Don’t know about you, but the term “delta” has been redefined to be the demonic variant of the coronavirus pandemic.
Not too long ago, betcha most folks linked Delta solely to the name of the airline. Employees there must now cringe whenever “delta variant” is uttered daily on TV or part the newspaper’s coverage of the health crisis.
Linguists know, thanks to the Greeks, that delta is the fourth letter of the alphabet. Military folks regularly utter the term, defining companies: alpha, beta, charley, delta.
Personally, when I heard the delta term in current times, I linked it to the late Helen Reddy’s monster hit from the past “Delta Dawn.”
I still can envision her voice, delivering the number.
Remember?
“Delta Dawn, what’s that flower you have on? Could it be a faded rose from days gone by? And did I hear you say he was a-meetin’ you here today To take you to his mansion in the sky.”
This tune was written by Alex Harvey and Larry Collins, not Reddy. Its meaning deals with a complicated memory the writer Harvey had of his mother.
Indeed, delta has dawned with new relevance and power in life, and no one’s singing about it.
Can I ask someone in radioland to periodically play “Delta Dawn,” so we can reflect and remember simpler and safer times devoid of the pandemic?
Social media has been buzzing with reflection and condolences following the death of David John “DJ” Pratt, the lead guitarist for the music group Kalapana, who died Tuesday afternoon at his home. He was 66 and was found unresponsive.
He was a founding member of Kalapana and has become the fourth to die, following the earlier passing of Mackey Feary in 1999, Alvin Fejarang in 2017 and Malani Bilyeu in 2018.
Pratt, Feary, Bilyeu and Kirk Thompson were the original members of the band, formed in 1974. Kalapana presided alongside Cecilio and Kapono in a friendly competition to emerge as prolific and grounding local boys who wrote original hit songs and performed in Waikiki clubs in the heyday of the 1970s to the ‘90s. It was the glory days of recording, concertizing, and touring shows here and elsewhere.
DJ Pratt
Reactions to Pratt’s death touched the nerves of fellow musicians.
Michael Paulo, a saxophonist who played with Kalapana in recent years. mourned the passing of his pal. “Once more I lost a part of my musical soul,” said Paulo. “I never forget always being in awe of him as a young musician, when I first joined Kalapana. His playing live on ‘Can You See Him’ was powerful and amazing; I can see him still with his long hair flowing down his face and sweat running off his brow, while ripping it up on that acoustic guitar 45 years ago. I was so privileged to be part of those performances. Rest in peace, my friend. You were one of Hawaii’s greatest guitarists.”
Glenn Medeiros, once a Hawaii act recording and performing pop ballads nationally and now the principal of Saint Louis School, recalled his admiration of a musical peer. “God has graced me with the incredible opportunity to travel to over 30 countries in my life,” Medeiros said. “During that time, I met so many talented musicians. I’ve always felt that Hawaii is the home of some of the greatest guitarists in the world. I believe we lost the greatest of them. I never had the chance to work with him closely but I’ve always admired him from afar.”
John Valentine, for decades a notable guitarist in Waikiki and still on the scene, had a iconic visual response: an emoji of a broken heart.
Kamasami Kong, a former Hawaii deejay who’s now a leading media resource in Japan, had a succinct reaction: “I feel numb.”
Beyond his recording and performing career, Pratt was a popular recording and sound engineer for TV projects and an audio sound engineer for live and video sessions where his craft would be mostly heard and seen through the lens of other artists.
Pratt also was an honoree when Kalapana was tapped as a Na Hoku Hanohano Lifetime Achievement Award winner, presented by the Hawaii Academy of Recording Arts.
In recent years, Kalapana members featured Gaylord Holomalia, Kenji Sano, Maurice Bega, Randy Aloya and Michael Paulo.
Further details of his survivors or information of funeral plans have not been made public. …
The ill crowd\
Rene Paulo
Time for sending prayers and get-well wishes to:
Rene Paulo, the renowned poet of the piano who used to regularly perform with his singing wife Akemi Paulo. He has been diagnosed with COVID-19, according to a Facebook posting by son Michael Paulo. Rene and Akemi relocated to California several months ago; a visit for a medical treatment apparently is how he caught the virus. Update: According to Michael, his dad is set to be released from the hospital Thursday (Sept. 9).
Joe “Pekelo” Recca, the former singer and show emcee for Tihati Productions spectacles in Waikiki. His longtime battle with throat cancer has worsened; he is hospitalized now.
David “Kawika” Talisman, a private investigator with a history of music, composing and script-writing for TV shows. He also has been in the hospital to tend to issues with his prostate cancer.
On the road again
Local girl Tricia Marciel is prepping to spend the next few months at sea, joining an inaugural cast of performers aboard the Enchanted Princess, staging shows for the cruise’s maiden launching soon in the Caribbean. “After nearly two years of ups and down,” she said on Facebook about the pandemic and her new venture, “it’s going to be somewhat amazing to do what I love, feel purposeful and in my very small manini way, help a company and an industry that’s been very good to my recovery.” …
And in New York, Matt Yee brings his outrageous adult revue to the Triad Theatre, at 10 p.m. Friday (Sept. 10). If you’re in the vicinity, proof of vaccination is a requisite. Yee is known for his shows aboard the Atlantis and Royal Caribbean cruises in the recent past. …
Are shopping carts still safe during the current surge of the pandemic virus?
A year ago, food markets like Foodland Farms and Safeway used to dutifully sanitize shopping carts and baskets for customer use. Nowaways, Foodland seems to be continuing the safety measure, Safeway not so much.
Shopping cart: safe?
Since the viral spreads through eyes, noses and mouths, maybe the potential germs on a cart or basket handle no longer is a big deal.
Shopping basket: sanitized?
After all, we’ve all been shopping at Costco, CVS Longs, Walgreen’s, Marukai and Don Quiote, and unless I’ve visited during non-spray-and-sanitize hours, I’ve never seen or experienced any sense of cart maintenance at these stores. Instead, wipes and lotions are commonly available inside these merchants for self-sanitizing.
What’s your take on this cart issue — do you wipe down your own, wear gloves, wash hands when you’re home … or just aren’t a worry-wart anymore?
Daniel Dae Kim, former co-star of two island-filmed series, ABC’s “Lost” and CBS’ “Hawaii Five-0,” is this year’s Everywhere Man.
Man, he shows up in a myriad of shows, always delivering solid performances. He’s also produces shows via his 3AD production company.
There’s a recent mission-to-Mars adventure, “Stranger Aboard,” streaming on Netflix. Kim is one of four actors – the others are Anna Kendrick, Toni Collette and Shamier Anderson – in this a sci-fi outer space thriller written and directed by Joe Penna, about an unexpected stranger on board a flight mission lasting two years. Kim, Kendrick and Collette are the astronauts; Anderson is the mysterious hijacker, initially unconscious, who wants to return home but can’t.
Kim, as an astronaut in “Stranger Aboard,” a sci-fi thriller airing on Netflix.
He’s starring as Cassian Shin, in NBC’s medical series “New Amsterdam,” kicking off a new season Sept. 21.
This past summer, he was heard but not seen, providing the voice of Chief Benja in Disney’s animated “Raya and the Last Dragon.”
Wearing his producer’s hat, Kim is a producer of ABC’s “The Good Doctor.” He also was on camera when he portrayed Dr. Jackson Han in the series’ second season; the show’s fifth season launches Sept. 27.
Kim also was a medic, Dr. Michael Onitsuka, in “Blast Beat,” a modest project which premiered in the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. And in an Asian rom-com, “Always Be My Maybe,” he played Brandon Choi.
He’s completed a number of earlier shows – including playing the King in “The King and I” on Broadway –and also has voiced a couple of video games. Off camera, he also has emerged as a leading voice of supporting diversity in films and TV and is an outspoken voice against Asian hate crimes. …
Aoki: a voice of concern
Better late than never.
While many critics enjoyed the shallow and satiric soap opera of mostly privileged white characters holidaying at an unnamed Hawaii resort in HBO-HBO’Max’s recent mini-series “The White Lotus,” Guy Aoki, founding president of MANAA, has hurled a missive of dissent to the producers for the lack of Asian/Pacific Islanders in prominent lead roles.
MANAA stands for Media Action Network for Asian Amerians, and Aoki –a Japanese American civil rights activist for decades and former island resident — has been a vigilant, powerful critic of movie and TV shows that lack or dismiss diversity in casting.
Guy Aoki
Aoki contends that producer-creator Mike White has treated Asian and Pacific Islanders in Hawaii as invisible servants, just like his white tourist characters, for not tapping locals of Asian and Polynesian descent to reflect the true colors of Hawaii.
“The White Locus,” a six-episode mini-series, premiered on HBO on six successive Sundays, with further streaming via HBO Max. The project was taped at the Four Seasons resort a year ago on Maui, at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, with acting cast, crew and techies taking over the hotel with proper protocols in place, making lemonade out of lemons. That is, by creating an entire “bubble” of film actors and crew, quarantined in facilities open to no one else during the shoot, enabling one production company to work on a project in an uncertain time amid the cloud of COVID-19 which shut down nearly everything else in Hawaii.
By excluding APIs from the project, Aoki contends that White neglected the fact that “APIs make up more than 60 per cent of the population,” and cast white actors and two black/biracial actors in leading roles.
Aoki asserted that “only two members of the hotel staff are APIs with speaking lines. Lani (Jolene Purdy) appears only in the first episode and is then never seen again. Kai (KekoaKekumano), the Hawaiian love interest of Paula, the biracial black tourist (Brittany O’Grady), does not speak until the fourth and fifth episodes. He also just disappears, even when something significant happens to him in the sixth and last installment of the miniseries.”
Aoki concluded that “Lotus,” set on Maui, “is a hollow attempt at promoting its anti-racist message when actions speak louder than words. Given Hawaii’s painful history of suffering at the hands of colonialism and racism, not featuring API characters more prominently in a show addressing the very subject feels like an added injury to an already hemorrhaging wound.”…
Special deal for unticketed Kahele fans
Kuana Torres Kahele, who opens a multi-show stand tomorrow night (Sept. 9) t at Blue Note Hawaii, has added performances on Sept. 12. Robert Cazimero is his special birthday-gift star.
Kuana Torres Kahele
Showtimes are 6 and 8:30 p.m.; doors open at 4:30 and 8 p.m. Tickets are $35 and $25.
The appearances mark Kahale’s Sept. 8 birthday and timed to the arrival of his latest CD, “Kahiwa” in which he has re-recorded 18 classics from his 25-year career of performances and recordings. Pre-orders will received autographed copies of the disc.
But here’s the special deal. If you are already vaccinated, and have proof of receiving the shots, but have not yet secured seats for Kahele’s opening night – as well as for the Sept. 12 shows – you could get free tickets. Reserved and lounge seating are eligible; some space remains for the opener; more seats available for the Sept. 12 show.
The offer only applies to new sales. When ordered at www.bluenotehawaii.com, use the code KUANA for no-charge seats; remember, you must have proof of being vaxxed and show that validation as well as a photo ID. The offer cannot be applied to seats already sold.
Camila Cabello, front, with Idina Menzel, Billy Porter, Nicholas Galitzine, Pierce Brosnan and Minnie Driver.
“Cinderella,” currently screening on Amazon Prime, is a pulsating rendering clearly for the 21st century generation, with a familiar tale retold for the Me-Gen crowd.
It opens with a thumping redo of Janet Jackson’s “Rhythm Nation,” with a dancing hip-hop crowd, quickly providing a wow factor that might surprise traditionalists. No bibbidi-bobbidi-boo here; clearly, this is not your grandma’s Ella.
Camila Cabello, the Cuban-American pop singer, swiftly introduces herself as the titular character, delivering Des’ree’s“You Gotta Be,” setting her personal tone, tempo and theme to come.
As a film musical, it’s a mixed bag of new and old melodies, with the familiar likely to be more popular than the newbies.
As written and directed by Kay Cannon, from an idea by James Corden (he doubles as an exec-producer, and appears as one of mice-turned-coachmen when Ella heads to the ball), the update embraces a woman’s viewpoint of making her own life choices.
Familiar voices and names abound, punctuating values and versatility; it might be hodge-podge, but in the end, it all works because Cabello brings innocence and hope to the party. Yes, she’s the reluctant princess with a penchant for designing gowns, and she’s not interested in becoming a trophy bride. Perhaps not till the finale, anyway.
The ingredients are all here: the stepmother, Vivian, not so wicked in Idina Menzel’s interpretation. And yes, hers is a wholly wonderful vocal instrument, a la her Broadway creds in “Wicked,” but Pierce Brosnan as King Rowan is no better or worse than his “Mamma Mia” stint, but he fits the mold as the rigid royal who lacks ambition. Minnie Driver is Queen Beatrice, who isn’t given much to do, but comes out with the most relevant posture of credibility late in the party.
Galitzine as Prince Robert and Cabello as Cinderella.
Clearly the jewel of the project is Billy Porter as the Fairy Godmother, visually and vocally a piece of skillful work in his gilded finery of a gown.
Since this is a princess tale, not a prince’s story, Nicholas Galitzine as Prince Robert has the dubious task of dimming his headlights, not overshadowing Ella. He’s not a bad singer, however, but the rigidity of the Cinderella plot disallows romantic legitimacy. He goes searching for the midnight maiden, but the quest is reduced to door-knocking, minus damsels trying to get foot into the shoe.
So we mentioned familiar ditties, borrowed hits rebooted with gusto, and retrofitted to fit into the tapestry of the kingdom:
Madonna’s “Material Girl,” the stepmom’s marry-for-money declaration.
Queen’s “Somebody to Love,” Prince Robert’s proclamation that he’d marry for love, not merely an arranged bride.
Earth Wind and Fire’s “Shining Star,” the Fab Godmother’s vehicle to preen, as he/she turns the cinder girl into a saleable sizzler.
Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect,” the romantic anthem shared by Ella and the Prince, before the clock strikes 12;
Salt-N- Pepa with En Vogue’s “Whatta Man,” a crowd women rallying to earn the prince’s hand and wealth.
Jennifer Lopez’s “Let’s Get Loud,” a show-ending livewire to punctuate the happily-ever- after conclusion.
And yes, there are several new tunes in the soundtrack and the one to get on is Cabello’s composition, “Million to One.” It’s likely to be the film’s hit track; it is a made-for-radio, groomed-for-video gem.
Meanwhile, a Cinderella on the London stage
A footnote: there’s another “Cinderella” – a new musical – earning applause in the West End, London.
The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, with collaboration with Emerald Fennell and David Zippel, was shut down at the Gillian Lynne Theatre during the panemic, but returned to action in mid-August.
The cast includes Carrie Hope Fletcher as Cinderella, Ivano Turco as Prince Sebastian, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt as the Stepmother, Caleb Roberts as Prince Charming, and Rebecca Trehearn as the Queen. In time, this one likely will set anchor on Broadway.
