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December 7th, 1941. You are dozing in your barracks, trying to recover from a Saturday night out on the big town of Honolulu. You still have your dress pants on as you snore away the previous night’s dancing. Christmas is coming and there are a lot of parties to attend.
Fifty-one airplanes were on the ground at Hickam, the headquarters of the Hawaii Air Force. A flight of twelve B-17 Flying Fortresses en-route from California to the Philippines was expected that morning. Due to weight considerations, none of the B-17s were armed and were low on fuel after the long haul across the water. |
 Dawn is breaking |
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 Ready to roll |
At 8:40am the Japanese struck Hickam, and by 9:45 the attack was over. Many of the B-17s were on the ground at the airfield; some were forced to attempt to land elsewhere. One enterprising pilot, forced away from Bellows, landed on the fairway of the Kahuku Golf Course. In all ten of the B-17s survived the attack, a bit worse for wear, and went on to play a vital role in the war in the Pacific.
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 The enlisted men's barracks today In the course of an hour, Hickam’s casualties totaled 121 men killed, 274 wounded and 37 missing. As many buildings on base were destroyed, the Honolulu Fire Department’s Kalihi and Palalma stations responded to battle the blaze in the hangars. The enlisted men’s barracks had been repeatedly strafed and bombed, the devastation can still be seen today in the walls. Where bullets went through the walls the holes are now framed in what is currently office space. |
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 Honor Guard
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Today, sixty-nine years later, many people do not know that Hickam also fell on that day. So much press has been given to Pearl Harbor, and rightly so as they had huge loss of life, while little has been said about the other attacks. The Japanese forces took out Kaneohe, Bellows, Hickam and other airfields around Oahu first as insurance that no aircraft would give chase during the second wave of attacks on Pearl Harbor Shipyard. |
| Attending the ceremony was extremely moving for me personally. My father Lynn was a Navy pilot in WW II, his brother Newt was an Army Air Forces pilot who was shot down and held prisoner of war by the Japanese. My mother’s brother, 1st Lt. James E. Roach was killed while faithfully serving his country in the U.S. Air Force.
 Taps
The best way I can describe this is in pictures as I’m at a loss for words today. I have a photoset up here .
Thank you to our Military for all your service in keeping my country safe. God bless you and our beautiful America. Aloha,
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Tag-Archive for ◊ hawaii history ◊
Let’s visit Kawaiahaʻo Church! |
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In the midst of all the hustle and bustle of the Hawaii Government buildings sits the tranquil Kawaiaha’o Church and cemetery. Constructed between 1836 and 1842, the church was commissioned by the regency of Ka’ahumanu during the reigns of King Kamehameha II and King Kamehameha III. At the same time in the islands, the Roman Catholic Diocese began construction of The Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace in an effort to lure souls away from the Congregational Church. |
 Kawaiahaʻo Church |
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 King Lunalilo's Mausoleum Fountain |
Four thatched churches stood at or near the present site before construction of the stone church. The church was constructed by Hawaiian divers with hand tools, quarrying beneath the ocean over 14,000 pound slabs of coral rock from an offshore reef on the southern coast of Oahu.
Chiefs of the Hawaiian Islands as well as the members of the royal dynasties attended services there until it was replaced by the The headstones in the graveyard read like the “Who’s Who” of Hawaii movers and shakers. The lineage from the Castle and Cooke families are buried here as well as the descendants of others comprising the high society of Honolulu.
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 No Dates, no Name. Who is "The Baby"? There are a lot of mysteries to uncover as you stroll around the graveyard. Unmarked graves of the ancient Hawaiian’s have been found here, as well as headstones such as “The Baby”. Who is buried under these cryptic markers is anyone’s guess and lost in time forever. The Mission Houses across the street from the church was the home of the clergy and remains to this day the site of the Oldest Frame House in the islands. The current Museum houses the Café Tea Parlor, which just happens to be one of my favorite little Downtown oasis! |
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Parking is metered and available on the street, which can be a challenge and take a LONG time to find… But it’s worth searching for an open spot.
 She couldn't find parking! So if you want to stroll back in time and learn more about Hawaii’s royal past, head on into town and spend some time at Kawaiahao Church. You’ll be glad you did !
Aloha,
 Honolulu Hale from King Lunalilo's Crypt |
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Diamond Head Theater Acts Up! |
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In October I took a backstage tour of Diamond Head Theater hosted by Artistic Director John Rampage to learn about the history of the theater here in Hawaii. The third-oldest, continuously operating theatre in the entire United States has a long history of community involvement through the art of theater. The “Broadway of the Pacific” is located on the slopes of Diamond Head in Honolulu and boasts thousands of volunteers to make this the jewel of the region’s theater. |
 Lights! Curtains! Action! |
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 Please be seated! |
Primarily started as a Ladies’ social club, “The Footlights” membership was comprised of Honolulu societies crème de la crème. These affluent women met at each other’s homes to read plays they had written. Men were not allowed to join! On April 28, 1915, the ladies put on the play “The Amazons” by Pinero. Staged at the Honolulu Opera House, the cast was made up of some of the Grande Dames of Honolulu: Mrs. Walter F. Dillingham, Helen Alexander, and Margaret Center. The Opera House was located where the main Post Office on Merchant Street now stands.
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 "The Mikado" 1935 production In the early 1930’s the name was changed to the Honolulu Community Theater and produced their first musical: Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado.
During World War II, Honolulu Community Theater productions entertained thousands of troops with over 300 performances throughout the Pacific. Wartime curfews were enforced and cast and crew had to get special permits from the Honolulu Police Department to be allowed out and about after dark on Oahu.
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 The crew moves the Stage sets into the old Ft. Ruger Movie Theater |
In 1952 the Theater moved to the Army’s Fort Ruger Movie Theater at the foot of Diamond Head. In those early years the space was so small that stage sets had to be constructed across the street and moved by hand over to the theater.
Many years of expansion and construction to add on scene and costume shops, installation of lighting and sound systems, handicapped-accessible restrooms, lobby and an upstairs addition for expanded office space followed. In 1990 Honolulu Community Theater became Diamond Head Theater, the name it retains to this day. |
| DHT provides acting, voice and dance classes for children, teens, and adults throughout the year. Many famous people got their start trotting the boards of the Diamond Head stage, including Hawaii’s own Bette Midler ! You can see more photos from the tour here.
The Theater offers six productions a season, including five musicals. So there really is no excuse not to go see a piece of Hawaii history come alive: it’s all there for you at the foot of Diamond Head! Artistic Director John Rampage tells us the history of the theater (Apologies for the lousy sound, I need to get a lavalier microphone)
See you in the footlights, Biz |
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