Don Ho Biography

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Don Ho
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For the past 40 years, Don Ho has become the top entertainer from te 50th State. This native Hawaiian came into his own about 1962, the year he took the stage at the popular Duke’s nightclub in Waikiki and never looked back. As the 21st century moves along, Mr. Ho is still at the top of his game and still about as close to being Hawaii’s “chairman of the board," as Mr. Sinatra was for most of his career in the continental 48 states. Don was born in Honolulu with an ethnic background that included Hawaiian, of course, but also includes Chinese, Portugese, Dutch and German. His family moved from Honolulu to a small Oahu town called Kaneohe and he later got his early start in music at a club called Honey’s, named after his mother. After his stint in the Air Force, he took over the club and began working to return it to its World War II glory now that it had become an almost deserted club. He was hiring talented musicians for shows and learning from them while working on creating an image of his own. It all jelled in 1962 when Duke's brought him in, this engagement turning into records and television shows as he developed into the state’s most popular entertainer. He did not do it alone, though, as his backing group, the Five Aliis, helped put him out front. The band consisted of piano, drums, two guitars, xylophone and a variety of other instruments they all doubled on. Don Ho had become a capable Hammond organist and that's where he sat, played and talked to the crowds coming in. And that’s also where he sat with a glass of scotch in one hand, a cigarette in the other and worked up the audience with his soon-to-be patented “Suck ‘em up," cajoling the crowd into drinking along with him. Before long, crowds of tourists as well as locals joined him and soon even visiting Hollywood stars would be in the audience and waiting for Don to invite them to the stage. (Don Ho quit both drinking and smoking more than 15 years ago). He took on a stateside tour in 1966, starring at the Coconut Grove Club in Hollywood for two weeks, an engagement that saw him break attendance records for the club with sold out houses every night. He subsequently played major clubs in Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, Chicago, New York, guested on the Johnny Carson Tonight Show, hosted a television special and made hot-selling records for the Reprise label. Years later, he was still making occasional tours to the lower 48. After many television appearances, he gained a role in a movie, the 1996 film "Joe's Apartment." The past few years has also seen him featured on the History, Discovery and Travel cable channels and in 2001 he was the subject of a feature piece in the Los Angeles Times. In 1988, he opened his own restaurant, Don Ho’s Island Grill, in Honolulu. But it was still his native Hawaii that served as home base for this popular entertainer. He is now appearing five nights a week at the Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel, a huge beach-front hotel and continuing to bring in hordes of tourists anxious to sample the laid back verve of this long time star. His shows have even brought visiting younger rock and pop stars to the audience. Don shows his tourist crowds the old sign of the welcome, Aloha, with thumb and pinky finger extended. He says it means "family" in Hawaii but laughs and says "At least it did when I was growing up. Nowadays to the kids, it just means hang loose."

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