Month: May 2025

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UP THERE IN THE SKIES, IT’S STITCH

Images of Stitch, from “Lilo and Stitch,” will fly Hawaiian now through summer.

Stich, the sometimes-naughty blue alien from Disney’s “Lilo and Stitch” film, is hitching a ride on Hawaiian Airlines’ plane, receiving aerial exposure, now through summer.

The first aircraft  with a Stitch image, is an Airbus A330, released earlier this week. It is the first of a trio of specially designed HAL planes depicting Stitch, whose image is highly visible on the exterior of the design, all part of a partnership with Disney, whose live-action, filmed-in-Hawaii  “Lilo and Stitch” film will be released May 23.

Next week, a second aircraft, an A331, will  be painted with another Stitch image, followed with a third Stitch on a Boeing 717 debuts next month.

The second Stitch plane will arrive next week, joining Hawaiian’s iconic Pualani on the tail.

Clearly, Stitch will be a vital companion for Pualani, the steadfast woman, depicted on the tail of all Hawaiian planes.

In announcing the Disney promotion with Stitch, Hawaiian – the state’s flagship carrier – referred in a media release to Stitch’s much-quoted notion that ‘ohana (Hawaiian for family) is important, so Hawaiian noted that the Stitch presence is one form of the spirit of aloha and hospitality in the friendly skies


“At Hawaiian Airlines, Hawai‘i is our home, and we consider our guests to be our ‘ohana,” said Alisa Onishi, director of brand and culture at Hawaiian Airlines. “Our hope is that all who visit our islands feel welcomed from the moment they step onboard, just as Lilo welcomed Stitch. We’re also excited to have Stitch be our new Travel Pono ambassador through an AR experience and as the star of our in-flight video, where he learns valuable lessons on how to be a mindful visitor.”

Further, Stitch’s visibility will be inside the cabin, too, interfering with the Travel Pono in-flight video, the focus of a search-for-Stitch game, the star in several in-flight video streaming of his past TV and movie credits.  And Disney being Disney, there will be Lilo and Stitch merch to order onboard select flights and online at LogoStore.HawaiianAirlines.com …

And that’s Show Biz…

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FOX AXES ‘RESCUE,’ LAST OF SERIES

Fox’s “Rescue: HI-Surf” has been canceled after 19 episodes filmed here.

And then there were none.

With Fox cancelling the first-responder drama, “Rescue: HI-Surf,” set in the North Shore of Oahu, there no longer will be a Hawaii-based, Hawaii-shot TV series.

The series survived a one-season run – a total of 19 episodes — which concluded in March. An order for a second season is not forthcoming.

Fox picked up the show, originally destined for HBO Max, which brought life to a sinking and shrinking number of Island drama and trauma. “Rescue” tracked the life and tempo of lifeguards, who saved lives while and providing thin story lines on land. It provided some local jobs for the film industry here, since the last of the procedurals – CBS’ “NCIS: Hawaii —ceased filming last year.

Ariellle Kebbel

The “Rescue” squad featured Arielle Kebbel, Adam Demos, Robbie Magasiva, Kekoa Kekumano, Alex Aiono and Zoe Cipres. Matt Kester created the series, filmed in the famous rough waters often described as one of the world’s most treacherous turf, also served as an executive producer alongside co-showrunners John Wells and Daniel Nathanson…

Clooney is the first $4 million winner!

George Clooney

By, George, he’s done it again. George Clooney, in his Broadway debut with the drama, “Good Night, and Good Luck,” keeps breaking his (and his show’s) record again!

The show has logged an unprecedent $4 million at the box office, for the week ending May 4.

The Top 10:

1—”Good Night, and Good Luck,” $4.000 million

 2—”Othello,” $3.065 million

 3—“”Glengarry Glen Ross,” $2.336 million

4— Wicked,” $2.232 million

5—”The Lion King,” $1.999 million

6—”Hamilton,” $1.674 million

 7—”The Picture of Dorian Gray, $1.344 million

 8—”Aladdin,” $1.283 million

9—”MJ the Musical,” $1.227 million

10—”Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” $1.178 million

The entire list, courtesy the Broadway League:

And that’s Show Biz…

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JASMINE AT BLUE NOTE BREAKFAST

KSSK Radio will stage a Mother’s Day Morning Show, at 9 a.m.  Saturday (May 10) at Blue Note Hawaii at the Outrigger Waikiki resort.

The Perry & The Posse event will feature Jasmine Trias, who placed third in the third season  of “American Idol” back in 2004. Trias, who was a marquee star during her campaign to the top, is making her Blue Note debut.

Jasmine Trias, with her trademark plumeria blossom , was a marquee fave during her “American Idol” quest. She wound up in third place, and will share stories at Saturday’s KSSK Radio event.

The breakfast show, hosted by Michael W. Perry, will mix radio chit-chat with music and comedy, with in-attendance mothers celebrating Mother’s Day one day earlier (May 11) in the spotlight, too.

The program will air live on KSSK FM and AM with a roster of guest artists, including Henry Kapono, the Hawaiian Style Band with core members Bryan Kessler, Wade Cambern, and Robi Kahakalau,  comedian Andy Bumatai, Irie Love, Mindy Smokestack and Ryan Hooley.

Trias, a 17-year-old Maryknoll High School senior while seeking the “Idol” trophy, was both an early favorite and then a dubious contender, seesawing through the weekly competition. She was Hawaii’s sweetheart for much of her tenure, with island fans watching religiously and casting votes for  Trias as she weathered her rise and fall, from top of the bunch to the cellar, in a mix of exhilaration and depression.

You’d recognize Trias for the plumeria blossom regularly tucked behind her right ear; it was her on-air trademark.

 “I’m trying to make it fun here on out,” she told me in an interview as the tension was building.

As it finally turned out, Trias was third, Diana DeGardo was second, and Fantasia Barrino finished first. And curiously, this was the year that Jennifer Hudson was a competitor and placed 7th–but is the only Idol wannabe to join the elitist EGOT honoree. Hmmmm….

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Perry and The Posse Mother’s Day Morning Show

Who: Jasmine Trias, with Henry Kapono, the Hawaiian Style Band, Andy Bumatai, Irie Love, Mindy Smokestack and Ryan Hooley; also, with KSSK’s Michael W. Perry, Karen Keawehawaii and Mandy Suganuma

When: 9 a.m. Saturday (May 10); doors open at 8 a.m. for breakfast and beverage service

Where: Blue Note Hawaii at the Outrigger Waikiki resort

Tickets: $125, premium seating; $99, loge seating; $89, bar area

Tickets: www.bluenotehawaii.com or (808) 777-4890

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Andy, Augie salute moms, too

Woooo hoooo, comics Andy Bumatai and Augie T will be back at Blue Note Hawaii at the Outrigger Waikiki resort.

Augie T, left, and Andy Bumata are titans of island comedy; they’ll do a Mother’s Day show, too.

One missing ingredient: Frank DeLima, who relocated to Las Vegas. Actually, he would have been a solo attraction, if he still lived here.

Not to worry, though, Andy and Augie are  combining their bag of gags to make moms laugh at a Mother’s Day event at 1 p.m. Mother’s Day (May 11).

Visitors who don’t “speak” pidgin might not understand the lingo, but not to worry again: the comics may haves good-natured fun with visitors…

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Mother’s Day with Andy Bumatai and Augie T

What: A Sunday brunch show with the pair of titans of laughter

When: 1 p..m. Sunday (May 11); doors open at 11 a.m.

Where: Blue Note Hawaii  at the Outrigger Waikiki resort

Tickets: $45, premium seating; $35, loge seating bar area, at www.bluenotehawaii.com or (808) 777-4890.

And that’s Show Biz…

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ROBERT GOING BEYOND THE REEF

Lei Day is not quite over for Robert Cazimero, Hawaiʻi’s beloved Hawaiian song and dance luminary. Following his  glorious May Day concert May 1 at the Bishop Museum, the Merrie Monarch Festival-winning kumu hula, singer, songwriter, and entertainer will next stage his brand of Hawaiian artistry at 7 p.m. May 17 at Kahilu  Theatre in Waimea on the Big Island.

Next stops for Robert Cazimero: Big Island and Japan.

Cazimero , kumu hula of Halau Na Kamalei O Lililehua, is in the midst celebrating his 50th anniversary of his hula instruction and performances. And sharing his music beyond the reef is a wonderful gift for fans.

The Big Isle show will be his 39th annual appearance at the Kahilu venue, a tradition anticipated by area residents and folks from Kailua-Kona. Tickets are $40 and $70 at https://kahilu.org/events/robert-cazimero/#checkdates

But Keauhou, the trio comprised of Kamehameha School classmates Zachary Lum, Nicolas Lum and  Kahanuola Solatorio, won’t be Big Island-bound, as s erroneously tated in an earlier version of this column. “It’s my guys, BOB’S BOYS that will band with me. Richard, Keala and Kaipo. I will join Keaauhou as their backup in Tokyo.”

Keauhou is a 19-time Na Hoku Hanohano Award-winning group that has emerged as Cazimero’s regular mele and hula group, providing vibrant support in his major Hawaiian shows. The Lum brothers also are members of Na Kamalei. But they have their own gigs, too.

Cazimero is expected to feature mele, storytelling and both ‘auana and kahiko hula. Obviously, the traveling cast will be downsized.

Cazimero will matdh up with Keauho in Japan, for a May 24 performance at Showa Joshi Daigaku, Hitomi Kinen Kodo. So, the aloha spirit and the Hawaiian vibes will make Nippon hula enthusiasts happy…

Electra Gailas dies at 103

Sorry to report the death of veteran actress Electra Gailas on May 3. She was born in Portland OR and was  age 103.

Electra Gailas, on “Five-O.”

 Gailas, formerly married to Dick Fair, was a veteran TV and stage actress, who appeared in seven episodes of the Jack Lord “Hawaii Five-0,” in the 1970s, and also  in “Fantasy Island.”

As a couple, Electra and Dick were notable for their performance in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf,” directed by the late Dave Donnelly, the columnist, at the Oumansky Magic Ring Theatre, operated by Alexander and Peggy Oumansky,  at the now-gone Terrace Lanai at the Hilton. The Oumanskys staged selective theater productions on weekends in the 1960s and ‘70s.

Electra hadn’t done theater for a while. She lived in Kailua with daughter Dietra, but  I hadn’t seen her since she was in her late 90s. She was generous and cheerful whenever I saw her or chatted on the phone, and she always  baked a Greek-style dessert bread on my birthday. If she was traveling, she’d deliver the goodie belatedly; she would insist on delivering the treat to my home or we’d meet up at sites like Costco. That’s the kind of soul she was…genuinely special. Prayers and condolences to her ‘ohana…

And that’s Show Biz…