Elvis’ Jungle Room

Elvis was known for many things: singing, dancing, acting… but he wasn’t exactly known for his good taste. But, as Pablo Picasso said, “Ah, good taste! What a dreadful thing! Taste is the enemy of creativeness.” (It’s worth noting that Picasso was a tikiphile; he acquired his first, a Marquesan, around 1910, and in later years had them all over his art studio.) And so we have Elvis’ paean to bad taste, his Jungle Room at Graceland.

Elvis’ Jungle Room is furnished almost entirely with Witco furniture, a blocky style of wooden carved furniture created by William Westenhaver that reached its height of popularity in the 1960s. Most homes housed maybe a piece or two of Witco, but a whole room of it can be visually overwhelming. Elvis, of course, could handle a little visual stimulation, and went gangbusters — not only does his Jungle room house a full couch, a half-dozen chairs, tables, a cabinet, and a tiki bar (with tiki stools), but the whole room is carpeted in lime green shag, not just on the floor, but also the ceiling. It is atrocious, in the best way possible.

The official website for Graceland provides two virtual tours, which give 360° views, and allow you to zoom in and out. The Virtual Tours actually give you a better view in some ways than you can get there in person, where the room is roped off and must be viewed from the side. There’s also a great thread underway on Tiki Central, where a woofmutt has collected a variety of Jungle Room lore with some tidbits thrown in by Sven Kirsten (whose book on Witco will be out next year). Included is a story of Elvis’ dad, Vernon, telling him he’d just seen “the world’s most ugliest furniture” in a store in town, only to discover that Elvis had coincidentally just bought the whole set that same day.

Elvis’ Tiki Bar

• Graceland [Elvis.com]
• Jungle Room Virtual Tour 1 [Elvis.com]
• Jungle Room Virtual Tour 2 [Elvis.com]
• Graceland, Memphis [Critiki]
• Elvis Jungle Room = Witco??? [Tiki Central]
• Witco Bar on eBay [Humu Kon Tiki]

Swanky recently had an opportunity to sit down with the owner of Smyrna, Tennessee’s Omni Hut, Jim Walls, while visiting to help Turner South film a “Tiki Blue Ribbon” show there. While talking to Walls and his family, Swanky learned some details about Walls’ history. Walls started the Omni Hut (initially named “Chinese Cuisine”) after retiring from the Air Force in 1960; he had taken up cooking as a hobby and second job during his travels with the military, most notably in pre-World War II Honolulu. Walls also briefly owned the Mahi Mahi restaurant in nearby Nashville, which later became Blue Hawaii. The Mahi Mahi had an unusual, wide A-frame entrance; sadly the building was recently torn down. The Omni Hut is largely famous for two things: incredibly warm hospitality, and DIY drinks. The Omni Hut does not have a liquor license, but drink-spiking is encouraged… and having a little control over the rum in your drink is not a bad thing at all.

• Omni Hut, Mahi Mahi, Blue Hawaii Nexus uncovered [Tiki Central]
• The Omni Hut [Critiki]
• Mahi Mahi [Critiki]
• Blue Hawaii [Critiki]