Tiki Talk Tomorrow!

It's strange to post about myself in the third person, but here's the blurb that's being used...
 
Chris Jepsen will speak about the history of the "Polynesian Pop" phenomenon of the 1950s and '60s as it applied to Orange County, California at the Garden Grove Historical Society, 12174 Euclid Ave., Garden Grove, (tomorrow!) Tuesday, May 6, 2014, at 7:00 p.m . Island attire is encouraged but not mandatory. The event is open to everyone -- not just Society members.

From architecture, décor and music, to literature, theme parks and backyard luaus, the South Seas was a wildly popular theme throughout Mid-Century America. This was especially true in sunny Orange County, where primitive carved figures, grass huts, 'Aloha shirts,' and lush jungle landscaping seemed right at home.

Chris Jepsen is a local historian, Assistant Archivist at the Orange County Archives, and president of the Orange County Historical Society. He also writes the "Ask the O.C. Answer Man" column for Orange Coast Magazine and operates two blogs: The O.C. History Roundup and Tiki Lagoon.

(Note: The photo above was shot in Dana Point, overlooking San Juan Capistrano and Old Saddleback. The tiki is bit of original 1960s backyard décor that has been in the same family for many decades now.)