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Music man Jack de Mello
is going strong in Las Vegas

Ageless music man Jack de Mello sends word from Las Vegas that he is writing and recording music in a small digital studio that his son, Jon, the Mountain Apple Co. chief, designed for him. "It keeps me from hanging around street corners," Jack, 88, said. "Most of my stuff is production music for use by TV, radio and other commercial projects by production companies. As an octogenarian -- I'm really Portuguese -- it's quite a different departure from just sitting around behind an old eight ball thinking up games to play." Jack has not lost his sense of humor. Jon says dad's always sending him new songs he's written. During his heyday, Jack recorded LP classics by Nina Kealiiwahamana and Emma Veary, among others ...

Developer Stanford Carr, AIG's Robin Campaniano, Randy Hiraki of Commercial Plumbing and Army Capt. Kathleen Turner helped load 2,000 T-shirts on a truck that were sent to Afghanistan. The shirts will be worn by Hawaii-based soldiers in the first Afghanistan Great Aloha run Jan. 30. The men's businesses were instrumental in supplying the shirts. Carole Kai, cofounder of Hawaii's annual charity fund-raising Great Aloha Run, said Thursday that the T-Shirts arrived in Afghanistan Wednesday. Carole and husband Eddie Onouye, showbiz expert Frances Kirk, Ko Olina head golf pro Greg Nichols and retired Bankoh Prez Larry Johnson were in the packed crowd at Kahala California Pizza Kitchen Thursday ...

Birthday greetings go out to Butch, Roy and Justin

HPD Maj. Henry "Butch" Robinson, who has 42 years of service, more than any other police officer on the force, turns 65 Friday. Butch, HPD's legislative liaison, played football at Punahou, class of 1958. His son, Henry Jr., is also a police officer ... Retired Air Force Col. Roy Bright, one of the last surviving members of the 5th bomb Group of the 7th Air Force that was stationed at Hickam in World War II, celebrates his 90th birthday Tuesday. Roy was a navigator who flew about 50 combat missions. Originally from Minnesota, he came to Hawaii in April 1941 as a second lieutenant. He married local girl Dorothea Smith in 1944. They have three sons -- Bob, Bill and John ... Justin Yoshino, the "party master," marks his birthday next Saturday at the Waikiki Hyatt ...

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