The Just Great Matchbooks Thread

That's right a thread for just great matchbooks. Sometimes while searching for that awesome Tiki matchbook you’ll find something else equally as cool but maybe not Tiki so let’s post those here. Restaurants, Bars, Nite Clubs, Hotels, Motels, Airlines, Bowling Alleys, Golf Courses, Non-Tiki or Tiki, whatever. If you like it and feel confident that you probably won’t be ridiculed too much then post it. :)

No Lighters, No Ashtrays, No Cigar Bands, No Candles or um Flashlights.

I’m going to start with this one - *Mike’s Grog ‘n Steak. * From Googling the name it sounds like this place can be seen in a Hawaii Five-O background shot which is nice but the thing that caught my attention was the “Broil Your Own $1.95” that sounds awesome.

Please refrain from making any comparisons of Mike's to Costa Mesa’s Pierce Street Annex. :o

I know I have a few cool old matchbooks from Disneyland. Not sure where they are, but during my search for them I came across this.

I collected Disneyana for about ten years, and I was a little obsessed with Fantasia.

Long before Paul Prudhomme and Mario Batali both Canter's and Andersen's knew that overweight Chef's were cool.

Please don’t think that I’m saying Mario Batali is cool. :-?

Those are cool matchbooks, Boris. Does Canter's still carry those? I'm assuming you picked up the Pea Soup Anderson's matchbook on your way home?

Here is one of my all time favorite matchbooks, Don The Beachcomber. These pictures are courtesy of Uncle Trav. I don't have one like this, but I sure wish I did!

I'm not sure if Canter's still has those, I don't think so but I'll check, I could use a new one.

The Andersen’s was acquired on the drive back from Alameda. :)

Okay. Thanks to someone to whom I will not give any credit, I now know how to use my scanner.

I just love these old matchbooks from the park.

wow so cool, I never saw that matchbook Kate.
all the times I went to D-land as a kid, I never ate at the
chicken of the sea , Capt' Hooks boat.
:(

Jeff(bigtikidude)

I don't think I ever ate there either, Jeff.

Here are a couple of others that I like.

La Concha is just cool.

And I have a weakness for fish who smoke cigarettes and wear top hats.

I never fancied myself a matchbook cover collector, but let's make some music Alabama!

I have three more match book cover albums, plus a bunch of loose ones. Anyone want to see anymore?

Psycho Tiki D (I know I am and I don't think I collect match book covers)!

More please Mr. Non-Collector,

I really like the Formosa Cafe one. Thanks for sharing.

On 2008-04-23 18:39, Bora Boris wrote:
More please Mr. Non-Collector,

I really like the Formosa Cafe one. Thanks for sharing.

Seriously, I never, ever meant to collect matchbooks, but I couldn't get this guy to sell me the tiki ones, so I ended up buying the four albums. It seems this happens frequently when buying matchbooks or swizzle sticks...it is cheaper to buy the entire lot than to buy the few I want.

But these are really cool. I like the artwork on the more detailed books. I will post more later...I wish I had the time to take pictures of each one.

PTD

A few more:

See ya soon,

PTD

Metallic covers are kind of hard to scan and this one turned out to have a lot of hidden scuffs but I still think it's cool.

Here are a few tiki matchbooks from locations that don't have threads of their own.

Boris will these do?

front

back

Well, my uncle collected matches for years and I inherited them all, so I thought you might like these. I will post more matches later....: ) Uhm, I know you guys hate these, not all of these matches are strip clubs. I have some fun ones I will post later.

I like em.

Boris a little more.

These were extras from a tiki matchbook cover find that I thought I would post before I get rid of them...

Enjoy

PTD

I like the ones with printing on the matches.

A couple of mine:

"Clearman's Golden Cock Inn"-that's what she said!
Buzzy Out!

Got this one today at an estate sale

Love's Pagen Den

That's right, they spelled pagAn pagEn.

Here's my nudie/pinup matchbook collection:

What are they trying to convey with the Iron Maiden graphic?

Bottom ones are boxes from Japan

The one on the right is my favorite:

It's from a bowling alley

:up: I usd to go to that Hussong's about once a month or so when i was lad. We used to camp at San Miguel at least once a month, and if there was no surf, we'd meet the incoming cruise ship partiers as they arrived at Hussong's. We'd pretty much get thrown out every other time we were there. i used to hang out with some real meatheads.

some of the fine establishments that used these type of matches as promos:

Any of you Bettie Page fans know if this is her?

And if it is, was the original photo nude and the bathing suit painted on for this book?

Buzzy Out!

[ Edited by: Bay Park Buzzy 2010-07-08 23:20 ]

This is my all time favorite matchbook. It reminds you to close the cover before striking for safety but watching the latest nuke go off is just fine.

None of these are mine, but thought they were cool enough to download and save to my computer.

Ah, what wonderful, wonderful matchbook art! Fantastic, groovy stuff. :)

On 2010-07-08 23:18, Bay Park Buzzy wrote:

Any of you Bettie Page fans know if this is her?

And if it is, was the original photo nude and the bathing suit painted on for this book?

That's Bettie Page, and the bathing suit is real; there's a whole photo-shoot with her in the same outfit:

This past weekend I found these gems at an estate sale. On another note, this was the first estate sale I've ever been propositioned at. Being propositioned by an geriatric old man as you sift through the deceased's treasured belongings is not as flattering as you think it may be.

It's like if Mary Blair and I decided to hang out together in the Thunderdome.

[ Edited by: pantsenfuego 2012-03-15 16:29 ]

Picked up these 3 vintage matchbook collectors albums recently. From what I can gather from the books and the writing within, they were compiled by the wife of an officer in the service during and after the WWII period. The dates range from 1942-1965.
She seems to have travelled along with her serviceman and visited many places but the bulk of the matches are from Kansas City (their hometown), Hawaii, NYC, SF, Quebec, Chicago etc. Most are restaurants, hotels and bars but there are several military related and transportation matchbooks as well.
Probably 300-400 in all, I think I will keep them together as a group since they have been in those albums for up to 6 decades and are a nice record of their journeys.

Here are some interesting and familiar ones:

I once was lost.....but now I'm found.....

[ Edited by: 8FT Tiki 2012-04-26 17:23 ]