While watching Angie Harmon’s “Buried in Barstow” on Lifetime the other eve, I recognized the actor in a supporting role, Kristopher Polaha. Harmon, formerly of “Rizzoli and Isles,” plays Hazel King, the owner of a diner café, where Pohala’s character, Elliot, chows, and he’s an unemployed patron who becomes a hired hand washing dishes to pay for his meals.
Anyway, if his name sounds Hawaiian, and many folks assumed he’s local — but he’s not. He’s Czech by birth.
Kristoffer Polaha
I remember Polaha when he starred in 2004’s primetime soap opera dubbed “North Shore.” Yep, he’s spent time here in the midst of the fictional Grand Waimea Hotel and Resort, now the Turtle Bay Resort, and one of his three sons was born in Hawaii.
A second season for “Buried” is likely.
Polaha earlier appeared in “Wonder Woman” and did a “Hawaii Five-0” segment while living here.
He’s seen as Wyatt Huntley in this weekend’s dinosaur thriller, “Jurassic World: Dominion,” which opened Friday (June 10).
Finally, Hallmark regulars might remember Pohala, too, since he’s frequently in the stream of glam girls and studly guys – seven films and counting. …
Chef Hazama on Food Network show
Colin Hazama
Did you catch chef Colin Hazama, formerly of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, on the Food Network’s “Alex Vs. World” last week? Hazama lost his job in the kitchen of the Pink Palace, due to the pandemic, but his impressive appearance didn’t make the cut, so there won’t be another Hawaii chef during the run of the show, which is fueled by competing chefs from each of the 50 states. He’s back at his pop-up C4 operations, where he’s offering comfort food embracing local ingredients representing his island roots. …
Broadway grosses, week ending June 5
“The Music Man” continues to top the weekly Broadway gross charts, a testament to the powerful box office attraction to Hugh Jackman, in the titular role.
The rundown, courtesy The Broadway League:
Show Name
GrossGross
TotalAttn
Capacity
%Capacity
A STRANGE LOOP
$685,772.13
6,520
7,296
89.36%
ALADDIN
$1,188,639.17
13,207
13,816
95.59%
AMERICAN BUFFALO
$433,548.80
4,413
6,008
73.45%
BEETLEJUICE
$1,019,501.50
8,894
12,816
69.40%
CHICAGO
$763,452.49
7,798
8,640
90.25%
COME FROM AWAY
$461,759.50
5,326
8,368
63.65%
COMPANY
$582,979.15
5,486
8,368
65.56%
DEAR EVAN HANSEN
$508,454.95
5,473
7,872
69.52%
FOR COLORED GIRLS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED SUICIDE / WHEN THE RAINBOW IS ENUF
$300,666.34
4,354
6,184
70.41%
FUNNY GIRL
$1,178,026.75
8,554
9,752
87.72%
GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTRY
$308,134.24
3,544
6,384
55.51%
HADESTOWN
$846,938.85
7,146
7,344
97.30%
HAMILTON
$2,191,718.00
10,591
10,592
99.99%
HANGMEN
$257,198.56
2,796
6,416
43.58%
HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD
$1,331,192.30
11,382
12,976
87.72%
HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE
$160,548.00
3,348
4,459
75.08%
MACBETH
$995,270.20
6,670
8,408
79.33%
MJ THE MUSICAL
$1,402,897.40
10,509
11,096
94.71%
MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL
$1,196,718.80
9,583
10,400
92.14%
PARADISE SQUARE
$229,336.70
4,599
7,856
58.54%
PLAZA SUITE
$1,576,899.55
7,687
7,800
98.55%
POTUS: OR, BEHIND EVERY GREAT DUMBASS ARE SEVEN WOMEN TRYING TO KEEP HIM ALIVE
The Tony Awards, when Broadway honors its best, will be held this Sunday, in a two-part programming sked, the first on the Paramount network at 1 p.m. Hawaii time, the second in prime time at 2 p.m. via CBS and originating from Radio City Music Hall.
Unlike the Oscars, when audiences and voters can watch movies live or streamed, the Tonys are a notable New York tradition. You can’t see a new or revived musical or play, unless you see ‘em in a Broadway theater. And since the pandemic has altered the going-out-to-be-entertained element, one wonders how many voters actually attended a show to cast their votes.
For non-theatergoers, the Broadway A-list may not be familiar. So stars as presenters or luminaries as performers may not be familiar to the stay-at-homers. Heck, I’ve not been to Broadway since the summer of 2019, and haven’t been able to give my regards to Broadway, to coin the familiar phase. Hope to go soon, but it likely will be later.
The galaxy this year will include the known, the unknown, and the on-the-way-uppers.
The Tony Award
Glimpse at this rundown of bold face names, and see if you recognize the talents. Some are movie stars or recording acts, so your memory bell might jingle. One island star, who has earned a Tony, will be aboard, as a presenter; see if you can pick her out. A former Islander who now is a producer, has a nominated production, but an actor, not the musical , is a contender. Know who the local dude is and which production is his?
The lineup of “names” this year, in alphabetical order: Utkarsh Ambudkar, Skylar Astin, Zach Braff, Danielle Brooks, Danny Burstein, Len Cariou, RuPaul Charles, Jessica Chastain, Lilli Cooper, Bryan Cranston, Wilson Cruz.
Also, Colman Domingo, Anthony Edwards, Cynthia Erivo, Raúl Esparza, Laurence Fishburne, Andrew Garfield, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Tony Goldwyn, David Alan Grier, Vanessa Hudgens, Jennifer Hudson, Paris Jackson, Prince Jackson, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Samuel L Jackson, Nathan Lane, Telly Leung, Judith Light, Josh Lucas.
Further, Gaten Matarazzo, Ruthie Ann Miles, Patina Miller, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Bebe Neuwirth, Kelli O’Hara, Sarah Paulson, Bernadette Peters, Jeremy Pope, Billy Porter, Chita Rivera, Tony Shalhoub, Phillipa Soo, Sarah Silverman, George Takei, Aaron Tveit, Adrienne Warren, Patrick Wilson, and Bowen Yang.
The first show, hosted by Darren Criss and Julianne Hough, starts at 1 p.m., with coverage streamed on Paramount Plus, sister station of CBS.
The parade of musical and drama actors, both in leading and featured roles from nominated shows such as “Music Man,” “Plaza Suite,” “Take Me Out,” “A Strange Loop,” “How I Learned to Drive,” “Funny Girl,” “MJ: The Musical,” “Company,” “Six” and “POTUS,” will be highlights in a three-hour presentation starting at 2 p.m. on CBS. Ariana DeBose, an Oscar winning actress from “West Side Story,” will host the main spectacle.
Ruthie Ann Miles
The Hawaii presence.: The previous Hawaii Tony winner is Ruthie Ann Miles, who earned her statuette as a featured musical actress in “The King and I” in 2015; she is a presenter. The producer whose “Mrs. Doubtfire” is a nominee this year, is Kevin McCollum, who also is a previous multi-Tony winner for such shows as “Rent” and “Avenue Q.” …
And the nominees are…
The complete list of the 2022 Tony nominees might be helpful, if you’re tuning in the show:
If you spot a temporary yellow street sign which says “DKMD,” with arrows pointing left or right, it’s the first clue that Season 2 filming has begun for Disney+’s Hawaii-based “Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.” series, starring Peyton Elizabeth Lee, as the minor who has a major youth presence as a licensed doctor at a hospital.
Peyton Elizabeth Lee
About the tell-tale directional sign: DK stands for Doogie Kamealoha, MD is for medical doctor. The code name, thus, is DKMD, and if you spot it somewhere in your community, that’s an indication that shooting is under way nearby. Follow the arrows.
The first evidence of the sign appearance was in May in Waimanalo, where the TV home of Lahela “Doogie” Kamealoha lives, the teen who leads two lives: as a teen with peer needs, as an MD who can perform surgery. It’s a wholly Disneyesque project, for sure, with meaningful and plenty ‘ohana rituals. ‘Ohana, of course, means family, which was the core of Stitch, in Disney’s earlier Hawaii-set “Lilo and Stitch” animated series and films.
Like the sophomore first season, “Doogie” will film 10 episodes with production expected to continue till mid-August, or thereabout. Season 2 episodes will launch in the fall.
The series, created by Kourtney Kang (who also is an executive producer), is a reboot of NeilPatrick Harris’ “Doogie Houser, M.D.” The island version has a credible cast, including Jason Scott Lee, Kathleen Rose Perkins, Matthew Sato, Wes Tian,Emma Meisel, Mapuana Makie, Jeffrey. Bowyer Chapman, Ronnie Chieng, and Alex Aiono. Expect a few additions this year….
Around town…
Lacey Chabert
Lacey Chabert, who played Little Cossette in “Les Miserables” on Broadway, before becoming part of the cast of “Party of Five” on Fox, has become a hugely popular Hallmark star with nearly 30 projects thus far. She’s been in town filming “Groundswell,” under the Crown MediaFamily Network banner (the company produces the Hallmark projects, too).
And local singer Anuhea plays herself – as a “celebrity host,” — in a segment involving a cooking competition. …
Then there’s Blake Vanamserfoorth —formerly from Hawaii but now a Venice Beach resident who launched his own clothing brand — will be seen in “Vanjie: 24 Hours of Love,” airing beginning June 9 via WOW Presents Plus, a streaming service. The reality dating show, reeling back the curtain on gay romance quests, is produced by the makers of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
Vanamserfoorth is a contestant on the series, which will feature conversations about sex positivity and other topics within the gay dating community.
In his pre-airing notes, Vanamserfoorth indicates his intent is to find a date who makes him laugh and isn’t afraid to voice his opinion, a companion who loves to dress up and go to parties. Game on! …
Lissen up, folks. Lee A. Tonouchi, aka Da Pidgin Guerilla, goin offa one course in pidgin English, one language you kno if you local.
It’s free, and will be online, so gotta get up early and tune in.
If you get experience, good for you. You can learn how fo write one play, you know da kine script stuff for one theata.
Even if you dunno, you can sign up and learn.
As bruddah Tonouchi wen say in hiz online instructions:
Lee Tonouchi
“No mo’ limit on class size.
“Can be any age. Although I probably recommend da person be at least high school, but if one younger person like chance ’em, das cool too.
“Knowing how for write Pidgin stay optional.
“You no need be from Hawai’i for sign up.”
So mebbe you dunno Pidgin and feel lef out. Now’s your chance to try learn. Might not happen overnight, but dis can be one good summer project to learn Guerilla style. Not to be confused with Gorilla, but Guerilla. Means some rules might be broken, in case you dunno how fo write with propah technique. As long as you have hidden talent to tell one story, Pidg goin try help you shape ‘um into one play, or maybe jus’ one skit if you little bit slower. But no pressure, you can join and try write, but you gotta share what you write and read aloud. Goin get feedback, from the Pidg and udda fellas tuning in, but no need be shame of make A. The point is, dis can be da starting point.
Or, as Pidg sez, dis goin’ be Miyagi-style, da way Pat Morita wen teach karate, by inventing wax-on, wax-off teaching, where main ting you try, and no give up.-
The Pidgin Guerilla is da real deal. He stay win awards for his Pidgin plays, which wuz performed in theaters like Kumu Kahua and Honolulu Theatre for Youth, where dey staged da kine funny Pidgin stuff.
Da class will be presented via six consecutive Sunday mornings, 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. June 5, 12, 19, 26, July 3 and 10 — via Zoom.
Remembah, dis is freebie, so if you sign up, make sure you show up. If you like take one chance, no waste time, cuz you snooz, you lose… so fill out dis FORM.
It’s official: Summer officially has begun, with all the right elements: a stellar story, hypnotic air flights and fights, and the key ingredient named Tom Cruise.
The fact that “Top Gun: Maverick” is a sequel of a film from 30 years ago, when Cruise first took on Pete “Maverick” Mitchell … somewhat astonishing. And then the pandemic stalled the release of “Maverick” for nearly three years … something frustrating.
But the delay heightened anticipation and expanded expectation and the Memorial Day weekend turned out to be the perfect moment to welcome “Top Gun,” which raked in a $100 million three-day gross, which, if international box office is added, meant a $248 million global tally. With today’s Memorial Day (May 30) holiday, another $50 million could be added to the explosive total.
Tom Cruise in “Top Gun: Maverick”
The alignment of the delay, the performance of Cruise as the cocky but dependable fighter pilot-turned-mentor, and the public’s eagerness to see the aerial dynamics in movie theaters (which has struggled to fill seats till now) meant the stars were aligned in filmland.
Wow. The plot was somewhat predictable, but there are surprises: generals make mistakes, mavericks take chances, a few original characters return, old wounds are resolved, a romantic bond is sealed, and Lady Gaga seals the deal with her end-titles ballad, “Hold My Hand,” uplifting the soundtrack as folks exit the theaters. Gage’s composing collaborators are Harold Faltermeyer and Hans Zimmer. Clearly, it’s headed to No. 1 and will be an Oscar song contender next year.
It’s fun to know and hear the “handles” of the military mights: Maverick, Iceman, Rooster, Cyclone, Fanboy, Hangman, Coyote, etc.
And here’s a rarity just might increase: Cruise welcomes fans prior to the film, in a tack-on video akin to a handshake (Benedict Cumberbatch did a similar clip prior to his “Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness “sequel earlier). Could more actors and films adopt this policy? …
Elton John doc due on Disney+
A documentary on superstar Elton John is due from Disney Original Documentary and Disney+.
Deadline reports that the doc, entitled “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road: The Final Elton John Performances and the Years. That Made His Legend.”
Elton John will be featured in a new documentary with a mouthful of a title.
Yes, it’s a mouthful. But John has been a musical figure not wholly represented in films. The thrust of the doc will be John’s “Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour,” when he spent months on tour, culminating in a November gig at Dodger Stadium that will cap his final North American show.
Unseen footage of his 50-year global success will provide essential videos of John earlier in his career, when his shows included lavish costumes and spectacles that reflected his charismatic flamboyancy.
“Rocketman,” the 2019 biography with Taron Egerton as John, explored his life but lacked theatrical vigor since the performance factor fell short; there was no soaring climactic fervor like the “We Will Rock You” finale with Rami Malek as Freddy Mercury in the Queen biopic, “Bohemian Rhapsody.” …
