Category: Updates

It was great in its prime, but nothing is forever these days.

So, it’s no surprise that Hank Adaniya’s Hank’s Haute Dogs in the Kewalo area is closing Oct. 17, after a remarkable 17-year run.

I recall lunching there occasionally, while still working at the Honolulu Advertiser a short walk away. Upscale hot dogs — hence a monicker like haute dogs — have always been the draw, though burgers were added to the menu.

Adaniya is formally retiring, but like many retirees these days, he’s likely to reappear in an abbreviated version of his upscale hot dogs…

$2 hot dogs at Consolidated on Tuesdays

Speaking of hot dogs: If you’re a Mahalo Day patron on Tuesdays at Consolidated Theatres, you can buy a standard hot dog (not the overlong dogs at a premium price) for $2.

In case you didn’t know, discounted prices prevail on Tuesdays: $11 admission for all (keiki, adults, seniors) with a small popcorn going for $2 a bag (a petite size, but ample for one, but way cheaper than the regular $8 for a small on other days). You could buy four $2 bags of popcorn on Tuesdays and get a big bang for your bucks. No discounts for drinks, however.

Waffle shop at Koko Marina temporarily closed

La Liégeoise, the waffle shop at the Koko Marina Shopping Center, has temporarily closed.

Strangely, Its website says that the restaurant will reopen in July 2025.

Most patrons don’t remember its name, nor able to pronounce the name.

So closing shop for nearly a year is unusual for any restaurant.

The waffle, made to order while you wait, was OK but It an expensive product, with extra charges for toppings.

 While the store boasted its organic ingredients for the dough that was made in Belgium, you couldn’t really tell in taste.

The shop clearly didn’t do marketing surveys before opening, with a premium product with high prices in a zone lacking in customer traffic. Let’s see if it really opens shop next summer.

My Panya fave still is fabulous

A few nights back, I made it over to Panya, the Asian restaurant at Ward Center, and  had my still-fave, the Shanghai stirred-fried udon entrée,  and yes, ate half and brought the other half for lunch the next day.

Treated myself to a takeout bread pudding, which was satisfying for my sweet tooth, but not as delish as the crème brulee eaten in the restaurant during an earlier visit.

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Hugh Jackman is returning to New York stage weekend performances at Radio City Music Hall, beginning Jan. 24, 2025.

Of course he’s a superstar, of stage and screen, and this gig will not be your ordinary Broadway run.

Wish I could go but there’s time to plan a trip. And Jackman is box office gold, so it’s likely he could have a total sell-out before his first gig.

Sharing the info, in case you want to make a New York visit to see this mega-star on the maxi-stage which is Radio City. The venue has 5,960 seats plus a 150-seat pit, if utilized.

Themed “From New York, With Love,” the shows will be retrospective, curated from Jackman’s catalogue of Broadway and films, including his first New York hit, “The Boy From Oz,” which earned him a Tony Award, and including “The Music Man,” his last stage musical, plus “The Greatest Showman” and “Les Miserables,” his big screen biggie.

Jackson also starred in a West End presentation of “Oklahoma!”   which has been released on DVD, and  also did  “Carousel” off-Broadway.

So, yes, there should be ample familiar fare to croon.

Jackson’s playdates will be on Fridays and Saturdays during select months in 2025:

…Jan. 24 and 25.

…April 18 and 19.

…May 23 and 24.

…June 20 and 21.

…July 18 and 19.

…Aug. 15 and 16.

Radio City is larger than all of the traditional theatrical palaces that  surround Times Square.  Obviously, staging one pair of Friday and Saturday shows spaced out from January to August gives Jackson ample
“off” dates. Only a powerhouse like him could have managed to get a deal like this.

The hall’s orchestra seats are abundant; the venue also boasts a huge three-tiered mezzanine.

I have not taken in any theatrical productions at Radio City, though one spring, I took in an Easter show, and I caught a Christmas special, complete with live animals in a tableau of the manger scene in Bethlehem. The hall’s staging potrential is remarkable; a full orchestra up front can move to the back, then disappear in the pit. In the holiday show, a submerged ice rink appeared with, natch, skaters.

Tickets will be on sale later,  but prospective buyers must register via preferred show dates, at  From New York, With Love, the show’s official website. Starting Oct. 15, use your mobile phone, and you will receive a link where you can purchase seats…

‘Sunset Boulevard’ joins million-dollar club

There’s a newcomer in this week’s Broadway grosses: “Sunset Boulevard,” at No. 10. Otherwise, the leaders led, meaning “Wicked,” “The Lion King” and “Hamilton” topped the charts.

The Top 10:

 1—”Wicked,”  $2.046 million

 2—”The Lion King,” $1.902 million

3—”Hamilton,” $1.675 million

 4—”The Outsiders,” $1.405 million

5—”Hell’s Kitchen,” $1.389 million

 6—”Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” $1.381 million

 7—”MJ The Musical,” $1.227, million

 8—”Oh, Mary!,” $1.176 million

 9—”Aladdin,” $1.077 million

10—”Sunset Boulevard” $1.075 million

The complete list, courtesy the Broadway League:

And that’s Show Biz…

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Daniel Dae Kim, the actor and producer known for two Island-filmed TV series – ABC’s “Lost” and CBS’ “Hawaii Five-0” – will executive produce  “Makawalu,”  an indie feature film initiated by the Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF).

The project will be wholly created and co-directed by eight Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) filmmakers. 

Kim, who is currently starring on Broadway in David Henry Hwang’s “Yellow Face” farce at the Todd Haimes Theatre through Nov. 24, will be involved in what stacks up to be the largest budgeted indie project filmed here, according to Deadline, which broke the news. A figure has not been announced.

Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), the Asian American Foundation (TAAF), and Pacific Islanders in Communication (PIC), “Makawalu” is attracting 90 per cent of funding resources outside of Hawaii, with a team of eight filmmakers attached to the project: Justyn Ah Chong, Taylour Chang, Ty Sanga, Ciara Lacy, Āina Paikai, Erin Lau, Scott W. Kekama Amona and Katherine Wong . They comprise a network of skilled Kanaka Maoli (indigenous people of Hawaii or Hawaiians or native Hawaiians) talent.

“’Makawalu’ represents an important step in recognizing Native Hawaiian filmmakers and the power of their stories. As someone who’s worked with this talented group firsthand, it’s been an honor to be able to amplify their voices and help this project come to life,” said Kim in a statement.

Currently in pre-production, the feature starts shooting in spring 2025 for an early 2026 release.

First presented in 2021, the “Makawalu” project involved an extensive selection process after which the eight filmmakers participated in a five-day filmmaker lab and retreat in Honolulu with high-profile industry mentors. 

Kim has been all over the map in several genres since exiting the pair of isle-filmed shows. He portrayed the King of Siam in “The King and I” in London and on Broadway. As a producer, he launched “The Good Doctor” on ABC. Kim has been a Hawaii resident for nearly two decades, traveling often for his Mainland roles, and he’s one of the most talented actors-turned-producers in the industry.

Clearly, he’s been huddling with industry figures as Sean Baker (“Anora”). Sarah Wayne Callies (“The Walking Dead”) and Dana Ledoux Miller (co-writer and co-director of Disney’s forthcoming ”Moana 2.”)

Other producers  include Sundance alum Sarah S. Kim (“August At Akiko’s”), and HIFF artistic director Anderson Le. John Cheng of 3AD Media will also executive produce. 

“Makawalu”  tells the story of a typical July 4th luau on the island of Oahu through eight different perspectives. The word Makawalu, in modern Olelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language) terminology, references “different perspectives of a situation.” 

“The filmmakers crafted a layered screenplay that will unpack many ongoing issues that modern Native Hawaiians face,” said HIFF’s Le. “From the exotification of Native Hawaiian culture in Hollywood media, to the repercussions of American colonization through capitalism and militarization of Hawai‘i, ‘Makawalu’ explores what it means to be ‘Hawaiian’, being priced out of ‘paradise’, all on U.S. Independence Day.”

Beckie Stocchetti, HIFF executive director and “Makawalu” executive producer, said: “The intention of the ‘Makawalu’ project is to provide an opportunity and access for these groundbreaking filmmakers to have full ownership over the telling of their story from their perspective. In order to make that happen we also needed to fundamentally change the traditional financing structure of independent film.”

Casting details have not yet been finalized.

Since the production is funded and ready to shoot in early 2025, HIFF is simultaneously launching the HIFF Studios, to support independent film productions in Hawaii, with a suite of support of financing, legal, and artist development programs to increase career opportunities and develop an industry pipeline for Hawaiian and Pacific Islander creatives…

And that’s Show Biz…

Jack Cione, an extraordinary entrepreneur and a legendary showman with multiple careers, was 96 when he died peacefully in his sleep on Oct. 1 at the Arcadia residence for seniors.

In the last chapter of his life, Cione was best known as the producer, director and choreographer of the popular “Follies” staged by and at Arcadia, expressly for residents and their guests. His finale, entitled “Copacabana,” was a sellout Sept. 6 through 8.

Thus, the general public wouldn’t know much about this significant and scintillating wedge of his life. Cione was an Arcadian for 20 years, trading his previous condos to officially join the senior generation and play out his last years.

His colleagues, who starred in the inspiring “Follies” vehicle, were privy  to a gentle giant who was a workaholic who turned non-performers into stage stars.

In the nearly 50 years I’ve chronicled his endeavors, I discovered Cione always did things his way. In death, he still was calling the shots.

Thus, there will be no memorial service, one of his last requests. His body has been donated to the John A. Burns School of Medicine.

“A humble individual, he wanted to leave quietly,” said Yvonne H.C. Toma, a colleague who regularly performed in the “Follies” and was Cione’s assistant director  for 13 years whose role included transferring Cione’s hand-written script, composed aboard a sea cruise he adored, to the computer.

“We felt blessed he walked through our lives and know he is at peace and orchestrating fantastic productions with awesome costumes in heaven,” said Toma.

In an August phone conversation, Cione told me, “Everything’s wrong with me,”  referring to chronic pain, heart  and mobility issues. He had spent eight weeks in Kuakini Hospital and was relieved to be back home.

At that point, his last “Follies” was looming, and he confessed, “This is my last one.”

Arcadians will tell you that a  Cione production would not be perfect without showgirls (and guys) decked out in bejeweled costumes, often put together with glue gun and old Arcadia sheets repurposed into gowns by Cione.

The sisterhood at Arcadia had tons of memories.

Anne Hedani said, “My first memory of involvement in Arcadia’s ‘Follies’ was one of pain..blisters and burns from a hot glue gun. Jack knew I wasn’t ready to walk across a stage, so he put me to work mending long feathered capes with a huge hot glue gun.  It wasn’t much fun, but the following year I made my way to sitting on the stage waving my seaweed arms.  By then Jack knew I was valuable in the costume department, so he kept me happy doing group dances.”

Toma said, “The longer I got to know Jack I got to know him as a brilliant person, always wanting the best for us and making us look good on stage. As a first timer performing, Jack treated me with respect and patience, supportive of my feelings and (he) understood where I was coming from. He never told me I was ‘awful’ and he only gave positive comments, ‘Do it again.”

Toma was blessed with a revelation, when Cione rehearsing the last “Follies,” that he was mentoring her to prep her to inherit the directorship of the show. “It was so touching to be told he was passing his torch to me and had the confidence that I could do it.”

Elva Yoshihara said his cast loved him.  “It was his true kindness, his thoughtfulness and genuineness that made him so special. I consider him the most unforgettable character I ever met. He would see the slightest detail, which when corrected would make a difference in the whole scene.  Nothing missed his sharp eyes.  Even at this last Follies and he was truly tired and obviously ailing. I happened to walk by him on the way to the stage, and he called out to me, ‘Elva, where’s your  bracelet?’

Yoshihara added, negative press about Cione’s earlier life of naked men and women didn’t acknowledge that these ventures from his past reflected “the business side of him. He knew what would sell and he knew when to pull out; he had impeccable timing when it came to business.”

She recalled an incidence when he had to pass through backstage , where women were all changing, he never once looked up as he passed through as others have. “He kept his eyes focused on his mission. He never touched us, ever, and he had good reason to if he wanted, as he oversaw all the costumes. People have no idea of that side of him.  He is just pictured in another way.”

Cione and his wife Maydelle (now deceased) came from Phoenix AZ — where they operated a dozen Arthur Murray-style dance studios — to Hawaii for their honeymoon. The Ciones loved the islands and never left.

His early fame – what most folks remember – was operating a string of nightlife clubs like the Dunes on Nimitz Highway, Forbidden City at the entrance to Waikiki and Le Boom Boom club in the International Market Place.

At the Dunes, he featured legit acts like Judy Garland, Pearl Bailey, and Wayne Newton before they became show biz legends, and Cione gained international fame when he switched policies to launch a Naked Waiter luncheon show, marketed to lure workforce women to cheer and applaud when their waiters dropped trous and hit the stage during lunch hour in the 1970s.

Forbidden City was essentially a strip club, where the likes of Tempest Storm did her gyrations, though actor Sal Mineo starred in “Fortune and Men’s Eyes” in 1970.

Le Boom Boom was essentially a dance production with exotic women, clad in flashy costumes.

Cione also staged a “Follies” show, originating at the Pearl Harbor Officer’s Club, at the esteemed Royal Hawaiian Hotel Monarch Room, complete with Las Vegas-style plumes, glitter and rhinestones.

From the 1960s to the ‘80s, Cione operated a variety of night spots, all over Waikiki, most with risqué fare. So, he became a hot entity on the liquor commission agenda, and I remember him  back in the day, when he would call the papers or TV stations that he would be arrested…to achieve publicity. The laws, prior to statehood, didn’t flag nudity in nighttime shows, so the rules had to be updated.

Cione always had a flair for themed shows, so he generated all-Asian, all-Black and even an ice show.

With clubs in his past, he turned to authoring, penning “What Do You Say to a Naked Waiter?” all about the making and marketing of his Dunes noontime attraction. The mid-‘70s book, was a must-see, must-read for many (it was sold on Amazon), and this opened a new career for Cione: luncheon speaker.

In 2014, Cione did another book, “Repotting Can Be Such a Bitch,” the repotting referring to a change in life and livelihood.  The contents include remembrances of his glorious past as an entertainer himself as well as his brushes with the famous over his 50-year career.

He felt he had one more volume in his veins, a revisit to the naked waiters,  which included nude phots of the servers plus a sex-survey with women commenting on their sex lives.  It wasn’t a book worth doing – he showed me the text – and I advised him not to publish the book, for fear of damage and impact on the waiters who by then were aging adults and families.

Cioneis survived by his son Stephan and daughter-in-law Anne.

And that’s Show Biz…