{"id":37623,"date":"2026-01-11T15:35:51","date_gmt":"2026-01-11T20:35:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.slammie.com\/atomicgrog\/blog\/?p=37623"},"modified":"2026-03-05T19:32:05","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T00:32:05","slug":"countdown-to-don-the-beachcomber-biography-begins-with-fundraiser-early-special-edition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.slammie.com\/atomicgrog\/blog\/2026\/01\/11\/countdown-to-don-the-beachcomber-biography-begins-with-fundraiser-early-special-edition\/","title":{"rendered":"Countdown to Don the Beachcomber biography begins with fundraiser, early special edition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Updated Feb. 22<\/em><\/p>\n

Much has been revealed in recent years about Donn Beach (aka Don the Beachcomber), considered to be the godfather of 20th century Tiki culture. But we still don’t have a complete picture of the life and times of the enigmatic bootlegger-turned-restaurateur, who opened the first faux Polynesian bar in the 1930s and influenced countless imitators. That’s all about to change.
\nPreview the book below:<\/strong> Images and sample pages<\/a> | Video<\/a>
\nBonus cocktail recipe:<\/strong> Beachcomber’s Silver<\/a><\/p>\n

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The back and front covers of the upcoming book, Searching for Don the Beachcomber.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Years in the making, the 208-page biography Searching for Don the Beachcomber<\/em><\/a> will hit bookshelves in 2026, researched and written by Tiki historian Tim “Swanky” Glazner<\/a> and published by London-based Korero Press<\/a>. The hardcover book is due to be shipped April, and fans jumped at the chance to secure a special edition via a Kickstarter campaign<\/a> that launched Jan. 20. More than $45,000 was raised in the first a week, smashing all goals. The total when the campaign ended was more than $60,000 (\u00a345,230).<\/p>\n

Early backers received several special rewards, including first-edition copies with an exclusive signed bookplate. A limited-edition mug by Eekum Bookum featuring Beach\u2019s signature cannibal carvings sold out fast, and a second batch with a different glaze was added. The mug and book are now available for pre-order via the official website,<\/strong><\/a> along with 8×10 prints of Beach.<\/p>\n

Glazner is co-founder of The Hukilau in the early 2000s and author of Mai-Kai: History and Mystery of the Iconic Tiki Restaurant<\/em><\/a> (2016, Schiffer). It was during the research for that book that he starting uncovering fascinating facts and stories about the man who started life in 1907 as a Texan named Ernest Gantt and ended in 1989 in Honolulu as a lifelong supporter of authentic South Pacific culture.<\/p>\n

Over those 82 years, Beach reinvented not only himself but America’s perception and appreciation of Pan-Pacific people. The book covers his entire life, including fascinating details and stories about his early years, which have remain shrouded in mystery. As it turns out, most of the tall tales and myths that have long surrounded Donn Beach were created and embellished by the man himself. But one thing is clear, Beach always lived up to his motto: “If you can’t get to paradise, I’ll bring it to you.”<\/p>\n

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Donn Beach in Hawaii, circa 1939 (left) and 1950. (Phoebe Beach archive)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In Searching for Don the Beachcomber<\/em><\/a>, Glazer does his best to separate fact from fiction, but he also lets Beach’s rich archive of personal documents<\/a> speak for themselves. The biography was made possible when Beach’s widow, Phoebe Beach, donated his personal papers, photos and other materials that she had been saving for the past 30+ years. Glazner has said they will end up in the collections of the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, which celebrates the history and culture of Hawaii and the Pacific.<\/p>\n

Beach is best known today as the “Inventor of the Tiki Bar,” as the book’s subtitle states, a uniquely mainland American invention that he crafted in the shadow of 1930s Hollywood movie studios. But fate later brought the enterprising entrepreneur to the South Seas, where he spent most of the second half of his life, running namesake restaurants and spearheading projects that included the International Market Place in Waikiki. He was also a decorated veteran of World War II,<\/a> rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Army Air Force.<\/p>\n

\"Don<\/a>
Don Beach’s military career in World War II is detailed in Searching for Don the Beachcomber. He’s pictured above in Italy in 1943. (Phoebe Beach archive)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Throughout his lifetime, Beach ignored racial barriers by quietly hiring and promoting staff who were immigrants from many Pacific and southeast Asian countries, decades before civil rights legislation was a reality. Reading Searching for Don the Beachcomber<\/em> will give you a much more in-depth picture of not only the creativity, but the integrity and vision of Donn Beach.<\/p>\n

Glazner details many significant storylines, including Beach’s unusual relationship with his first wife, Sunny Sund, and their precarious association with organized crime. The book is also chock full of more than 200 rare images and documents from Beach’s archives, plus an appendix that includes many of the influential mixologist’s original recipes from the 1930s and ’40s.<\/p>\n

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To supplement those cocktails, Glazner has unearthed several of Beach’s secret ingredients that will soon be made available via BG Reynolds.<\/a> Those special syrups – which Beach coded with simple names such as “#4” and “#7” – were part of his detailed efforts to keep his recipes under wraps. Glazner is also creator of the long-running app, The Grogalizer<\/a>, which spotlights cocktails from Don the Beachcomber and other key sources.<\/p>\n

\"Tim<\/a>
Tim “Swanky” Glazner, author of the book Searching for Don the Beachcomber. (Courtesy of Searching for Don the Beachcomber)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While we await the book and syrups, you can meet Glazer and learn more about his research at several upcoming Tiki weekenders. He has two presentations planned for the Nor’Easter Island Tropical Weekend<\/a> in Sturbridge, Mass., on Feb. 5-8. He’ll be discussing “Don the Beachcomber and the Mob in LA” in the 1930s along with “Donn Beach’s Wars at Home and Abroad” in the 1940s. At Tiki-a-Go-Go<\/a><\/strong> in Orlando, Fla. (March 27-29), Glazner will reprise the 1940s presentation and also explore the book’s many stories and his subject’s lasting legacy in “Donn Beach: The Man, the Myth and the Legend.” You can also find him in July at PDXotica<\/a> in Portland, Ore.
\n• More on the event appearances<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n

We were privileged to see an early copy of the manuscript, before the book was designed, so we’re looking forward to seeing the finished product. Glazner and Korero have shared the following page layouts as a sneak preview. Click for larger versions.<\/p>\n

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To promote the book’s release, Glazner has created a robust archive of video clips on his YouTube channel.<\/a> Here’s just a small selection:<\/p>\n

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