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Hawaii
IT was the best Christmas show ever hosted by Jim Nabors at the Hawaii Theatre. He's never been in stronger voice, and his usual cast was first rate. Few people knew that Emma Veary Nabors put on a
spirited showwas mourning a death in her family the night before the opening, but she's of the old "show must go on" school and the consummate pro. Nabors and his all-pro producer/director Tom Hanson assembled a winning group of island folks, a true potpourri. I wish I knew the name of the little Asian boy who shared the stage with 20 or so young female hula dancers. When he played ukulele and sang a solo, the place went nuts. No knock on the girls, but all eyes in the house were on this youngster ...
STOPPING backstage to congratulate Nabors and his musical "neighbors" such as master marionette artist Phillip Huber, Karen Keawehawai'i and the underused Jimmy Borges, you couldn't help noticing a very familiar face in Nabors' dressing room. It was actress Ruth Buzzi, there to say "Hi." I'll always think of her as the old woman with the hairnet who knocked the elderly lecher, Arte Johnson, to the ground with her handbag, but she's now well known for her work on "Sesame Street." Buzzi and her hubby head back for L.A. today ... Also greeting Buzzi was producer Al Masini, an old friend of hers ...
Birthday boys
HAVANA Cabana owner Bryan Uy bid a happy 42nd birthday last week to "SS" as everyone calls his old pal, Sukamto Sia, but SS was scarcely in a partying mood. He's still under house arrest, albeit in his luxury Landmark apartment complex. Uy also lit up a pre Uy birthday cigar with August Busch IV, seen on Bud TV commercials, in the private room at Aaron's atop the Ala Moana. And at Uy's actual birthday party Saturday, held at his Nuuanu cigar salon, bar and restaurant, a bevy of beauties and some old pals gathered to wish him well ... Mayor Jeremy Harris even dropped in with wife Ramona to present the non-plussed Uy with a proclamation making it "Bryan Uy Day." Retired dentist Dr. Joe Young was on hand, looking mighty slim, and when I asked how he kept his weight down he deadpanned, "My wife doesn't cook too well." After she reads this, it won't get any better ...HONOLULU City Lights 2000 was the most colorful so far, and does everyone agree the City Hall grounds look great? Ken Irvine of the Department of Environmental Services invited the winner of a Kaahumanu School's 5th grade poster contest depicting the parade's theme, "Lei of Stars," to ride on his parade float. Young Stacia Ewaliko won the contest and had the time of her life in the parade ... We should warn you that the sports pages will soon be full of "recount" jokes since Tampa Bay plays Miami next Sunday ...
Courting the news audience
INTERESTING to note that when the Supreme Court met to address concerns of lawyers for both Presidential candidates Friday, KHNL was the only TV station in Hawaii to air live coverage via its network feed of the audio, along with video text from 8:30 to 10 a.m. ... Not only did "Hawaii's News Leader," KHON-TV, not carry a feed, it was the one Honolulu TV station not airing the historic Florida Supreme Court discussions of the Al Gore/George W. Bush arguments "live" a couple of weeks back. In one of those "life imitates art" scenarios, Channel 2 chose to air a syndicated court show in lieu of the real courtroom drama in Florida ...
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