Don Ho
Don Ho was a celebrated Hawaiian entertainer known for his engaging performances and musical contributions that spanned over fifty years. Born on August 13, 1930, in Honolulu, Hawaii, Ho's diverse ancestry included Hawaiian, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch, and German roots. His early experiences in his family's cocktail lounge helped shape his musical career, where he initially learned to play the ukulele and formed a band that eventually gained popularity. Ho's signature style, characterized by a relaxed demeanor and charming rapport with audiences, made him a beloved figure both in Hawaii and on the mainland.
He gained widespread recognition in the 1960s, performing at renowned venues in Waikiki and beyond, including his long-term engagement at Duke's. His music, which blended traditional Hawaiian elements with contemporary influences, featured hits like "Tiny Bubbles" and "I'll Remember You." In addition to his live performances, Ho made numerous television appearances and recorded several successful albums. He was acknowledged for his contributions to Hawaiian music with various awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hawaii Academy of Recording Artists.
Despite facing health challenges in his later years, Ho remained a vibrant part of Hawaii's entertainment scene until his passing on April 14, 2007. His legacy continues to resonate, with ongoing efforts to document his life and work, highlighting his role as an ambassador of Hawaiian culture and music.
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Subject Terms
Don Ho
Entertainer and singer
- Born: August 13, 1930
- Place of Birth: Honolulu, Hawaii
- Died: April 14, 2007
- Place of Death: Honolulu, Hawaii
Don Ho, an iconic Hawaiian entertainer, performed to sold-out audiences for more than fifty years in various Hawaiian nightclubs and on the mainland. He also appeared in several television shows.
Areas of achievement: Entertainment, music
Early Life
Donald “Don” Tai Loy Ho, the iconic Hawaiian entertainer, was known for his relaxed style and his easy banter with the audience. Ho was born on August 13, 1930, in the Kaka’ako neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii. Of Hawaiian, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch, and German ancestry, he was one of nine children born to James Ah You Ho and Emily Lemaile Silva, who was affectionately known as Honey.
In the early 1930s, his parents moved the family to Kaneohe, where his parents opened a cocktail lounge called Honey’s. Kaneohe would be Ho’s musical playground, learning ukulele from a friend and listening to the jukebox at Honey’s. Later, he would learn to play the Hammond organ and begin his entertainment career at the family’s nightclub.
Because Kaneohe was near a marine base, when war broke out in 1941, the family welcomed many of the young sailors to its lounge. Honey’s quickly became a popular gathering spot for men and women from the base. Eventually, the family expanded Honey’s, finding a new location not far from the original one.
Near the end of the war, in 1945, Ho entered Kamehameha School and showed an interest in sports rather than music. He graduated high school a football star in 1949 and moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, to attend Springfield College. After one year, however, he became homesick and returned to Hawaii.
After he returned, he married Melvamay Kolokea Wong, his high school sweetheart, on November 22, 1951. Eventually, they would become the parents of six children, and Ho would father another four with friend Elizabeth Guevara.
Ho completed his sociology degree in 1954 at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Following college, he served as a fighter pilot for the US Air Force during the Korean War and was honorably discharged in 1959, with the rank of first lieutenant.
Life’s Work
When Ho returned home, he knew that Honey’s no longer drew the crowds it had during the war years. His father encouraged him to entertain the customers and form a band. Ho had never considered himself a musician but did invite some friends to join him in forming a band. Ho played softly at first, since he felt he was not a good musician. Learning from others as he went along, Ho would soon take more and more of the spotlight, becoming a major draw with his easy style, his pleasing voice, and his rapport with the audience. Honey’s quickly became a popular spot once again.
While Ho was performing at Honey’s, he met a rising composer, Kui Lee, with whom he would collaborate on many of his well-known songs. Among them were “I’ll Remember You,” “Ain’t No Big Thing Bruddah,” and “Suck ‘Em up,” which became one of Ho’s signature songs. Because Ho’s popularity was increasing at Honey’s and his style appealed to tourists as well as locals, he attracted the attention of promoters of Waikiki establishments.
Although he had played at Queen’s Surf and other Waikiki locations a few times, it was not until 1962 that Ho began his Waikiki career in earnest. Ho received a long-term contract from Duke’s in Waikiki. Centrally located at the International Market Place, Duke’s was the perfect venue for Ho, who was joined by his new band, the Aliis. The Aliis quickly became popular among the tourists and locals alike, due in part to Ho’s charisma, melodious voice, and hapa haole (part-Hawaiian, part-foreign) music.
Ho’s reputation as a must-see entertainer grew, eventually leading to brief engagements in cities outside of Hawaii. His first mainland performance was in 1965 at Club Bora Bora in San Francisco. In 1966, his show opened at the Coconut Grove in Hollywood. A sold-out crowd greeted him on his opening night, which broke previous attendance records at the Hollywood site. His entire two-week engagement was sold out. He was signed up for a return engagement and received offers from several other venues, including the Sands in Las Vegas, Harrah’s in Reno, and Palmer House in Chicago.
Ho also guest-starred on many television shows, including Batman, Tonight, Life Goes on, The Conan O’Brien Show, and Live with Regis and Kathy. Many television series that filmed episodes in Hawaii featured Ho and his show. These included The Brady Bunch, Charlie’s Angels, and I Dream of Jeannie. Eventually, Ho was offered a show of his own, The Don Ho Show, which aired on the ABC network in 1976–77. The half-hour variety show featured Ho and such celebrity guests as television actress Lucille Ball, singer Tony Bennett, comedian Redd Foxx, performer Connie Stevens, and Hawaii stars Hilo Hattie and Sam Kapu Jr. Ho made his motion-picture debut in the 1996 film Joe’s Apartment.
In addition to his live shows, Ho recorded several albums. His first, The Don Ho Show, was released in 1965 by Reprise Records. Several subsequent albums were released, mostly through Reprise Records or Ho’s own label, Honey Records. More than fifteen of Ho’s recordings were best sellers. Ho became particularly known for his 1966 song “Tiny Bubbles,” a fan favorite he performed to open and close all of his shows.
Despite declining record sales after the late 1960s, Ho continued to record and produce others’ work through Honey Records. Because of his work in the music and entertainment field, Ho was recognized in 1979 with a Na Hoku Hanohano Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hawaii Academy of Recording Artists. He was also named Salesman of the Century by Sales and Marketing Executives of Hawaii in 2000.
The late 1990s brought significant changes to Ho’s life. In 1998, Ho took on a new challenge, opening a restaurant called Don Ho’s Island Grill with some associates. The restaurant featured local and aspiring entertainers in Hawaii. One of the newcomers to Hawaii’s entertainment scene was Ho’s daughter, Hoku, with whom he recorded a duet single in 1998. Ho’s wife, Melvamay, died the following year.
Ho developed heart problems later in his life. He had a pacemaker installed and, in 2005, underwent experimental stem-cell surgery in Bangkok, Thailand. On September 10, 2006, he married his associate and partner Haumea Hebenstreit. He died of heart failure a few months later, on April 14, 2007.
Significance
For many, Ho was an ambassador of Hawaiian music. Ho’s career began about the time the US territory of Hawaii became a state, when music was changing and tourism increased. His collaboration with Kui Lee helped to promote a new generation of the Hawaiian musical genre that incorporated Hawaiian themes with the more contemporary beat of the early 1960s.
Yet, upon Lee’s death in 1966, Ho continued to bring that easy style to his performances in Waikiki and kept the music alive. Despite all of his national exposure and television appearances, Ho still preferred doing live entertainment. For ten years, Ho entertained at Duke’s in Waikiki, three times a night for five nights each week. He went on to entertain at Cinerama Reef Towers’ Polynesian Palace for another ten years.
Ho’s career in Waikiki lasted nearly forty-five years, with one of the longest continuous shows in Hawaii, and his entire entertainment career spanned more than fifty years in all. When he died, Ho’s obituary was featured in publications across the country and around the world. In 2024, a documentary about his life was in development. Aaron Kaufman, director of Superpower, a documentary about Ukraine's fight against invading Russia, was set to direct.
Bibliography
Bolante, Ronna, and Michael Keany. “Fifty Greatest Songs of Hawai’i.” Honolulu 61.12. (June 2007): 44–82. Print.
Ho, Don. “Making Connections: Stories of Three Generations II.” Chicken Soup From the Soul of Hawai’i: Stories of Aloha to Create Paradise Wherever You Are. Ed. Jack Canfield, et al. Deerfield Beach: Health Communications, 2003. Print.
Ho, Don, and Jerry Hopkins. Don Ho: My Music, My Life. Honolulu: Watermark, 2007. Print.
Kuznikov, Selena. "Hawaiian Pop Musician Don Ho Gets Documentary Treatment from 'Superpower' Director Aaron Kaufman (Exclusive)." Variety, 17 July 2024, variety.com/2024/film/news/don-ho-documentary-aaron-kaufman-1236076156/. Accessed 20 Aug. 2024.