Waltah Clarke's S Original MuuMuu Japanese Hawaiian Dress Vintage

Excellent pre-owned vintage condition armpit to armpit 20" waist 45" length 36.5" A musical group, The Waikiki BeachBoys, formed based on the vibe. They recorded an album in 1963 of their Rat Pack-style nightclub show featuring their playful banter. The album, “Duke Kahanamoku presents Beachboy Party with Waltah Clarke” was part of the rejuvenation of the Waikiki bar scene and its export of tiki to the mainland. The cover of the album pictured Duke, the King of Surfing, with Clarke, the man who brought Hawaiian shirts and muumuus to the mainland. Born in Los Angeles in 1912, Walter Clarke graduated from University of Southern California with a liberal arts degree and sought his way in the world. His obituary in the Los Angeles Times recounted, upon graduation Clarke “flipped a coin — Paris or Hawaii — and Hawaii came up.” Clarke moved to the islands in 1938 and met Vic Bergeron and learned the restaurant business managing “Trader Vic’s” in Honolulu. He then met Donn Beach and served as general manager and publicity director for his “Don the Beachcomber” restaurants. But most importantly, he met beachboys who would hang out and surf, speaking in what seemed to be their own laid-back language, Hawaiian pidgin. The beachboys called Clarke “Waltah.” The sound of it embraced the very concept of aloha, so Walter changed his name to match their pronunciation. 434