Hawaii
Throw in the
beach towelWHILE Mayor Jeremy Harris has had some good ideas since he's been in office, my humble opinion is that rebuilding the natatorium isn't one of them. So I applauded the judge's ruling that it certainly looks and acts like a swimming pool, and has to be adjudged one. While Harris called the ruling "ludicrous," my feeling is that word better describes the idea of taking up so much room on an invaluable beach for a facility that would get minimal use, if any at all, and cost untold millions to rebuild and keep up. Here's the perfect opportunity for Mayor Harris to say, hey, we tried, but no cigar. Now let's tear the damned thing down (a one time expense) and enjoy the beach ...
THE Mayor, incidentally, celebrated wife Ramona's birthday with a touch of old Hawaii at the Crouching Lion Inn on Father's Day ... Yesterday's Star-Bulletin contained a letter to the editor from retired admiral E. Alvey Wright that was headlined, "Interisland ferry system would help Hawaii." Longtime residents will attest that the same letter from Wright has been appearing in one form or another every few months or so for the past 30 years ... More hard news. KGMB-TV ran a story about the Society of Professional Journalism Awards and, ignoring the print media entirely, mentioned only the awards presented to the station! Some of their viewers might have found it newsworthy that the Star-Bulletin won 12 first place awards, compared to four for the morning Advertiser. Maybe that's why TV calls it a "newscast." They cast aside the news that doesn't concern them ...
Sporting News
IT pays to have a restaurateur as your team mascot. Just ask the Punahou men's varsity tennis team. Their "mascot," Aaron Placourakis, blithely offered to treat the entire team to dinner at Sarento's if they won the state championship. Well, you should have seen those tennis champs, trophy on display, enjoying a dinner of champions at Aaron's restaurant while the mascot looked on ... Special Olympics Hawaii is also gearing to go for the gold at the World Summer Games in North Carolina beginning Saturday. The team is having a send-off party tomorrow at 2 p.m. at the United Airlines terminal at the airport. KGMB-TV will show a preview of these special kids on its newscast at 6 p.m. this evening ...GOLFER Phil Mickelson missed by a stroke of tying for the U.S. Open championship on Father's Day, and it may have been just as well. A playoff would have taken place on Monday, and that was when Mickelson's wife presented him with a daughter, so he may have had to leave the course to be with her in the hospital in any case. He said he had a beeper and was prepared to go ... Artist Jan Kasprzycki flew off to Pinehurst, N.C. where the Open was taking place. He'd been commissioned to paint a portrait of great golfing figures Robert Trent Jones Sr. and Jr. And when better to start than on Father's Day? ...
Benefiting Mother Russia
RETURNING to Hawaii for a benefit performance at the Academy of Arts Theater Friday night will be Russian-born pianist Alex Slobodyanik. He soloed with the Honolulu Symphony eight months ago and piano teacher Ernie Chang calls him "simply electrifying." He'll donate his recital honorarium and all proceeds will go to help create a carpenter's shop so kids in Ekaterinovka, Russia, can build and repair furniture for their own needs. For tickets call 737-5248 ...
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.