Loose ball
not a foul for golferIT has to be a good omen for the UH basketball team this year. At the Schuman Carriage "Chip It In" golf tourney to benefit the UH Athletic Fund, whose ball should hit the bottom of the cup on the 201-yard 16th hole but that of Riley Wallace, the UH coach. Never mind that he didn't hit it. Apparent-ly Wallace had lost the ball earlier in the tourney, and Joel Matsunaga of GTE Hawaiian Tel, who was behind him, found it and began using it. When he made the ace, it earned him a brand new Cadillac. Maybe he'll let Riley ride in it...
ONE of the originals died recently in Hana, Maui. Sonny Knight, who was a big rhythm and blues figure about four decades ago with his "Incha Allah" and "Confidential," had lived on Maui for many years and for a long time was content playing in piano bars along the Kaanapali strip... One of his contemporaries, Bo Diddley, is almost 70 but still going strong. He'll be performing at the Four Seasons on Maui Oct. 9. No deal has been worked out for him to perform in Honolulu, so Maui may be your one chance to see Bo in person ... One person who just might is visitor Mel "The Money Man" Lawrence, a K-POI character in the '60s who traveled around town letting people pull all the change they could from a milk can full of money ...
Swinging in Kohala
THE guy who's largely responsible for the resurgence of swing music, Brian Setzer, brings his orchestra to the Big Island this month to play for a private convention. Promoter Tom Moffatt inquired about bringing the band to Honolulu, but Setzer's price has skyrocketed, so Honolulans will have to be content to hear him on the radio or catch his sounds on those Gap khaki slacks TV commercials, which look much cooler than the khakis themselves...THE Kona Kohala Resort Association gave local media a slide show and series of pitches about life on their side of the Big Isle in First Hawaiian Bank's ultra high-tech board room Tuesday. The portion devoted to wellness and health was delivered by John DeFries, who approached the microphone with the aid of crutches. How come? "Skateboarding accident," he said. "When are you going to grow up?" I asked, and in true local-boy style he replied, "Never."...
EVERY time I see that photo of the five Bishop Estate trustees all beaming, I'm reminded of Esquire's recurring photo feature, "Why are these people smiling?"... And I'm pulling for Attorney General Margery Bronster to pick Columbia University law professor Bevis Longstreth to run Bishop Estate, preferably with Ross Perot, for reasons I don't care to discuss publicly...
'Pageant' goers
MANOA Valley Theatre has a bona fide hit on its hands with "Pageant," and it's now been extended through Oct. 11. Visiting singer Maureen McGovern, who toured in "The King and I" with "Pageant" director and co-star Andrew Sakaguchi, never got to the show, but plenty of other notables did. Among those screaming with delight at the boys-will-be-girls "Pageant" on recent nights were real pageant winner Melissa Short, actor/directors James Pestana, John Rampage and Jim Seibel, Hawaii Theatre honcho Burton White and TV figures Ann Botticelli, Pamela Young, Gary Sprinkle, Linda Coble and Kirk Matthews. Coble is also something of a winner, having been named the first woman district governor of all local Rotary Clubs, taking office in the year 2000. She was also the first woman Rotary president in Hawaii, and I'll bet she can hardly wait to wield that gavel...
Dave Donnelly has been writing on happenings
in Hawaii for the Star-Bulletin since 1968.
His columns run Monday through Friday.Contact Dave by e-mail: donnelly@kestrok.com.