Early Hawaiian Air hostesses have fun, dance hula at party

The Koa'e Kea women, Hawaiian Airlines DC-3 hostesses of 1943-53, marked their club's 10th anniversary last Saturday by landing at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel for their annual party. These women hold warm, kamaaina fun gatherings with friends and family members who remember what Hawaii's people, places and things were like in an earlier era. Club President Mercy Bacon welcomed guests to the Regency Room, and B.J. Feldman gave the prayer. The affair featured Hawaiian food, the music of Jeff Teves' Kulia I Ka Nu'u and hula by three men of Halau Hawaii -- Bennet Namahoe, Robbie Avilla and Kelani Ramos -- and women in the crowd. Musician-singers, besides Teves, were, Henry Barrett, Paul Kim and Alan Akaka. In the early DC-3 days, the hostesses had be able to dance hula, sing island songs or play instruments. Hale Kaohu Rowland, a fine emcee and hula dancer, danced and called up hula dancers Eula Mae Sweet, Harriet DeCosta, Napua Kobashigawa, Lei Kaniho and Carol Mae Vanderford. HAL President and CEO Mark Dunkerley spoke after receiving an award ...

Many people at the party will remember former Sheraton star Jimmy Cockett, 81, manager of several hotels, who died Oct. 27; and respected kumu hula George Holokai, 76, who died Nov. 1. Jimmy was an HPD motorcycle officer before his hotel career. I went to school with George from first grade to 12th. At age 15 he took up hula, one of the few boys who did so in the 1940s. Both will be missed ...

Neva Rego to lead Arts and Letters' isle chapter

Neva Rego, a singer and voice tutor, has been inducted as president of the Hawaii Chapter of the National Society of Arts and Letters ... Diamond Head Crater music fest organizer Ron Gibson has scheduled next year's event May 19 ... Billy Joel will perform at a revolving piano, with no backdrop, for his Blaisdell Arena concert Dec. 16 ...

Happy 50th birthday to chef-restaurateur Alan Wong, who will party today at Greg Gomes' home. Peace Wong, no relation to Alan, said she will mark her birthday today working in her family's Tasty Foods concession at Ala Wai golf course. I don't know if her children will let her get away with that on her birthday ...

Ben Wood, who sold the Star-Bulletin in the streets of downtown Honolulu during World War II, writes of people, places and things in our Hawaii. E-mail him at bwood@starbulletin.com