StarBulletin.com

Some of HPD's finest want to 'book 'em' on 'Five-0'


By

POSTED: Tuesday, March 09, 2010

Detective Paul Nagata Jr.'s father played a cop on the original “;Hawaii Five-0.”;

Now Paul Jr. is anxiously awaiting word whether he'll be able to carry on from Paul Sr., a retired Honolulu police sergeant, by landing a part in a pilot of the upcoming CBS-TV remake of the iconic series.

Nagata is one of more than 100 Honolulu police officers and civilian Honolulu Police Department workers who answered a casting call Friday at HPD's main station for real police officers to play police officers mainly as extras.

HPD spokeswoman Michelle Yu said the use of an HPD conference room for the casting call was decided on by the administration and had been done in the past for a previous TV show.

Casting director Margaret Doversola, who worked on the original “;Five-0”; series, says filming Thursday will require 30 extras at the funeral of a high-ranking police officer who was killed.

The show will also need more officers in the next two weeks for “;two take-downs of bad guys and various people in offices,”; she said.

TV shows like to have the reality of real police, she said.

“;It's easy to put people in uniform, but it doesn't look official. Plus, when you're doing these take-downs of these bad guys, they know the right protocol.”;

Acting skills are not necessary. “;They're not asked to act; they're just asked to do what they really do,”; she said.

“;There's several police who I've used over the years on different shows that I've done,”; she said. Many have been on “;Magnum P.I.,”; “;Jake and the Fatman,”; “;Baywatch”; and the pilot for a TV show called “;Hawaii,”; Doversola said.

“;Some people are just natural actors,”; she said.

Windward patrol Lt. Dave Eber, athletic at 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, was an extra on “;Jake and the Fatman.”;

He got bitten by the acting bug performing in high school plays. He also did a Japanese drink commercial when his Chaminade University water polo team was signed to play water polo with a watermelon, which led to a part as an extra in a Japanese movie.

Detective Gary Lahens, who played a Fijian cop in “;Murder, She Wrote,”; said, “;We're looking forward to being a part of the historic show. We want to bring to the screen what a real detective does.”;

Lahens believes he's got what it takes to be an actor — “;confidence, poise, knowledge, a people person,”; he rattled off. “;There's a certain flair about me. You got to be fun. You got to be a bon vivant — a lover of life — to be a good actor.”;

Detective Alex Garcia, a member of the Screen Actors Guild, said he's not interested in being an extra, which earns about $100 and means spending several hours on the set.

He had a regular part in the last “;Hawaii Five-0”; pilot with Gary Busey.

Garcia said he'll be auditioning for “;Lost”; this week, and hopes to land a speaking role, which could earn about $850.