Blast from the past -- Zombie Hut!

I am transfixed with all things tiki, so of course am very sad I never got to visit the Zombie Hut, which used to be so close to our neighborhood at 5635 Freeport Boulevard (before it was bulldozed and replaced with a strip mall.) I imagine this must have been quite the happenin' exotic spot.


Some great sleuthing has been done by Amadscientist, who has written a Wikipedia entry regarding the Zombie Hut's history and includes images from their business card.


The Zombie Hut lives on as a reincarnation in Brooklyn, NY per several Sacramento Bee articles written by R.E. Graswich:

August 14, 2002: "The Next Big Thing in New York might be straight from Sacramento. We are talking about the Zombie Hut, a long-gone bar on Freeport Boulevard that featured bartenders in Hawaiian shirts, plastic tiki idols, pink umbrella drinks and Ed Leeteg's sexy velvet portraits of Polynesian maidens. This week, amid much fanfare, the Zombie Hut reopens - 3,000 miles away on Smith Street in Brooklyn, N.Y. "I was born and raised in Sacramento and worked as a busboy at the original Zombie Hut," said Tod Bullen. "I decided the time was right to bring it back." Since moving to New York, Tod has become a mini-tycoon in the Brooklyn restaurant scene, having partial ownership in several establishments. The new Zombie Hut, which opens Friday, is in Carroll Gardens, a gentrified Italian neighborhood known for its mob connections (Al Capone was married there). If the Zombie Hut is a hit, it's only a matter of time before some smart operator brings the concept back to Sacramento."

A post on Tiki Central from Psycho Tiki D lists this enchanting painting, "Native Dancer" original oil on silk, by Burke Tyree, 1964, as having been hung on the wall at the Zombie Hut.


A really great and in-depth history, as well as other excellent examples of Burke Tyree's velvet paintings can be seen on Minnie's Restaurant & Bar's website.

Another painter, Ed Leeteg, reportedly had several paintings at the Zombie Hut. Per another Sacramento Bee article from August 25, 1999:

"The former Sacramento sign painter, whose velvet tropical maidens are craved by collectors in Los Angeles and Honolulu, has re-exploded onto the Sacramento scene. Leeteg died in 1953, but a mention of his name right here stirred readers who recalled him hanging around the old Zombie Hut on Freeport. "He had four or five pictures there. He would sell them for a bottle of rum..."

A great article regarding Ed Leeteg is posted on Barracuda Magazine's website.

Mary Z. Johnson was a waitress at many local restaurants including the Zombie Hut. Per her May 7, 2008 obituary in the Sacramento Bee, she had quite a following according to her sister, Josephine Bodda:

"Funny and charming, she loved meeting people from all walks of life. She teased politicians at Dick and Eddie's downtown, joked with fishermen and tourists at the Crow's Nest in Isleton and dished with gay men who gave her pet names and insisted on sitting at her station in the Zombie Hut.

"She had a big gay following," said Bodda, who managed the Polynesian-themed restaurant on Freeport Boulevard. "All her tables would be full, but they would say, 'We'll wait for Mitzie.' Sometimes they would leave her a hundred-dollar tip."

Does anyone have any fun stories, pictures, artifacts or mementos from the original Zombie Hut to share?

Napkin via mcclatchy1958.com
Matchbook cover via Psycho Tiki D, Tiki Central Forum post.

Built-ins

One of the things that we absolutely love about our Eichler is that most of the era-specific built-ins (thanks to the original owners) are preserved and in excellent shape.

I'm posting pictures of them here today and would love to hear from anyone about the state of their built-ins if you have them. Are yours similar or different? Do you know any more about them?

I found Waldo!

In my quest for grasscloth to refresh our original closet doors, Waldo Bowers came through with four sample books that they kindly let me take home and study. While I could have purchased grasscloth online, I wanted to see the color and texture firsthand as well as patronize a local retailer. I had tried hunting it down at several local stores here in Sacramento, even a store that specializes in environmentally friendly products. Then I remembered Waldo Bowers, an old-school floor and wall coverings specialty store.


I wound up choosing from Pacific Designs International's Han Ban Do IX book, Pattern HBD 9045. This grasscloth is handcrafted out of tightweave all-natural jute fibers and is environmentally friendly.

The above is the final result of my quest, expertly installed by John DiDomenico (see more regarding John here).

Speaking of which, Waldo Bowers carries several environmentally friendly products that would look great in any Eichler or mid-century modern home: Marmoleum, Ionique, bamboo, cork and natural wood floors. They also have an impressive variety of vinyl composition tile from several manufacturers.

The official store entrance is on the 24th Street side, but in case you get lost, the regulars at The Jointed Cue pool hall next door on the Fruitridge side will set you straight!

Marsh-a, marsh-a, marsh-a

Taking a stroll with our dog around the neighborhood, I happened to run into a group of new friends and neighbors, fresh from their trip to the annual San Mateo Highlands Tour. Noting the nearby sump station, I asked if there was a creek nearby and was directed to the Reichmuth Park Nature Area, just across the street.

As I walked into the canopy by Sump Station 65 on Silver Lake Drive off of South Land Park Drive, my trepidation turned to delight as I discovered a wild wetland forest right in the middle of our urban neighborhood! I can't help but wonder if Joseph Eichler intentionally chose to build our neighborhood near this natural asset or if it was just a coincidence.

There is a beautiful trail which meanders and eventually leads to the grassy areas of Reichmuth Park. Along the way, we spotted wild blackberries, grapevines, cat tails, and even a fig tree nestled among the native oaks. We heard crickets, frogs and saw a shallow pool full of tadpoles. Even though we didn't see any, there are reportedly bunnies. And birds. Lots of birds. Apparently, per the Sacramento Audobon Society Reichmuth Park is home to many uncommon birds. The next scheduled SAS field trip is scheduled this fall, September 21, 2009 at 7:30am.

Near the bottom far left margin of this old 1908 Sacramento map, you will see an area called Munger Lake, where Reichmuth Park is currently located. According to Carlos Alcala, author of "Sacramento Street Whys: The Whys Guy’s Wise Guide to Sacramento Street Names" Reichmuth Park was "... named for Joseph and Amelia Reichmuth. At one time they owned the park, only it was under water and named Munger Lake, which explains why kids practicing soccer in winter tend to get very muddy there. The Reichmuths also had a 358-acre dairy...."

If you want to melt away the stress of urban living, I suggest a walk with your dog here. For safety reasons, I suggest you don't go alone.

My kids really loved the "secret" nature walk. Except for the wet shoe in the boggy water incident, but the shoe was washed and no harm done. This morning, my six year old son stated that he's pretty sure Master Yoda lives there but only comes out at night when it's foggy. Only the birds and the bunnies may know for sure.



UPDATE: Quite a while after I did this carefree little post, Valcom News reporter Lance Armstrong did a great in-depth article on the history of Reichmuth Park and the lake. Read his article here.

Don't take my Kodachrome away

I discovered a cache of old slides from the former owners, Dr. & Mrs. H in the rumpus/TV room. These show the house in the late 60's through early 80's. With kind permission, the original family has allowed me to scan and add these to this blog. This first picture is of the house in April, 1970.

Beautiful Mrs. H in the living room, January 1973

Dr. H in the dining room, December 1975

Their handsome son in the dining room, December 1975

Their lovely daughter & kitty, outside - August 1967

Living room, April 1979

Living room, April 1979

Living room, April 1980

Dining room, April 1979

Dining room, April 1979

Kitchen nook, April 1979

View from nook into living room, April 1979

Many thanks to the family for letting me share these wonderful pictures! And thanks to Bryan Darling from Home Movie Store (located nearby in South Land Park, right below William Land Park/Funderland) for digitizing these. If you have any old format images or movies from the past, I recommend taking them to Bryan -- he is also a mid-century enthusiast and does a great job.

Through the airwaves

Another near-original feature that I love is this Alliance Tenna-Rotor, Model U-100, which I'm guessing must have been purchased shortly after the 1962 remodel of our garage into a large den or rumpus room. A real upgrade from the old rabbit ears of the 1950's.

Per jitterbuzz.com, "...in suburban and rural areas where signal was weak, it was very important to have a properly aligned antenna. Thus, the external folded dipole (looks like a part of a trombone) antenna was erected on the roof. In some areas, even this did not suffice and folks went outside to rotate the antenna to catch a distant signal. For the more affluent, you could buy a Tenna Rotor sold by the Alliance Corporation in numberless commercials during the late night movies. This was a little box, shown below, that allowed you to orient the antenna from the comfort of your living room."


I really love how our unit was labeled for tuning into Sacramento and San Francisco TV stations! We haven't yet had the opportunity to find out if it still works.







I was surprised at the amount of information I found online regarding the Tenna-Rotor.




For instance, from I love antennas, a wiring diagram and installation instructions;




From webremote, a YouTube video demonstrating how it operates;




And even the manual if anyone is looking for it.

This concludes our regularly scheduled broadcast. Tune in tomorrow, same time, same channel.

Curtains for you, my pretty!

I love these vintage curtains in our kitchen and don't have the heart to replace them even though they are slightly fading in places. Something about the rounded geometric patterns reminds me of tiki, jazz, and tribal art.





They are from House 'N Home Fabrics & Draperies, Inc. and are medium weight.







I haven't found anything remotely as comparable, but here are a few fabric contenders that would have to be custom sewn:

If anyone happens to see an excellent and comparable pattern, please let me know.

Lamp restoration project completed!

We were able to identify and restore a pair of mid-century light fixtures in our 1955 Eichler this last week. I was not liking the frayed cords and was worried about fire hazard; after ~50+ years' worth of use, these fixtures were in need of rehab.


You can see the full project here on Flickr.

I must give special thanks to:
- Bo Sullivan, historian and archivist at Rejuvenation for help in identifying the lamps EJS Model 1204, per a 1959 light fixture catalog;
- Pam Kueber from retrorenovation.com for posting about mid-century lighting and leading me to Bo;
- Norman Metcalf and his assistant, David: clever Sacramento area electricians extraordinaire.

I started this project by trying to identify the pair of pull down brass fixtures online, which led me to Pam's wonderful blog entry regarding the identification of her vintage pull down fixture. This, in turn, led me to Bo Sullivan, historian with Rejuvenation in Portland, Oregon. I sent him some pictures and he had a hunch that the fixtures were from E. J. S. Lighting Corporation from Los Angeles and began his research.


Bo then sent me this picture of Lamp EJS Model 1204, page 70 from 1959 E. J. S. Lighting Corporation's catalog and I immediately knew he was correct. Per Bo, "None of the other catalogues showed wood wall brackets remotely like this shape - one of those details where everyone had something slightly different. The catalogue states the bracket is walnut. This catalogue is 1959, so perhaps if your light is original to the 1955 home EJS had evolved the design a little by this time. The 1204 sold for 19.40 in 1959."

Bo also confirmed that the original rounded style rayon cord is no longer available, so I decided to try to rehab the lamps using the original cord, even though I had obtained new rayon flat cord from Revival Lighting.

Our electrician, Norman Metcalf, and I discussed this re-use and decided that the undamaged old cord was just as well-insulated (if not more) than the newer cord. Once he disassembled the first fixture we got quite an eyeful of what heat from excess wattage can do to a fixture.


After rewiring the fixtures, Norman recommended lower watt CFL's instead of incandescent bulbs. We used 60 watt equivalent CFL's. After Norman's repair magic, we can now rest easier that the lamps will no longer be a fire hazard. The CFL's generate less heat, use less energy and the fixtures are no longer too hot to the touch. They throw a decent amount of light and due to the enclosed design of the fixture are just as aesthetically pleasing.

If you have a vintage lighting project, I recommend Norman from Metcalf Electric at (916) 456-6862. I've been working with him for years at our other mid-century home up the street. He is easy to work with and will help you find a good solution specific to your needs.