Hawaii
RADIO talk show host Rick Hamada walks along the right side of most issues, speaking in a political sense. And with his own involvement in beauty pageants -- he's married to the striking Bernadette Baraquio, sister to Miss America Angela Perez Baraquio -- I immediately thought of him when Oxana Fedorova, Miss Russia for crying out loud, won the Miss Universe title. Her hair is even a bit red, though Reuters called her "raven-haired." And she's a pistol-toting lieutenant in the St. Petersburg Police Department in Russia. If that didn't upset his political apple cart -- green apples only need apply -- the third-place finisher must have. She was Miss China -- not Taiwan, mind you -- Ling Zhuo, who won third place in the contest. About the only thing missing was Miss Cuba, and Hamada could have gone completely bonkers ... ‘Red’ contestant’s victory
must rankle pageant fanBALLET Hawaii raised $20,000 from its "Night in Italy" party, which George and Wini Vandeman, owners of the new Sergio's in the Hilton Hawaiian Village, hosted. Among those there was Ballet Hawaii Artistic Director Pamela Taylor-Tongg, President Susan Schull and husband Gunner, there with daughter Amanda Schull, who starred in the ballet film "Center Stage." The Vandemans had met "The District" actor Craig T. Nelson on the plane heading here and invited him to drop by their eatery for some tasty dishes. And that's just the waitresses! (Just kidding!) If Sergio's interior designer Kathy Merrill-Kelly and new husband John seemed preoccupied, blame it on the fact that the next day they were heading to a honeymoon in Bali. From bruschetta to ballet to Bali -- that about covers it ...
Weekend escape
IT as a glorious weekend for a San Francisco couple in Hawaii. The wife is suffering from a malignant brain tumor and didn't want to be named, but they had a weekend off between radiation treatments, so they turned to S.F. pal Janos Gereben for help. Janos lived here and was a writer for the Star-Bulletin, but manages to keep up on what's happening and pointed them in all the right directions. They stayed at the old Royal Hawaiian, which they loved for its "ineffable charm"; the husband noting it was the first hotel he'd visited that respected the "Do Not Disturb" signs. He told Janos one of his regrets is that he fears he can't afford to stay there again. The two hit Kailua Beach and did some kayaking, dining at both Alan Wong's and Hoku's in the Mandarin Oriental, and the wife became a fan of ABC Stores. Did Hawaii live up to Gereben's billing? "I didn't think Hawaii could be as great as everyone said. Tropical Paradise is a cliché. Who knew it could be so great?," the husband said. If things don't work out for Janos in the newspaper business, maybe he could become a travel agent ...
Fourth coming
NOHEA Gallery is one up on the "third time's the charm" cliché. To co-owner Laurie Baron, it's more like the fourth time. The shop, which specialize in fine arts and isle crafts, recently opened its fourth store, in Ward Centre in the corner space formerly occupied by Vagabond House. And it was nominated for the fourth year in a row for the Top 100 Retailers of American Crafts Awards presented by Niche magazine. Says Baron, "It's an honor for a small Hawaii business to be nominated." ...
Dave Donnelly has been writing on happenings
in Hawaii for the Star-Bulletin since 1968.
The Week That Was recalls items from Dave's 30 years of columns.Contact Dave by e-mail: ddonnelly@starbulletin.com