(Photo from Ooga-Mooga)
Daga did a nice job on the original mug - nice color glaze, heavy solid feel, and lots of detail in the early production run. Later on, the moulds wore, and it lost the crispness.
I always thought the mug that SciFiGuy started this thread with was just a result of the original Kon Tiki moulds remaining in use far too long, but it is obviously a different, simplified interpretation of the original design.
By the way, I found the best version of this mug in my collection, and it is indeed stamped Daga on the bottom, so it did start with Daga, and then migrated to Louis B Ceramics. Now Gecko has many of the Louis B moulds - it may live again some day!
[ This Message was edited by: Koolau 2008-11-10 22:15 ]
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Tikisgrl
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Aug 03, 2005
Posts: 867
From: Lowell, Mass
| Posted: 2008-11-11 09:18 am Permalink
Quote:
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On 2008-11-10 21:20, boutiki wrote:
Quote:
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On 2008-11-10 14:38, bigbrotiki wrote:
Another "Beeeep!" (as in "NOT!") in my book, this ugly duckling of Tiki mug history comes in second to the worst mug design out there, the Kowloon "Potato Bug" mug (the potato bug mug being the ugliest insect in creation).
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Blasphemy!
The Kowloon mug is one of the coolest mugs designs ever! And totally unique. Not derivative of an authentic Tiki or any other Tiki mug design. Kudos for originality, and I just love that Tiki. It's clearly an example of subjective preferences, or "different strokes for different folks".
I REALLY like the more rare tall Kowloon mug. Looks like the S&P shakers. I've yet to find one of these. Anyone have one they want to trade?
Um... wait. You are right. These mugs are awful. Nobody would want them. Send yours to me and I'll make sure they are properly disposed of. Yeah... Especially if you have the tall one. You really don't want to even be seen with the tall Kowloon mug. Bad scene.
I like the Kon Tiki design as well– but when it has good detail, not all crappy, crude, and blown-out.
-Duke
[ This Message was edited by: boutiki 2008-11-10 21:40 ]
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I have the salt & pepper shakers like the Kowloon mug but, I don't have the tall one. It is on the top of my want to find list! I love knowing that it is a potato bug that just makes me want it more. I'm sure the potato bug was just misunderstood and this is a fitting tribute.
Beth
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bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 11351
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2008-11-11 12:00 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2008-11-10 21:20, boutiki wrote:
Blasphemy!
I REALLY like the more rare tall Kowloon mug. Looks like the S&P shakers. I've yet to find one of these. Anyone have one they want to trade?
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Potato Bug, Potato Bug, na na na na na naaaa 
You know Duke, I never really looked at THAT version above ( I probably instinctively averted my eyes each time), it IS ....well, UNIQUE, for sure, compelling, I admit....but still, all in all, a rather "unfortunate" fellow. It has so little to do with any authentic Polynesian art and is so stylistically outrageous that -Heck!- it could be said it anticipates some of the Tiki Revival art out there today! 
Quote:
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On 2008-11-11 09:18, Tikisgrl wrote:
I love knowing that it is a potato bug that just makes me want it more. I'm sure the potato bug was just misunderstood and this is a fitting tribute.
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Beth, I just call it the Potato Bug mug because I thought it fits, just like I called the black Trader Vic's mug the "Suffering Bastard", (while Vic just called it the Mai Tai mug).
Quote:
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On 2008-11-10 22:03, Koolau wrote:
Even though I grudgingly acknowledge BigBro's point, it is funny to hear criticism of odd tiki aesthetics from THE proponent of Witco.
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Haaa, I saw that coming somehow. I did notice a certain kinship to Witco in the original mug, too. The difference is that I wrote a whole book that explained WHY and HOW we all should and can see past the first "ugly" impression of Witco and appreciate the genius behind it. I'm just not feelin' that here. 
[ This Message was edited by: bigbrotiki 2008-11-11 12:04 ]
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GROG
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: Jun 21, 2006
Posts: 6925
From: Tujunga
| Posted: 2008-11-11 1:51 pm Permalink
_________________
GROG miss Tiki-Kate
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GROG
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: Jun 21, 2006
Posts: 6925
From: Tujunga
| Posted: 2008-11-11 1:52 pm Permalink
P.S. Love ya Sven!
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bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 11351
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2008-11-11 2:35 pm Permalink
 That's not quite right: Most subjects assume that "barfing puppy" posture only after the 4TH (!) Sven-Tiki cocktail.
...wait! Is that a new name for the mug now?
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