Don Ho

Don Ho, Hawaii's most famous entertainer, claims Hawaiian, Chinese, Portuguese, German, and Dutch ancestry. He attended Springfield (Mass.) College for a year, but returned home and earned a B.S. from the University of Hawaii. After a stint in the Air Force where he flew C-97 jets, Ho bought a restaurant on Oahu. For entertainment, he grabbed a few friends and started a band. He admits he was terrible at first, but steadily improved until he was good enough to play the Waikiki clubs and hotels. He is best known for the mellow but catchy song “Tiny Bubbles.” He hosted The Don Ho Show (1976–1977) on ABC, and had cameo roles on such TV shows as The Brady Bunch, Charlie's Angels, Batman, and I Dream of Jeannie. His big-screen credit was as the evil landlord in Joe's Apartment (1996), in which he costarred with singing and dancing cockroaches. Ho continues to appear in Waikiki and on tour. His daughter Hoku is also a singer and her song “Perfect Day” was used in the Reese Witherspoon film Legally Blonde.