Headliners Announced for Tiki Kon: Tony Starlight, Hangten Hangmen
PORTLAND, OR - Tiki Kon, the Pacific Northwest's Polynesian-Pop extravaganza, is pleased to announce the Friday and Saturday night headline acts for Tiki Kon: Tribute to the USO, July 8-10, 2016, at the Red Lion on the River (Jantzen Beach), Portland. The weekend festival of has grown in recent years to become a West Coast favorite among Tiki aficianados, and part of its mission is to highlight outstanding talent from around the Northwest.
Saturday night: "From somewhere in the Pacific, it's the Tony Starlight Show!"
The crown performance of Tiki Kon weekend is the Saturday Night Camp Show, a USO-style variety show featuring Portland entertainer and impresario Tony Starlight. Known for his musical talent and comedic impressions of bygone stars, Tony has been commissioned by Tiki Kon to entertain the Tiki troops with a live musical variety show created exclusively for the event. The show captures the flavor of the early days of the USO, when stars like Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, and The Andrews Sisters entertained the GIs in the Pacific Theater, boosted morale and gave them a taste of home away from home. Guests will enjoy a variety of acts and performances, including live music, comedy, dance and more.
Friday night: "Surf & Turf"
The weekend kicks off Friday night with the "Surf & Turf" show featuring the Hangten Hangmen! The Hangmen are the house band for the popular Shameful Tiki Room restaurant and lounge (Vancouver, B.C.), and are a high-energy, crowd-interactive surf ensemble. They're cool, mysterious and a little bit goofy, with influences that include the likes of Dick Dale, The Beach Boys, The Ventures, Link Wray, The Astronauts, Los Straitjackets and others. The Friday night performance includes guest appearance by an award-winning Elvis tribute artist recreating the sounds of Sgt. Presley's triumphant return from service in the U.S. Army. Supporting acts for the Friday show to be announced.
'Til it's over, over there!
This year Tiki Kon pays tribute the early days of the USO, the end of WWII, and the return of our brave servicemen and women, and solemnly commemorates the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Now in its 14th year, Tiki Kon is a weekend celebration of exotic tropical destinations and the Tiki bars, cocktails, art, music and fashions they inspire. The event gets its direction from the highly-stylized Polynesian-themed restaurants and lounges that were popular in the decades after World War II, fueled by the stories and souvenirs of GIs returning from the Pacific Theater. Those Tiki temples ushered in a whole genre of art, fashion, architecture, music and mixology that swept the nation. It was the era of the Tiki Bar, and it's enjoying a vibrant revival.
Tiki Kon is a colorful, joyful event attended by guests from around the Pacific Northwest and beyond. It is held at the Red Lion on the River (Jantzen Beach), on the mighty Columbia River in Portland, Oregon. Guests may purchase tickets at the website and will find information and links for hotel booking and special Tiki Kon group rates. The weekend includes live music, dance, art, fashion, vending, symposiums, dining, and cocktails, and the climax is an all-day VIP Tiki tour of Portland's best home and commercial bars. Tickets and hotel rooms go on sale March 15, 2016, at 6:00 p.m. at the Tiki Kon website.
Media inquiries: greg@tikikon.com