Hawaii
LEAVE it to my San Francisco buddy Bob Mulcrevy, former owner of the rowdiest and best Irish pub in the Marina, Mulcrevy's, to come up with the following holiday greeting. His card quotes the irrepressible Benny Hill: "Roses are reddish/Violets are bluish/If not for Christmas/We'd all be Jewish." ... Hard to believe that Sports Illustrated, in naming the top 50 athletes of the century from each state, could leave Merriment in
many formsHawaii's Dr. Peter George, the Olympic gold medalist, from the state's top 10 ... Margery Bronster so enjoyed the "Bronster Bash" song about her downfall as Attorney General in the Hawaii Bar Association's 100th anniversary show, "Law and Disorder," that she requested a copy of the lyrics. (Either that, or she's got lawsuit on her mind.) ...
BYE BYE Blockbuster: I rarely rent a movie, but the other day went into Blockbuster on Kapiolani since I'd signed up there some time ago, and while I still have no idea why "signing up" was necessary to spend your money, that's where I returned. Alas, since I hadn't rented a film in the past six months, the salesclerk said, "You'll have to fill out a new application." Wrongo! If my credit card is good all over town, I don't understand why a film rental store should be any different. I've rented my last from them ... And while billionaire Sam Walton is acknowledged to be a brilliant marketer, I'm determined never to set foot into one of his stores as long as that insipid commercial featuring three women going Christmas shopping there ("Three Amigos go to Wal-Mart") runs every five minutes or so on television ...
Different strokes
WHILE a great many critics have lauded Jim Carrey and his impersonation of Andy Kaufman in "Man on the Moon," the NBC "Today Show" critic, Gene Shalit, demurred. In spades. He called it "the worst movie of the year and the next 10 years." ... And speaking of different strokes, have you noticed that Robert Cazimero has gone blonde? His brother, Roland, meanwhile, sports jet black hair to go with his gray beard. Only their hairdresser knows for sure ... Island Rhythm 98.5 plays isle-style music, so it was understandable that they changed the call letters from KKLV to KDNN. Think of it as "K-den," the pidgin variant of "okay, then." ...SO I was reading Nadine Kam's restaurant review of the new Diamond Head Grill in the Star-Bulletin yesterday, and came across the intriguing line: "There are some who believe there's no better oyster than one served nude." My reaction was immediate: It depends on who's serving it! ... You know Christmas is right around the corner when you see the divers feeding the fish in the three-story high aquarium at the Pacific Beach Hotel's Oceanarium Restaurant all wearing red Santa hats underwater. They also convey personal messages free of charge on underwater signs -- things like "Happy Birthday" or "Happy Anniversary" to specific diners ...
Not so Merry Christmas
WHEN I heard about the deaths of three children and three firemen in a house fire in my old hometown of Keokuk, Iowa, yesterday, I checked on the Internet for details. Sadly, I learned that one of the firemen who gave his life trying to rescue the kids was Nate Tuck, who was 39. I realized what a small town Keokuk is, and what a small world we live in. Nate's mom was the girl I took to the senior prom way back when ... Hope you have a joyful Christmas, with peace in the year 2000 and beyond ...
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: ddonnelly@starbulletin.com