Category: Updates

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FRED HONDA, HOTELIER, DIES AT 95

Fred Honda, veteran Hawaii hotelier who was general manager of the Halekulani Hotel, died Sept. 7 at Loveland, Colo. He was 95.

He was a popular fixture in the hospitality community here and known for his generosity and gentle manner.

Honda’s career began with the Sheraton Hotel, and he also was a prominent manager of the Oahu Country Club. He held positions at Amfac Hotels and Resorts and served as general manager of the Kapalua Bay Hotel on Maui.

Fred Honda

While at the Halekulani, he oversaw the hotel’s property renewal projects that included the Vera Wang Suite as well as SpaHalekulani, popular fixtures for the hotel’s upscale visitors. He retired from the Halekulani in 2005 and relocated to Loveland.

Fred met his wife Julia, at the time of the opening of the Sheraton Maui at Kaanapali, when he was the hotel’s controller. Julie worked at the front desk.

They were married on Oct. 8, 1965, on Maui, and they become a significant hotel industry team, relocating to several properties in such cities as Burlingame and San Francisco. The Hondas celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2015.

Julia and Fred Honda

He was quiet, generous and  genial; she was graceful, kind, and a self-styled socialite, and  they supported each other’s careers. He had the Halekulani and other properties earlier; she founded the Kona Coffee Festival and was its beacon for years.

A Celebration of Life event will be held at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 27 in Loveland.

Survivors include daughters Patti Hokulani Honda-Davis  and Lee Ann Doering (from Fred’s earlier marriage); adult son, Kyle Kalani Honda, of Honolulu; and two grandsons, Travis Kanekoa Davis and Garet Kealii Davis.

And that’s Show Biz…

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DELIMA DELIVERS DELIGHTFUL ‘KIKO’

Leave it to comedian Frank DeLima, who either has too much time or too little patience, who’s been monitoring how Hurricane Kiko has been prancing over the seas.

Thus, his latest parody has emerged.  From his new Las Vegas residency, he’s been monitoring the current windy/rainy/humid weather in our midst the past few days.Thus, his latest parody has emerged.  From his new Las Vegas residency, he’s been monitoring the current windy/rainy/humid weather in our midst the past few days.

So he put on his thinking cap to create his newest refrain, “Hurricane Kiko,” with his usual lingo, exploring the winds and erratic rain dancing and prancing in our midst. No hurricane, happily.

Frank DeLima

If the name of the current visiting weather visitor sounds familiar, it should be; weather officials have tapped the name Kiko and has been utilized it for 14 earlier cyclonic storms in the past.

The current visitor which has been threatening us in Hawaii this year had origins in the Eastern Pacific and swished its way to our zone in the Central Pacific. And happily, it moved north and away from the Hawaiian islands, so we’re no longer in jeopardy.

Kiko is neither Japanese nor Hawaiian, but qualifies as a hapa happening —  half Japanese, half Hawaiian. According to Wikipedia, Kiko in Japanese is a feminine name meaning “child of joy” or “happy child.”  In Hawaiian, there’s neutrality; kiko as a spot or speck, and has been tapped as a name for Hawaiian monk seal, so it’s a versatile monicker.

Back to DeLima: he’s transformed the tune, “Born on the Bayou,” which was an earlier Creedence Clearwater Revival hit, with an original swamp-rock effect. It’s wholly different from DeLima’s delightful and fun version.

DeLima’s anthem is a bouncy beaut; he laments that Kiko is not fun, a son of a gun, and with his multi-language skills, he even works in “ikimasho,” meaning let’s go in Japanese.

Further, David Kauahikaua, DeLima’s longtime partner and savior in prepping and fine-tuning these parodies, turns in a stellar instrumental blanket for this effort.

So “ikimasho,” let’s tune in to DeLima’s ditty, before Kiko sails too far away.

Can’t share the “Hurricane Kiko”  video here, since posting a video is a no-can-doer in this column. To view the video, visit my Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/wayne.harada.5

And that’s Show Biz…

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TRICK OR TREAT SEASON LOOMS

The season of witches and goblins looms.

Though Halloween is more than a month away, we’ve competed our project of producing lapel pins. Lots of ’em.

Which means folks on our mailing list are now beginning to receive mini-parcels of pins accentuated by images of ghouls, jack-o-lanterns, and oher icons of the bewitching season.

You’ll note, too, that the 2025 packaging is visually different — a sleeker format — with the pins snugly nestled in our usual celephane bag, without the crinkle of the past and minus a bow. This saves time, a bit of money and space. But not so much money; postal fees have spiraled; what was a $1.99 fee to mail a box of several pins a decade ago now is $6.00 (local) or $8.00 or more. The first mailing of 10 or 12 mini-boxes totaled $100. And subsequent mailings will include 80 to 85 boxes — and that’s just the postage!

Christmas, the jolliest of all seasons, could be the finale for distributing Wild Pins.

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LET’S HEAR IT FOR ‘SUNSET JAZZ’ GALS

“Let’s Hear It for the Girls,” featuring a bevy of female singers, is the theme of this year’s “Sunset Jazz,” slated on Sept. 14 at the Great Lawn of La Pietra, Hawaii School of Girls.

The stellar line up will feature Shari Lynn, event founder who is returning to the lineup of performers; the talent includes Ginai, Jeanette Trevias and Friends featuring Riya Davis, Sandy Tsukiyama and Arara de Vento, and Mary Gutzi.

Shari Lynn Acebedo

The prospects for a formidable evening, laced with a delectable menu of music, is guaranteed considering the mixed menu of jazz, favorites from the Great American Songbook, dance-friendly salsa, soulful and romantic ballads, and a cluster of Broadway melodies.

Doors open at 5 p.m. and music starts at 5:30 p.m., continuing well after the sun goes down.

Basic admission is $85 a person and includes a glass of wine and a dessert sampler. Food will be available for sale, but attendees may bring their picnic baskets and drinks.

Alternate options included table sponsorships and rolling admission tickets.

Details are available from Director of Enrollment Alaina Cunningham (808) 922-2744, ext. 106, or at admissions@lapietra.edu …
 

End of summer season causes drop in grosses

As schools reopened, signaling the end of the summer season, Broadway shows took a dip in the weekly gross meter. All the biggies took a glide, but at the of the week, “Hamilton” managed to move to No. 1 for the first time in weeks, one of only two shows in the coveted $2 million club. The other was “Wicked” at No. 2.

The Top 10:

1—”Hamilton,” $2.106 million,

2—”Wicked,” “$2.007 million,

3—”The Lion King,” $1.820 million,

4—”Mamma Mia!,” $1.785 million,

5—”Maybe Happy Ending,” $1.436 million,

6—”Death Becomes Her,” $1.331 million,

7—”Just in Time,” $1.276 million,

8—”MJ, the Musical,” $1.239 million,

9—”Oh, Mary!,” $1.174 million,

10—“Aladdin,” $1.160 million

The complete list of grosses, courtesy the Broadway League:

And that’s Show Biz…

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ZIPPY’S KAHALA PLANS RENOVATIONS

The Zippy’s at Kahala will be shutting down, likely by year’s end or early next year, for renovations.

The Kahala waitstaff will be diverted to other branches,  surely an inconvenience.

The closure, said one waitress, will last for about three months, which means us East Siders now may have to drive to the Makiki branch of Zippy’s for a sit-down meal and chat-chat. This one’s brighter and larger than the branch in-between Zippy’s offices on King Street and Washington Middle School.

Meanwhile, the rumors persist that Zippy’s Koko Marina take-out could be shuttered like the already closed dining room…

Red velvet ice cream

It may take me quite a spell, but I’m trying to order a different ice cream flavor at each visit to Hammond’s at the Koko Marina Center.

Latest joy: Red velvet cake, mixed with vanilla ice cream.

Always loved the red velvet dessert cake (not widely available these days), so naturally, found this choice perfect for a warm afternoon treat…

Bedbugs found at Ala Moana Center food court

Why is the Ala Moana Center food court closed, you ask?

A very good reason:  It’s shut down due to bed bug infiltration.

No reopening date yet, but they’d better thoroughly spray those antiquated seats and backboards…