"Danno, I want you to pay a visit to the people running this 'Mahalo Con' 'Hawaii Five-0' convention in Los Angeles and Honolulu and find out exactly, and I mean exactly, what's going on! Understand?"

Steve McGarrett, dressed in long- sleeved white shirt, dark silk tie and dark suit, stands in the noontime sun in Waikiki, not a drip of perspiration appears on his stern face, not a hair out of place.

"Steve, it's legit. They're fans. Just hard-core fans. Lots of things planned: film location visits, luaus, panel discussions, 'Hawaii Five-0' costume party, even meetings with some of the guys."

"I see, Danno. Interesting."

"Mahalo Con" will be held in L.A Oct. 25 to 27; Honolulu, Oct. 28 to Nov. 3.

"Hawaii Five-0" actors expected to attend include Kam Fong who played Chinn Ho Kelly, Glenn Cannon (District Attorney Manicote), Zulu (Kono), Herman Wedemeyer (Duke Lekela), Harry Endo (Che Fong), Doug Mossman (George Kealoha, Frank Kamana), and guest actors Moe Keale, Jimmy Borges and Al Harrington.*

James MacArthur, who played Danno, is slated for the L.A. show only. Neither "Hawaii Five-0" star Jack Lord nor Richard Denning who played Hawaii's governor throughout the show's 12-year run will attend either convention, although Lord has been asked to videotape a welcome message.

Lord for several years has been reported to be ill. Denning, 82, who lives on Maui and in southern California, is also ailing.

Planned convention events in Honolulu include a "Hawaii Five-0" favorite character costume party on Halloween at the Aloha Tower Marketplace; a tour of "Five-0" film sites with some of the actors narrating their experiences; a luau with the actors at Tahitian Lanai; and picture taking on the terrace of the Ilikai Hotel penthouse apartment where Lord's character, Steve McGarrett, stands during the show's opening sequence.

There also are planned panel and round-table discussions at both convention sites, including:

"Murder in Paradise," "Hawaii Five-0" creator Leonard Freeman's stated theme for the show: "The Snake in Eden";

Elements of the Cop Show - How "Hawaii Five-0" did it right;

Wonderful characters of "Five-0" - villains and heroes;

How "Hawaii Five-0" was ahead of its time;

"Five-0" and TV Violence;

Love and Death on "Hawaii Five-0": The Dead Girlfriend of the Week and did McGarrett or Danno ever get the girl?

"Chinn, some guys have been recording our every move since 'Five-0' started. Find out what else they've got!"

In L.A. there's going to be a Dealers Room with rare show photos, papers, notes, memos, memorials, scripts. And in Honolulu, McGarrett's car: the ominous Black Mercury.

"My God, Che, find out who this Ractliffe is, take her picture down to the lab."

Ractliffe, a legal assist in an L.A. law office, has worked on both sides of the camera for 30 years. She's been a member of AFTRA, the Hollywood Stuntman's Association, an extra, belly dancer, and actor Hugh O'Brien's - "Wyatt Earp" - personal assistant.

And this isn't her first convention. Ractliffe conceived and implemented the first "Star Trek" gathering in 1973."

And there's lot more planned. There's talk about a stage parody: "Every 'Hawaii Five-0' Episode Ever Filmed in Five Minutes," and a blooper reel."

Wondering why there's continued interest in a show that stopped filming 16 years ago?

Well, "Hawaii Five-0" is still broadcast on 16 stations in the U. S., as well as in Belgium, France, Germany, Israel and Jordan.

"Mahalo Con" will be the unofficial 30th anniversary of the series since Jerome Coopersmith wrote the first script in September 1966.

What: Mahalo Con, the Hawaii Five-0 Reunion/Convention
When: Oct. 25 to 27 in Los Angeles, Calif., and Oct. 28 to Nov. 3 in Honolulu
Where: In L.A. at the Burbank Airport Hilton, 2500 Hollywood Way, Burbank, 91505; Honolulu site to be announced
Cost: $65 for pre-registration, $75 at the door; Los Angeles and Honolulu banquet luaus about $30
Information: In Los Angeles contact Rita Ractliffe, 15500 Erwin, #297 Van Nuys, CA 91411; call (818) 908-1360 or (213) 426-6212: or E-mail keysr@moe.fcol.co

In Hawaii contact Doug Mossman at 923-2902