Hawaii
Queen Mum remembered
for her gin-induced humorAFTER the "Today" show aired the story of surfer Hoku Aki losing his lower leg to a shark and having his life saved by tourists, my first thought was it was nice that a heart-warming story of rescue and determination got national attention. Then came the realization that some people might cancel vacation plans here, thinking shark attacks are common ... The show also had a great line from the late Queen Mum, who English friends assure me had a wonderful sense of humor, perhaps aided by the quart of Gordon's Gin she consumed daily. Asked if she feared helicopter travel, the Queen Mum said, "Choppers have changed our lives. Much in the way one changed the life of Anne Boleyn." (You may recall she had her head chopped off on the orders of Henry VIII.) As for the gin consumption, the theory was that there'd be no need for embalming ...
KGMB'S Nick Carter jogs my memory of Milton Berle by reminding that Uncle Miltie did visit Hawaii in the late '60s and sat for an interview by Bill Verdier at KHET when Carter was a producer/director. After the interview, Berle left behind the remains of his stogie, so staffers had it mounted and labeled "Uncle Miltie's Cigar." Carter reports he kept it for years until it disintegrated from old age ... Actors Peter Kamealoha Clark and Annie MacLachlan are in rehearsal with director Joyce Maltby for a staged reading of the late Gardner McKay's play, "Sea Marks," to be presented May 20 & 21 at Manoa Valley Theatre. The play, set in the west of Ireland, has received good notices from mainland showings, most notably from Walter Kerr in the NY Times and from New York Magazine's John Simon, famous for liking nothing, who called it "Utterly winning." ...
Off the wall art
ACTRESS Demi Moore apparently has a catholicity of taste. She slipped into the Nohea Gallery at the Kahala Mandarin where she was staying last week and bought an original artwork by Keith Bramer that can best be described as a vintage ukulele and computer circuit board ... HGTV's "Modern Masters" is filming six of Maui's most prolific artists for a show featuring home design. Denise Phillips' 6-foot ceramic vessels were the catalyst for the show. Fellow Maui artists joining her on six feature segments are koa furniture maker Tom Calhoun, fused-glass artists Diane & Ray Pizzo, custom woodworker Mats Fogelvik, copper-and-teak gatemaker Larry Padilla and wood-bowl turner Derek Bencomo. HGTV claims an audience of 70 million world-wide ...
Ultimata
IT looks something like the fur capital of the Pacific at the Ultimate You these days. Owner Kelsey Sears recently accepted a sporty Gucci lynx coat and to verify its value, called a furrier friend in New York. His reply was simple -- he said he'd give his eye teeth to have those pelts in his shop. No dice ... Former isle girl Marie Helvin, who began modeling in London and ended up marrying and then divorcing her chief photographer, David Bailey, was quoted in the Sunday Times of London. Michael Winner recalled that when Planet Hollywood opened in London, Helvin told him, "It's the first party I've ever been to which was a nine on the way in and a two once you got inside."
Dave Donnelly has been writing on happenings
in Hawaii for the Star-Bulletin since 1968.
The Week That Was recalls items from Dave's 30 years of columns.Contact Dave by e-mail: ddonnelly@starbulletin.com