Tag Archives: Hawaii Five-0

Hawaii Five-0 Television Series Returns to Hawaii

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The Hawaii Five-0 television series ran from 1968 to 1980. Filmed in Hawaii, the show featured the fictional Hawaii State Police whose offices were in the Iolani Palace in Honolulu. The show drew an increase in tourists to Hawaii despite the violent crime in each show.

We have been watching the shows newly released on DVD. From the pilot show through season 7 we watched the cast and landscape of Hawaii change. Waikiki, Diamond Head and Honolulu look very different now though the Kahala Inn looks much the same.  The most fun is to see the places we visit when we are on island.

Over the years a series revival has been discussed. So far, no solid announcements have been made.

What stories do you have about the Hawaii Five-0 show, cast, crew or location? Log in a share your tales. Book ’em, Danno!

Noel Williams & Jack Lord

Noel Williams & Jack Lord

Hawaii Five-0 Book Em Chin Ho Honolulu Hawaii

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We stopped by Diamond Head Memorial Park to pay our respects to Kam Fong who played Chin Ho Kelly on Hawaii Five-0. The cemetery sits at the base of Diamond Head and next to Kapiolani Community College.

The head stone appeared milky colored and hard to read as the morning dew clung to the inside of the plexiglass shield protecting the etching. The Hawaii Five-0 logo is engraved on the right side of the headstone.

While Kam Fong was perhaps best known for his appearance on Hawaii Five-0, his movie credits include “Gidget Goes Hawaiian,” “Ghost of the China Sea,” “Seven Women from Hell,” and “Diamond Head.”

We are excited to hear CBS is reviving and updating the Hawaii Five-0 series with Alex O’Loughlin as
Steve McGarrett, Scott Caan as Danny “Danno” Williams, Daniel Dae Kim as Chin Ho Kelly and Grace Park
as Kono Kalakaua. Book ’em, Danno!

Here is a video of our visit to Kam Fong’s grave at Diamond Head Memorial Park.

So You Think You Know Hawaiian History?

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We travel to Hawaii often and likely know more about Hawaiian history than the casual tourist to the islands. Our visits include stops at cultural and history sights important to making Hawaii the diverse location that it is. Then we met Richard Wong, tour guide for Ohana Tours. When our friends at Ohana Tours heard about our love of history and Honolulu they invited us to check out the weekend walking tour of the downtown area. We took our ohana (family) to meet Richard on a recent Sunday morning.

Our adventure began in downtown Honolulu in front of the golden Kamehameha Statue in the heart of the city. You can see this statue on the Hawaii state quarters released as part of the state series. For the next two hours Richard shared history of Hawaiian culture, religion, politics and people. As history buffs ourselves, we were overwhelmed by the detailed stories our guide shared with us. Richard is a gifted story teller. His vivid words and smooth delivery made the tales come alive for us. Drawing on a long career as a Honolulu police officer, he personalized his tales with accounts from his time on the force.

We found another link between us and our guide. To bring the islands to us when we are in the Midwest, we started watching the Hawaii 5-0 television series starting at the pilot. I get chills every time I hear the Hawaii Five-0 theme song playing. The show ran for 12 years from 1968 to 1080 and was filmed in Hawaii. The second floor of the Iolani Palace was the fictional state police headquarters. Many scenes were filmed at the iconic Ilikai Hotel in Waikiki overlooking Duke Kahanamoku’s Lagoon and the Honolulu Marina. Richard worked security during many of these shoots and shared stories of the cast and crew. He even had a few on screen parts.

You can read more about our tour on the www.808talk.com article. Listen to how Richard started out our tour below. If you are  staying in Honolulu over a weekend, check out Ohana Tours for information or reservations.