CHSC President Charles Perry is back with another lecture this month, this time at the San Pedro Library!

In this talk he will paint a history of the incomparably genial, charming, goofy Tiki craze that swept the country in the 1960s, tracing its dreamy roots back to 1912. Journey back to the days of hula dancers, ukulele strummers, backyard luaus and savage rum-based cocktails.

About the speaker:
Charles Perry is a writer and food scholar who has presented papers at the annual Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery since 1981 and was a major contributor to The Oxford Companion to Food. His scholarly specialty is the cuisine of the Islamic world; he has translated several medieval Arabic cookbooks, most recently the influential 13th century book of al-Baghdadi (A Baghdad Cookery Book, Prospect Books, 2005). He was a staff writer for the Los Angeles Times food section for 18 years and has made numerous TV and radio appearances. He is currently translating a 13th century cookbook that will be published next year by NYU Press as Scents and Flavors the Banqueteer Savors.