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TEPCO Skull Mug |
Turbogod
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jun 14, 2002
Posts: 1219 |  Posted: 2002-08-23 1:32 pm Permalink
I saw this skull mug at a thrift shop, it said TEPCO was the manufacturer. It looks like the trader vic skull mug. They may have made them for TV.!?! Anyone know anything about it? Wasn't sure about the purchase.
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thejab
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 2986
From: Tradewinds Apartments, Alameda, CA
| Posted: 2002-08-23 2:37 pm Permalink
Tepco did make the original Trader Vic's skill mugs.
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midnite
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 1230
From: 37? 47' N, 122? 26' W
| Posted: 2002-08-23 3:12 pm Permalink
Yep, those early, scarier looking, skull mugs were Tepco, as were many of the early Trader Vic vessels. High quality, heavy, and frightening looking devils.
One of my favorite Tepco pieces was a "Crazy Native" guy, think that is close to what Tepco colectors call it. It has big scary eyes and a sort of "pirate" look to him. The mug has holes at either end of the grimacng mouth; one collector told me often times the mug was served on a piece of dry ice. The "smoke" would come streaming out of its mouth.
Spooky!
midnite
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Traderpup
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 26, 2002
Posts: 1042
From: Long Beach, CA
| Posted: 2002-08-23 5:00 pm Permalink
There's a pic of the Tepco "crazy native guy" on my mug pages, top row center:
Tepco crazy native guy
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Trader Pup
visit Traderpup.com
[ This Message was edited by: Traderpup on 2002-08-23 17:01 ]
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tikiluvgirl
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Jul 23, 2002
Posts: 27
From: HotLanta
| Posted: 2002-08-23 11:28 pm Permalink
Awesome site...
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the75stingray
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 24, 2002
Posts: 446
From: Dayton, Ohio
| Posted: 2002-08-26 10:25 pm Permalink
Turbogod- Man, when in doubt, BUY IT!
At a thrift store you can't really go wrong. I mean, you're making your contribution to the organization and if it's not what you thought it was, there is always someone on Ebay who'll buy it. And you're never out THAT much money.
Seriously, I almost passed up on one of these when a car club buddy called me and said "Get down to this garage sale, I'm guarding one of those mugs you like".
He told me it was a heavy skull, kinda weird and I said, "Ah, don't worry about it".
But the more I thought about it and got out my trusty Book of Tiki, I was like "Crap! Gotta get to the garage sale!"
And, 10 minutes later I had made one of the best purchases of my collection. Never regreted it!
It's always facinating to me that these "artifacts" are so old, and have remained intact all these years, over all the miles just to wind up in the loving home of a collector.
Get your butt back to that thrift store my friend!
-C.
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midnite
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 1230
From: 37? 47' N, 122? 26' W
| Posted: 2002-08-28 10:59 pm Permalink
$20 per dozen?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2135712410
I have never seen that advertisement before. Nice piece of history. Now I know the Sufferin' Bastard was called "Mai-Tai Joe" and the old skull mugs were sold by the dozen.
midnite
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cynfulcynner
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 24, 2002
Posts: 1800
From: Ocean Beach, San Francisco
| Posted: 2002-08-28 11:28 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2002-08-28 22:59, midnite_tiki wrote:
I have never seen that advertisement before. Nice piece of history. Now I know the Sufferin' Bastard was called "Mai-Tai Joe" and the old skull mugs were sold by the dozen.
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The Trader Vic's mailing address in that ad is 6500 San Pablo Avenue, which I believe was the address of their original location.
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