Hawaii Five-0 Coming Back at You?

August 13th, 2008

It looks like “Hawaii Five-0” will be a TV series again next (’09-’10) year.  (When the official announcement is made, look for headlines in the entertainment sections that carry the words “Book it!”)  For those of us Hawaii residents who watched the show reflect our islands so favorably to the rest of the world in the 12 years between 1968 and 1980, that’s great news.

Other series that were set in the islands (notably “Hawaiian Eye,” 1959-1963) had been filmed on Hollywood lots, but what you saw in “5-0” was the real thing: the beaches, the scenery and the lifestyle.  It was, in fact, the first television show to originate from Hawaii.  (Note: Hawaii had been a state for only nine years before the show’s run started.)

Oh, sure, we made fun of some of the expedient short cuts (A car might take a left from Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki and suddenly be driving along the North Shore Oahu coastline).  We cringed at the over-the-top plots and the stiffness of the acting.  Some of us deplored the violence and the suggestion that we got along with attitudes demonstrating something less than “aloha.”   But we loved the show because it showed you the “real” Hawaii.  Fans of the show, when polled, listed the authenticity and beauty of the scenery as its number-one draw.  “Magnum P.I.,” which came along following McGarrett and company, was prettier, but it was more plot and character-driven, eschewing perfunctory settings and scenery that might attract visitors to our state.

The Hawaii travel industry sees such shows as having a two-pronged favorable effect.  The shows themselves let potential visitors see almost first-hand what this place is actually like, and the islands’ burgeoning film industry happily offers tax breaks and other incentives to those who consider island locations for their locally-lucrative productions.

Who knows?  Maybe a new slew of up-and-coming (and down-and-going) actors will follow in the paths of Edward Asner, Buddy Ebsen, Andy Griffith, Helen Hayes, Rich Little, Dina Merrill, Ricardo Montalban, Victoria Principal, John Ritter, Marion Ross and Christopher Walken, all of whom were among the scores of “5-0” guest stars.

Check the listings in your local paper when the ‘09-‘10 TV season gets underway.

Posted by Jim Winpenny

Entry Filed under: Uncategorized