IT was, said organizer Betty Crocker, the "sign of an excellent party." Crocker, former head of the Outdoor Circle, was referring to the "Knights in a Renaissance Garden" benefit her new group, Scenic Hawaii, organized at Xeriscape Garden in Halawa Valley. What made it a success, in Crocker's eyes, was when four police cars showed up and cops carrying shotguns and wearing bulletproof vests came on the scene. The benefit was going on as scheduled with knights in shining armor jousting on horseback and damsels in distress yelling, "Help! Save Me," as they were being plundered, much to the delight of partygoers. But the sound in the otherwise quiet night was carrying all too well and, as a security guard at nearby FritoLay heard it, all hell was breaking loose. He called 911! The well-armed gendarmes showed up in short order, were told what was going on and that nobody was in danger, and called in their report to hq. "They're doing what?" the dispatcher asked the cop on the horn. "Jousting," came his reply. Dispatcher: "Say what?" The officer didn't have the heart to report that cooking up the entertainment was one Betty Crocker ...
Alana Dung
DENTIST Dr. Alvin Chung met "Les Miserables" cast member D.B. Bonds while working out at the Honolulu Club and the two chatted about the heroic struggle Chung's niece, Alana Dung, was going through on the mainland following a bone marrow transplant. Bonds invited Dr. Chung to see "Les Miz" and after the show introduced him to Lea Salonga, who presented him with not only a "get well" card to Alana signed by the cast, but also an "Aladdin" music box she and Bonds had picked up at the Disney store. Dr. Chung had mentioned that Alana loved "Aladdin" and this music box contained the Princess Jasmine song which Lea sang in the film. She also autographed the music box and Dr. Chung will deliver it to Alana next week ...
THIS brings us to the Mendelssohn Quartet - which I assure you isn't made up of four people named Mendelssohn. When they arrive here tomorrow from the Big Isle for their Saturday concert at Orvis, on hand to greet them will be Harriet and Larry Gay. One member of the quartet is violinist Nicky Mann, whom the Gays met when he was a lad, the son of Julliard Quartet founder Robert Mann. Harriet Gay went on to write a book about the Juilliard, and Nicky went on to play with Pincus Zuckerman and Itshak Perlman and for several years with the Mendelssohn, star of Lincoln Center's "Mostly Mozart Festival" and the resident quartet at Harvard ...
