Inventor of the Hawaiian shirt dies
Monday, January 5, 2009
metro.co.uk

Alfred Shaheen, who was credited with inventing the Hawaiian shirt,
has died.

You'd be forgiven for never hearing of designer Alfred Shaheen.
Yet he inspired one of the most colourful, amusing and unforgettable
styles of fashion ever known - the Hawaiian shirt.

Sadly the pioneering textile manufacturer has died at age 86, his
family have confirmed.

As tourists from the US to Hawaii after World War II, many began to
bring home colorful but cheesy looking shirts and sundresses that
would be cause for much amusement among friends.

Shaheen began to change that in 1948 when he opened Shaheen's of
Honolulu and began designing, printing and producing "aloha" shirts,
dresses and other ready-to-wear clothing of better quality.

Among those seen in Shaheen-designed shirts of that era was Elvis
Presley, who wore one for the cover of his 1961 soundtrack
album "Blue Hawaii."

Such Shaheen originals now sell for more than £500

"Before Shaheen came along, there was no Hawaii garment industry.
There were mom and pop stores but no real modern industry," Linda
Arthur, a professor of textiles and clothing at Washington State
University said.

By 1959, the year Hawaii became a state, he had more than 400
employees working for him and was grossing more than $4 million a
year as the major player in the islands' garment industry.

Jeff(bigtikidude)

sorry for the worse news.

Just in case someone stumbles across this thread in the future...
Ellery Chun is widely credited as the inventor, though Shaheen certainly popularized it and it's clear that people love his vintage garments.

(http://archives.starbulletin.com/2000/06/06/news/story9.html)

Tuesday, June 6, 2000

Ellery Chun, creator of aloha shirt, dies at 91

Aloha shirt: Always in fashion
OBITUARIES

By Harold Morse
Star-Bulletin

Ellery J. Chun, who gave the aloha shirt to the world, died May 16 in Honolulu of respiratory failure. He was 91.

Although he first created aloha shirts in 1931, it was in 1936 he introduced the "Aloha Shirt" label to the distinctively bright, colorful Hawaiian attire. The term and the style caught on, and countless clothing manufacturers followed suit.

Chun first sold aloha shirts -- originally inspired by palaka garments of plantation workers and silk shirts of high school classmates sewn from leftover kimono material by Japanese housekeepers -- at the family store, which he renamed King-Smith Clothiers, 36 N. King St.

The Honolulu native graduated from Punahou in 1927 and majored in economics at Yale, class of 1931.

Upon returning to the islands, he renamed the store after the closest intersection and transformed it from a Chinese dry goods shop into a mecca for a wide range of customers.

By 1933, he began to produce ready-to-wear patterns from cloth imported from the U.S. mainland, Japan, China and Tahiti. Surfers and beachboys snapped up the bold, breezy styles, and visiting Hollywood celebrities and other rich and famous ones began sailing home to display the new fashions.

The enterprising Chun made the store sponsor a radio talent show in the latter 1930s. The show originated from Waikiki Beach fronting the Moana Hotel. Emma Veary was a talent it discovered.

Chun became a member of the board of American Security Bank in 1945. He later closed the King-Smith outlet and became a full-time bank vice president, remaining with the bank until retiring in 1966. He continued on the board until 1980 and as advisory director until 1985.

In 1991, the state Senate honored Chun for creating the aloha shirt, on the 60th anniversary of his landmark contribution to distinctive Hawaiian apparel and the state of Hawaii.

"He was very creative," recalled wife Mildred. He was very generous, considerate and soft-spoken, with strong family values, she added. "I'm sure he had a good business instinct."

She called him a very intelligent man. With the Great Depression of the 1930s, he needed new ideas to help generate business for the store, his wife said. "So he came up with this colorful aloha shirt."

He started off very small with a few dozen bright printed Hawaiian patterns with palm trees, hula girls, pineapples and such, she said.

"It turned out well."

He had a tailor who sewed maybe three or four dozen at a time, his wife said.

Chun also is survived by daughters Colleen Hirano and Christine Chung; son Damon; sister Wai-Chee Yee and four grandchildren.

Services were private. Donations in his memory may be made to the American Lung Association of Hawaii, Hawaii Public Library System, or the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii.

Jeff(bigtikidude)

there goes at least half my wardrobe!

UNSTEADY FREDDIE

p.s. wait wait, I am not in a band; can I still wear them to surf music shows? am I exempt from the ban?

http://www.facebook.com/unsteady.freddie

Possibly the lava lava?

With all due respects to those of you who shine in these shirts -I was forced to wear these shirts in the 1970's by my parents - with desert boots and a 70's bowl shaped haircut (aaagh)!

Later in life, with more education and a refined value, I took to wearing _paisley _instead....much more tasteful (lol)

However, Stormtiger, I think prohibition will only push Hawaiian shirts underground and Hawaiian-shirt-clad-surf musician-speakeasys will pop up everywhere.

Tim O
oestmann guitar

tunes

clips

BillyBlastOff
Ok. I'll pay any surf musician $100 bucks to wear one of these on stage, But...............You'll have to pop a viagra two hours before hand.

And now you know why they wear sporrans with kilts (besides a place to put your flask)

A real surfband will only laugh at totalitarian dress-codes like what can be read here.

The Exotic Guitar of Kahuna Kawentzmann

You can get the boy out of the Keynes era, but you can’t get the Keynes era out of the boy.

Stormtiger

Kawentzmann
A real surfband will only laugh at totalitarian dress-codes like what can be read here.

Of course there is no real dress code and there is certainly no shortage of Hawaiian shirts in surf music these days, but "real" surf bands should not wear them. Surf needs to keep its identity separate from Tiki/Exotica, 2 different worlds.

I am not telling anyone what to wear. But then, I have better things to do.
P.S. Like trying to fold my handkerchief like this:

http://www.boingboing.net/2009/01/16/problem-of-saggypant.html

The Exotic Guitar of Kahuna Kawentzmann

You can get the boy out of the Keynes era, but you can’t get the Keynes era out of the boy.

bigtikidude
I posted this stuff as kinda a joke.

I would never tell anyone what to wear onstage.

But I will never wear a hawaiian shirt on stage.

now at a tiki event is a different story.
but even then sometimes I still go with a t shirt with a tiki on it.
I just not a huge fan of button up collard shirts.

my 2 coconuts.

but jeff, collards taste so good

www.surfintheeye.com

Kawentzmann
A real surfband will only laugh at totalitarian dress-codes like what can be read here.

Stormtiger
Of course there is no real dress code and there is certainly no shortage of Hawaiian shirts in surf music these days, but "real" surf bands should not wear them. Surf needs to keep its identity separate from Tiki/Exotica, 2 different worlds.

bigtikidude
By 1933, he began to produce ready-to-wear patterns from cloth imported from the U.S. mainland, Japan, China and Tahiti. Surfers and beachboys snapped up the bold, breezy styles, and visiting Hollywood celebrities and other rich and famous ones began sailing home to display the new fashions.

Real surf bands? Rules? Laws? Fun topic!

From my limited experience...when on stage...the things that matter are...

COMFORT!

A band needs to be comfortable in order to play well, while having fun too! If this means comfy Hawaiian shirts and shorts, pendletons and jeans or even snappy suits...it's up to the band to decide. Hot, humid weather conditions wreak havoc with sport coats and ties (believe me, I know!) but, the crowds we use to play for...really enjoyed it when we took the stage in our red jackets.

PRESENTATION/PROFESSIONALISM

Some bands are enhanced when they wear matching outfits...others are just fine if they take the stage in a variety of t-shirts, jeans, shorts, kilts, etc. Different crowds demand different visuals...

High paying corporate gigs seem to really appreciate the matching outfits as do some freebie late night bar gigs. Some fans are easy and only hear the music and watch the hands and faces of the bands. Others are more demanding and expect a "show"...this involves elements of a concert not found in a CD...Visuals! (outfits, choreographed moves, lights, etc.) This is when the wardrobe becomes a factor.

Some crowds, not familiar with the full history of surf music, really like the Hawaiian shirts on bands...it reminds them of the beach and along with the music, takes them away to a warm, happy place!

Incredible bands...

... like Slacktone would be out of their element if they wore matching outfits or loud Hawaiian shirts...and their fans would definitely be in for a surprise if they did.

...like Los Straitjackets or Los Kahunas would seem a tad naked if they didn't wear their wrestling masks or matching powder blue dinner jackets.

In the end...it really doesn't matter what we all say about other bands outfits...it's up to them to decide...and for us to lighten up!

• Surfbeatnik