Mod (Retro) Movie Monday: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, 2004

Sky Captain

Direct from the Tiki Blog - When I started Mod Movie Mondays, I said they might not always be mod, and they might not always be old. Here’s a flick that will have anyone into Art Deco, retro-30’s style and the sci-fi future of yesteryear drooling.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, 2004

Beautifully created Art Deco sets inspired by the work of Norman Bel Geddes (of 1930s World’s Fairs fame) transport you back to an alternative history, a 1930s New York where retro-futuristic technology co-exists with fat-fendered cars, where ray guns are real and Nazis are more interested in flying luxury airships than conquering the world. So if Nazis aren’t the nemises in this pre-WW2 adventure, who is? An evil scientist, of course, played by Sir Lawrence Olivier (yes, he was long dead at the time this movie was made - they made fantastic use of B&W archive footage!)

Sky Captain is an airplane pilot who flies a modified P-40 fighter (it not only flies, it’s a submarine). His mission is to protect the world, basically, from anyone who tries to crack things up. When a small army of giant iron robots lands in the Big Apple and start tearing things apart, Sky Captain swoops in. The story progresses from there in a 1930s comic book-style and takes him to exotic lands like Shangri La.

But enough about the story, time to talk about why this flick is being featured here. As I said, the sets are incredible - works of art in every scene. And almost none of it was real - this was one of the first full-length movies to be filmed almost entirely in front of a blue screen, with all of the sets digitally sequenced in. Some sets came from actual photographs, some from vintage art, and the rest were created electronically just for the film. What this translates into is a work of art on a moving canvas living behind the action of the actors. If you like the retro life, you will wish you lived in this movie.

Since the action takes place mainly in 1930s New York of the Future, I’d suggest a retro-futuristic dinner and drinks. Try a deli style sandwich platter of corned beef, roast beef, Swiss or Havarti cheese, and coleslaw on marble rye, served up on your favorite Jetsons-style dishes with a side of waffle fries. For dessert, Dove chocolate ice cream banana splits in Art Deco, blimp-shaped bowls. And for the drinks - Highballs, Slow Gin Fizzes, and of course, Manhattans, served in your finest futuristic stemware.

-Tiki Chris Pinto for Tiki Lounge Talk, South Florida’s Swingin’ Scene for Retro Hipsters and Tiki Lovers

Tiki Lounge Talk nominated for BOB (Best of Blog) Awards!

Thanks to the cool cat or kitten who nominated The Tiki Blog for a best of blog award with the South Florida Sun Sentinel! We’ve been nominated for three categories…Pop Culture, Travel, and ‘defies category’ which is kinda funny,.

You can vote for us here:

http://interactive.sun-sentinel.com/community/ssblogcontest/voting/?vote_for=79#79

Please vote! If you like what we’ve done here, give us a little smile by casting a vote. You can vote once in each category EVERY DAY, plus you can vote for us for Best Overall Blog.

We seem to be doing best in Pop Culture. I don’t know why we’re in Travel, and I think the other blogs in that category are better suited to that award…but We’d love to get that first place in Pop Culture, and hell, even defies category! So please log on daily (through March 5) and vote! It would be a real gas if we swiped the jackpot, baby!

Happy Valentine’s Day from the Tiki Bar!

To The Tiki Lovers, Pirates, Retro Hipsters and Swingers…

Have a Happy & Fun Valentine’s Day!

Here’s a very romantic recipe for a Chocolate Martini…

And here’s a few old-fashioned Valentine’s to remind you of the good old days…

The Mermaids Swim Again…Wreck Bar, Yankee Clipper, Fort Lauderdale

After an extensive remodeling, the Sheraton Yankee Clipper in Fort Lauderdale is open and the Wreck Bar is in full swing! (I haven’t been there yet, but I hear it’s been preserved as original). Well I’ll know for sure tonight, because a bunch of Tiki friends and I will be swinging by tonight to watch the Mermaids swim again!

When Sheraton announced plans to remodel the old Yankee Clipper (and give it the dumb, dull, corporate, generic name “Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Beach Hotel”) everyone thought that would be the end of the historic Wreck Bar. Well, from what I hear someone had enough brains to keep it intact.

The Wreck Bar at the Yankee Clipper

The Wreck Bar features windows that look out into the pool, giving patrons a view of the swimmers. Underwater dancing Mermaids have been a popular attraction for years, and our favorite Mermaid, Medusirena, will be headlining the swim tonight.

If you’re in the Fort Lauderdale area come on by and join us for a Mai Tai. Show starts at 6:30!

-Mermaids at the Wreck Bar, Tiki Chris @ Tiki Lounge Talk, the Tiki Blog for hip swingers and Tikiphiles.

Living and Loving the Tiki Lifestyle

Sometimes you just have lay back and enjoy the good life. Yesterday, my buddy Mark (aka Tiki Tender) twittered a recipe for a drink called the Tiki Girl. A nice combo of rum and amaretto, this drink was very, very enjoyable, not sweet and sugary like you might think, but more complex like a real exotic cocktail should be.

So here’s what I did…Last night, with the parrots squwaking in the background and some Martin Denny on the hi-fi, I took his recipe (find it here at tikitender.com) and built it in a vintage glass at my Tiki Bar. (I still have the Christmas lights up on the bar so the whole thing was sort of surreal). The only ingredient I didn’t have was the garnish, but I did have a paper umbrella, so it was A-OK.

It’s the little things in life that can really make you smile. After a long couple of weeks at work, crazy money stuff, and dealing with a haunted Cadillac (long story), it was nice to sit down and relax with a kool Tiki Cocktail. After the second one, I didn’t have a care in the world!

Those who follow me on twitter can attest to the fact that these are pretty strong drinks, as can be seen from my twitter stream last night. Make sure you check out Mark’s site at tikitender.com, he’s got lots of fun stuff and great Tiki drink recipes!

Thanks again to all of you for tuning in to my little Tiki Blog. I really do dig writing about this stuff, and hope my goofy rants from the Tiki Bar give you a laugh, or at least a smile!

-Tiki Chris, AKA Mack, AKA Mr. Loving the Tiki Life!